The Bull from the Sea

The word "tragedy" is bandied about so much nowadays that it has become devalued. Any death, accident, or painful occurrence is routinely labeled "tragic". But if you want to understand the true meaning of tragedy, read this book! Theseus is a hero - a difficult idea for modern people to accept, in our prosaic times - and Mary Renault does a brilliant job of showing us his heroism, rather than just telling us about it. When danger threatens, when a firm hand is needed, Theseus instinctively takes over; and he always assumes, as he has done since early childhood, that one day the god Poseidon Earthshaker will demand his life in return for his people's safety. The long series of disasters that, to us 21st century folk, just looks like the worst of luck, can in fact be traced directly to the flaws in Theseus' character: for, although heroic, he is far from perfect. His virtues are great, but so are his weaknesses; and pride is both the best of his virtues and the worst of his weaknesses. The phrase "train wreck", used by at least two other reviewers, is supremely apt because it connotes inevitability and terrible consequences stemming from an apparently slight cause. Yet, just when things look blackest and he is sure of dying in disgrace, old, crippled, and forgotten by gods and men alike, Theseus is touched by a divine grace that fulfils his fate and completes the pattern of his life. The harmony of this novel is as perfect and satisfying, in its way, as that of a Bach cantata. If you can read the closing pages without at least wanting to cry, you probably have not fully understood the story.

First, let me take a moment to explain what this book is . . . and what it is not. Many people like historical fiction. To me, that genre means creating a modern novel that is set in an earlier historical period. It may or not not include well-known historical characters. The Bull from the Sea is not, by this definition, historical fiction. In fact, if you like historial fiction a lot, you may not like this book. Instead, I would describe what is done in this book as literary restoration. Ms. Renault has taken well-known stories about a famous Greek character and made them more accessible to the modern reader. By staying within what is known about the character, that limits an author's ability to create a modern novel. For example, if Theseus was idle for many years (as he was on occasion), Ms. Renault is stuck with that as part of her story. By contrast, a historical novelist could simply invent interesting things for such a flat period, and not have to worry about dealing with any story limits other than general credibility. Mary Renault has done an outstanding job of fleshing out the life of Theseus from the time he returned from Crete after escaping from the Labyrinth and became King of Athens until his death. We especially learn a lot about what kind of thoughts drove him as he united the Greeks, established law and order, and reformed religion. The ancient Greeks always seemed larger than life to me as a child. They were playing on a cosmic scale, with gods and goddesses lurking behind every bush. Often with little room to maneuver, they suffered from complications of the gods' preoccupations with their own quarrels. The fate of civilization always seemed to be in the balance.Yet these people did not seem real, despite their appeal. The story telling style of epics and plays leaves much to be desired for helping the modern reader understand the figures as people. Ms. Renault has done a skillful job of working within the outlines of those ancient tales and creating an understandable modern story out of them. For the first time, Theseus came alive for me in this book. There is a lot of interesting material to work with in this part of Theseus' life. He finds the love of his life (Hippolyta), marries another woman (Phaedra) to secure his alliance with Crete, and fathers two sons (Hipplytos and Akamas) who could potentially vie to succeed him. Anyone who has ever lived in a step-family will soon recognize the potential for complications. Theseus also liked to rove, and was often off acting the pirate. These tales make good adventure stories.He was a central religious figure, constantly balancing the older religion of the Earth Mother with the newer religion of the Sky Gods (like Apollo and Poseidon). There is also a split between women and men involved in this religious tension that makes for interesting reading.Although the gods make no more than cameo appearances (usually through causing Theseus to hear the sound of th

They really must have people who review these books declare their age. This is without a doubt one of the greatest books I have ever read. I highly recommend it for anyone with an IQ over 120, or five years out of puberty. It is not a book that should be force fed to students in High School. It is such a shame they force feed books to us, isn't it? I remember having Huckleberry Finn shoved down my throat. I hated it. Later, around the age of 20 or so. I went back and read it again and was able to understand the depth of the novel. This book is much the same way. Children forced to read it in High School should really not be reviewing it.

This is a wonderful book that got me started reading Mary Renault's novels. In fact I am on my fifth one, and I still find them spellbinding. Two things really stick with me from "The Bull from the Sea": the exciting love story between Theseus and Hippolyta and the sensitive and respectful way that Renault treats the life of these characters within their ancient religion.