Circe Circe (; grc, , ) is an Magician (paranormal), enchantress and a minor goddess in ancient Greek mythology and Ancient Greek religion, religion. She is either a daughter of the Titans, Titan Helios and the Oceanid nymph Perse (mythology), Perse ...

, an enchantress and minor goddess in

Greek mythology A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the Ancient Greece, ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the Cosmogony, origin and Cosmology#Metaphysical co ...

, appears often in 20th and 21st century

popular culture Popular culture (also called mass culture or pop culture) is generally recognized by members of a society as a set of practices, beliefs, artistic output (also known as, popular art or mass art) and objects that are dominant or prevalent in a ...

, either under her own name or as a sorceress with similar powers under others. Post-Classical amplifications and reinterpretations of that story and others involving her are dealt with in the main article. The instances mentioned here are more recent allusions and adaptations.

Literature

James Joyce James Augustine Aloysius Joyce (2 February 1882 – 13 January 1941) was an Irish novelist, poet, and literary critic. He contributed to the modernist avant-garde movement and is regarded as one of the most influential and important writers of ...

's 1922 novel ''Ulysses'' includes a chapter based on Homer's Circe episode (see Ulysses (novel)#Episode 15, Circe) in which a brothel owner named

Bella Cohen This is a list of characters from ''Ulysses'' by James Joyce. Principal characters * Leopold Bloom is a protagonist and hero in Joyce's ''Ulysses''. His peregrinations and encounters in Dublin on 16 June 1904 mirror, on a more mundane and inti ...

is loosely based on the classical Circe. *In John Myers Myers's 1949 novel '' Silverlock'', Circe turns the main character into a pig due to his proclivity for food and fornication. *Although

Julio Cortázar Julio Florencio Cortázar (26 August 1914 – 12 February 1984; ) was an Argentine, nationalized French novelist, short story writer, essayist, and translator. Known as one of the founders of the Latin American Boom, Cortázar influenced an ent ...

titled one of his short stories "Circe" (1951), its main theme is about perverse sexual gratification in a repressed Catholic environment. Delia Mañara is notorious in her quarter of

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

for the mysterious deaths of two of her fiancés. She lives in a twilight world and gains most satisfaction through the exercise of power over others. It emerges that she killed the two men by poisoning them with the sweets she makes; when this fails with her third fiancé, he is freed from her fatal attraction by the knowledge. In 1964 it was made into a film in Argentina with

Graciela Borges Graciela Borges (; born Graciela Noemí Zabala, June 10, 1941) is an Argentine television and film actress. Borges was born in Dolores. Having made her film debut at 14, she has acted in over fifty films and was featured in 2006 in ''Vogue P ...

as Delia. *In 1992 novel ''

The Brothers K ''The Brothers K'' is a 1992 novel by David James Duncan, an author, fisherman, and environmental advocate from the Pacific Northwest. It builds on the sporting and spiritual themes of ''The River Why'', Duncan's first book, but on a much larger c ...

'' by

David James Duncan David James Duncan (born 1952)
at Southwest Collection/Special Collections Library,

...

, Everett has an extended sexual encounter with a woman named Circe. At one point she shows him a mirror and he sees himself as a pig in his reflection. *Circe appears in

Dan Simmons Dan Simmons (born April 4, 1948) is an American science fiction and horror writer. He is the author of the Hyperion Cantos and the Ilium/Olympos cycles, among other works which span the science fiction, horror, and fantasy genres, sometimes wi ...

' 2005 science-fiction novel ''

Olympos Olympus or Olympos ( grc, Ὄλυμπος, link=no) may refer to: Mountains In antiquity Greece * Mount Olympus in Thessaly, northern Greece, the home of the twelve gods of Olympus in Greek mythology * Mount Olympus (Lesvos), located in Lesb ...

'', whose plot draws upon '' The Odyssey''. *In Rick Riordan's 2006 novel ''

The Sea of Monsters ''The Sea of Monsters'' is an American fantasy-adventure novel based on Greek mythology written by Rick Riordan and published in 2006. It is the second novel in the ''Percy Jackson & the Olympians'' series and the sequel to ''The Lightning Th ...

'' Circe runs an island health spa and turns Percy Jackson into a

guinea pig The guinea pig or domestic guinea pig (''Cavia porcellus''), also known as the cavy or domestic cavy (), is a species of rodent belonging to the genus ''Cavia'' in the family Caviidae. Breeders tend to use the word ''cavy'' to describe the ani ...

(she says that they are "much more convenient" than real pigs), and his friend Annabeth Chase uses magical multivitamins to restore Percy to his true form. It is revealed she turned Blackbeard and some of his crew into guinea pigs, and once they turn back they wreck the place. Circe also appears in subsequent novels in the series. * Madeline Miller's 2018 novel ''Circe'' follows the character through her life, focusing on Circe's own interpretation of events. The novel focuses on her life as an outcast god, her journey to understanding mortals, and ultimately Circe coming to terms with herself. * Volodymyr Yermolenko, Ukrainian philosopher and essayist, wrote ''Ocean Catcher: The Story of Odysseus'', Stary Lev, 2017, which is loose adaptation of The Odyssey, where after coming back home to Ithaca, where he cannot find neither Penelope neither

Telemachus Telemachus ( ; grc, Τηλέμαχος, Tēlemakhos, lit=far-fighter), in Greek mythology, is the son of Odysseus and Penelope, who is a central character in Homer's ''Odyssey''. When Telemachus reached manhood, he visited Pylos and Sparta in se ...

, he decides to have a reverse trip to Troy, where he again meets Circe and Calypso.

Comics

*In the

DC Universe The DC Universe (DCU) is the fictional shared universe where most stories in American comic book titles published by DC Comics take place. Superheroes such as Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Robin, Martian Manhunter, The Flash, Green Lant ...

is an enemy of

Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superhero created by the American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston (pen name: Charles Moulton), and artist Harry G. Peter. Marston's wife, Elizabeth Holloway Marston, Elizabeth, and their life partner, Olive Byr ...

, and is in league with the witchcraft goddess

Hecate Hecate or Hekate, , ; grc-dor, Ἑκάτᾱ, Hekátā, ; la, Hecatē or . is a goddess in ancient Greek religion and mythology, most often shown holding a pair of torches, a key, snakes, or accompanied by dogs, and in later periods depicte ...

. During the

Silver Age of comic books The Silver Age of Comic Books was a period of artistic advancement and widespread commercial success in mainstream American comic books, predominantly those featuring the superhero archetype. Following the Golden Age of Comic Books and an int ...

, she was also an occasional enemy of

Superman Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book ''Action Comics'' #1 (cover-dated June 1938 and publi ...

, driven to seek revenge on him for spurning her love. *In the

Marvel Universe The Marvel Universe is a fictional shared universe where the stories in most American comic book titles and other media published by Marvel Comics take place. Super-teams such as the Avengers, the X-Men, the Fantastic Four, the Guardians of ...

, the

Eternal Eternal(s) or The Eternal may refer to: * Eternity, an infinite amount of time, or a timeless state * Immortality or eternal life * God, the supreme being, creator deity, and principal object of faith in monotheism Comics, film and television * ...

superheroine Sersi, is based on Circe. She has similar transformative abilities, and turned Odysseus's men into pigs not out of malice, but because they were misbehaving at one of her parties. *In the 1963

Carl Barks Carl Barks (March 27, 1901 – August 25, 2000) was an American cartoonist, author, and painter. He is best known for his work in Disney comic books, as the writer and artist of the first Donald Duck stories and as the creator of Scrooge McDuck ...

comic ''Oddball Odyssey'',

Magica de Spell Magica De Spell (''magica'' being the feminine of ''magico'', ) is a cartoon character created in 1961 by Carl Barks for the Duck universe. An Italian sorceress, she constantly attempts to steal Scrooge McDuck's Number One Dime, which she believ ...

impersonates a modern-day descendant of Circe and lures

Scrooge McDuck Scrooge McDuck is a cartoon character created in 1947 by Carl Barks for The Walt Disney Company. Appearing in Disney comics, Scrooge is a Scottish-American anthropomorphic Pekin duck. Like his nephew Donald Duck, he has a yellow-orange bil ...

to a Mediterranean island to bid on "ancient treasure" (actually worthless imitations). Her initial plan fails, but she then discovers a sealed-up cave that turns out to be where the real Circe once lived. Finding Circe's magic wand, Magica proceeds to turn Scrooge,

Donald Duck Donald Fauntleroy Duck is a cartoon character created by The Walt Disney Company. Donald is an anthropomorphic white duck with a yellow-orange bill, legs, and feet. He typically wears a sailor shirt and cap with a bow tie. Donald is known fo ...

and his young nephews into animals, referencing Circe's abilities in the original Odyssey. Only the eventual destruction of the wand prevents Magica's triumph. However, in some later Carl Barks stories Magica is still using formulas she says she found in Circe's cave.

Film and television

* Circe was portrayed as the beautiful seductress by Silvana Mangano in the 1954 film ''

Ulysses Ulysses is one form of the Roman name for Odysseus, a hero in ancient Greek literature. Ulysses may also refer to: People * Ulysses (given name), including a list of people with this name Places in the United States * Ulysses, Kansas * Ulysse ...

'', keeping Kirk Douglas as her willful prisoner. Mangano also plays a double role in the film as Ulysses' faithful wife Penelope. *In the 1968 European television miniseries '' The Odyssey'', Circe is portrayed by French actress

Juliette Mayniel Juliette Mayniel (born 22 January 1936) is a French actress. She appeared in more than 30 films and television shows between 1958 and 1978. At the 10th Berlin International Film Festival, she won the Silver Bear for Best Actress for her role i ...

. *In the 1983 film ''

Hercules Hercules (, ) is the Roman equivalent of the Greek divine hero Heracles, son of Jupiter and the mortal Alcmena. In classical mythology, Hercules is famous for his strength and for his numerous far-ranging adventures. The Romans adapted the Gr ...

'', Circe is played by

Mirella D'Angelo Mirella D'Angelo (born 16 August 1956) is an Italian actress. Career Mirella D'Angelo has appeared in more than twenty films since 1974 and acted in television and theatre. She has appeared in a number of notable films including Le Guignolo with ...

and appears first as an old woman. Transformed by drinking the hero's blood, she helps him when he is attacked by the robots that stand in for monsters in this 'updated' version, but for selfish reasons of her own. *Circe is portrayed as a more flippant and seductive character by Bernadette Peters in the 1997 American television miniseries '' The Odyssey''. *Circe appeared disguised as "Mrs. Cissy Hawk" ("hawk" being the English version of "Circe") in the episode "The Remarkable Mrs. Hawk" on the show ''

Thriller Thriller may refer to: * Thriller (genre), a broad genre of literature, film and television ** Thriller film, a film genre under the general thriller genre Comics * ''Thriller'' (DC Comics), a comic book series published 1983–84 by DC Comics i ...

'', hosted by

Boris Karloff William Henry Pratt (23 November 1887 – 2 February 1969), better known by his stage name Boris Karloff (), was an English actor. His portrayal of Frankenstein's monster in the horror film ''Frankenstein'' (1931) (his 82nd film) established h ...

. The episode was based on the short story "Mrs. Hawk" by Margaret St. Clair, originally published in the July 1950 issue of '' Weird Tales''. *Circe appears in the sixth and 12th episodes of first series of 2013 drama series '' Atlantis'', portrayed by Lucy Cohu. *Circe appeared in the cartoon ''

Ulysses 31 (french: link=no, Ulysse 31) is an anime series (1981) that updates the Greek mythology of Odysseus (known as "Ulixes" or "Ulysses" in Latin) to the 31st century. The show comprises 26 half-hour episodes as a co-production between DIC Audiovisue ...

'' where she attempted to build a tower that would house all the knowledge of the universe, thus making her more powerful than the gods. *Circe appears in the ''

'' episode "Hercules and the Song of Circe", voiced by Idina Menzel. This version wields a dragon-headed magic staff, and in search of "one good man" picks

' best friend

Icarus In Greek mythology, Icarus (; grc, Ἴκαρος, Íkaros, ) was the son of the master craftsman Daedalus, the architect of the labyrinth of Crete. After Theseus, king of Athens and enemy of Minos, escaped from the labyrinth, King Minos suspe ...

. When she tires of his foolish behavior, she turns him into a platypus, later, Hercules into a lemur and Adonis into a peacock. * In an episode of the Disney animated series '' DuckTales'', titled "Home, Sweet Homer", Circe (voiced by

Tress MacNeille Teressa Claire MacNeille (née Payne; born June 20, 1951) is an American voice actress, whose credits include voicing Dot Warner on the animated television series ''Animaniacs'', Babs Bunny on ''Tiny Toon Adventures'', Chip and Gadget Hackwrench ...

) appears as an anthropomorphic pig with a pet black cat. She attempts to send Homer forward in time, but her cat interrupts the spell, and instead Scrooge McDuck, Huey, Dewey and Louie are brought back in time to ancient Greece. She eventually succeeds in turning Queen Ariel, Homer, and Scrooge into pigs, but is later foiled when Huey shatters her medallion, reversing her spells and turning her into an ordinary (i.e., non-anthropomorphic) pig. *The DC Comics incarnation of Circe appears in the ''

Justice League Unlimited ''Justice League Unlimited'' (''JLU'') is a 2004–2006 American superhero animated television series that was produced by Warner Bros. Animation and aired on Cartoon Network. Featuring a wide array of superheroes from the DC Comics universe, and ...

'' episode "This Little Piggy", voiced by Rachel York. Upon her release from imprisonment in Hades, Circe is barred from attacking Hippolyta, and decides to get revenge by turning Wonder Woman into a pig. However,

Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...

and

Zatanna Zatanna Zatara () is a superheroine appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by Gardner Fox and Murphy Anderson, and first appeared in '' Hawkman'' #4 (November 1964). Zatanna is a stage magician with a ...

track her down and convince her to restore Wonder Woman to normal, accepting a deal where Batman will 'sacrifice' his dignity by singing in a club. * The DC Comics incarnation of Circe appears in the '' Justice League Action'' episode "Luthor in Paradise", voiced by Laura Post. She allies with Lex Luthor in an attempt to steal a mythical artifact called the Oculus of the Argo from the Amazons, though they are ultimately defeated by the Justice League. * Circe appears in ''

The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, ...

'' episode "

Tales from the Public Domain "Tales from the Public Domain" is the fourteenth episode of the thirteenth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on March 17, 2002. It is the third trilo ...

", voiced by

. *In the book and television series ''

Game of Thrones ''Game of Thrones'' is an American fantasy drama television series created by David Benioff and D. B. Weiss for HBO. It is an adaptation of ''A Song of Ice and Fire'', a series of fantasy novels by George R. R. Martin, the first ...

'', major character Cersei Lannister draws name and traits from Circe. *In part 3 of '' Chilling Adventures of Sabrina'', Pagan witch Circe has the ability to change a person into “any creature she’s ever seen.” She transforms friends of Harvey Kinkle into pigs (then back again). She also turns a solid stone Roz and Dorcas back to life. *In the 2017 film '' Troy: The Odyssey'' (scripted by

Eric Forsberg Eric Forsberg (born December 16, 1959) is an American writer. He wrote and directed the feature film '' Mega Piranha'', as well as the writer of the feature film '' Snakes on a Train'', one of the first mockbusters produced and released by The ...

and by its director Tekin Gergin), Circe, played by Lara Heller, is not portrayed as a wicked sorceress, but as a Trojan priestess and warrior taken hostage by Odysseus to protect his ship from the

Kraken The kraken () is a legendary sea monster of enormous size said to appear off the coasts of Norway. Kraken, the subject of sailors' superstitions and mythos, was first described in the modern age at the turn of the 18th century, in a travelogu ...

, and as a strong female character repeatedly saving Odysseus and his crew from the consequences of "their stupidity".

Video games

*Circe appears in '' Assassin's Creed Odyssey''. Circe lives on an uninhabited, forested island, among tame boars, pigs, and lions. * Circe appears on a Silver Wizard Card in the PC version of Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets (video game) *Circe is one of the summonable Servants that appears in the mobile game ''

Fate/Grand Order is a free-to-play Japanese mobile game, developed by Lasengle (formerly Delightworks) using Unity, and published by Aniplex, a subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment Japan. The game is based on Type-Moon's ''Fate/stay night'' franchise, and ...

'', appearing under the Caster class. After the game's Salem story chapter was released, she was added to the permanent summoning pool. She also appears in the console game '' Fate/Samurai Remnant'' as the Rogue Caster, and can be recruited by the player character. Designed by

Hidari (illustrator) is a Japanese illustrator born in Yokohama. He is primarily known as a light novel illustrator. His pseudonym and circle "Left Side" comes from the fact that he predominantly uses his left hand. He was awarded third place in the 2010 “Kono L ...

(adapted by Wataru Rei for ''Fate/Samurai Remnant'') and voiced by Himika Akaneya. *Circe appears in the mission 'Old Friends' of the campaign in the 2002 Ensemble Studios game ''

Age of Mythology ''Age of Mythology'' (''AoM'') is a real-time strategy video game developed by Ensemble Studios and published by Microsoft Game Studios. It was released on October 30, 2002, in North America and a week later in Europe. A spin-off from the '' ...

'' as an enemy waylaying Odysseus and his allies in her trademark human-to-animal fashion. *Circe is briefly mentioned in the MMORPG ''

Pirate101 ''Pirate101'' is a 2012 massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed and published by KingsIsle Entertainment. It is a sister game to ''Wizard101,'' set in the same fictional universe of the “Spiral”. The player assumes ...

'' as the Immortal that cursed the sirens Agalope, Calypso and Parthenope with their "irresistible" voices, which lured in Eagle captains to crash their ships into the island of Anthemusa. *Circe is a playable character in the MOBA game ''

Heroes of Newerth ''Heroes of Newerth'' (''HoN'') was a multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) video game originally developed by S2 Games for Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux. The game idea was derived from the ''Warcraft III: The Frozen Throne'' custom ma ...

''. *The DC Comics incarnation of Circe appears as a boss in '' Justice League Heroes: The Flash''. *The DC Comics incarnation of Circe appears in ''

DC Universe Online ''DC Universe Online'' (''DCUO'') is a free-to-play action combat massively multiplayer online game set in the fictional universe of DC Comics. Developed by Dimensional Ink Games and co-published by Daybreak Game Company and WB Games, the game w ...

'', voiced by Michelle Forbes. *The DC Comics incarnation of Circe appears as a summonable character in '' Scribblenauts Unmasked: A DC Comics Adventure''.

Musicals

*Circe appears in the EP of Epic: The Musical written by Jorge Rivera-Herrans and is portrayed by Talya Sindel.

References

{{reflist Classical mythology in popular culture Greek and Roman deities in fiction Circe