Episode 7: Lady in the Water

The Bygone Society Show

Women and water. What is it about “women and water” that holds such power over the whole of society?

There’s a mystique that has fascinated us…petrified us…drawn us in.

Water as a traditional symbol of femininity is an ancient theme that dominates literature and the arts in nearly every corner of the earth.

From the Japanese swan maidens to Disney’s lagoon-loving mermaids, tales of women and water abound.

There are three main tropes you’re sure to find if you crack open enough books or watch enough movies:

The first is the tale of the drowning girl. For me, the 2002 American psychological horror film, The Ring, based on Koji Suzuki’s 1991 novel by the same name, comes to mind.

The second trope is woman as a wild and powerful force born from nature. One example is Mera, queen of Atlantis, from DC Comics.

And finally, the alluring and aquatic spirit. I think of The Birth of Venus, an iconic Italian Renaissance painting by Sandro Boticelli, which depicts the beautiful goddess emerging from a half shell, much like a pearl.

She is but one alluring creature to emerge from Earth’s underwater world, a place that holds and hides many of our world’s greatest mysteries.

I’m Kate Naglieri. Welcome to The Bygone Society Show.

Research, writing and hosting by Kate Naglieri
Production and sound by Jamie Eichhorn
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