The story of Clytemnestra is foreshadowed by an inescapable prophecy. Did the priestess's vision play out the way you though it would?

The story of Clytemnestra and her family is foreshadowed by an inescapable prophecy. Did the priestess's vision play out the way you though it would? What roles do prophecies and religion have in this world?

Since I knew how those myths go, it wasn’t a surprise.

The world of the myths reflects the world of the ancient people, pre-literate and pre-science, who kept these stories alive. Myths are stories to transmit shared values but also to explain why things are as they are. Having a pantheon of gods who also vie with each other allowed these ancient Greeks to reconcile contradictions of human nature, or clashes between social values: the gods willed it; this god beat or tricked that god, so that’s why we won or lost the war, etc.

Worshipping (paying tribute, including by human or animal sacrifice) was an attempt at influencing earthly outcomes, and priests or priestesses had the powerful job of conducting the rites and interpreting the “wishes” of the god(s) in question. Their “prophesies” could put pressure on rulers and citizens alike to obey. The author shows us in Calcas how that role could be very political, likewise with the priestess in Sparta. Whether or not prophesies inspired conflict between a ruler and a priest/seer, whether or not they were believed or came true, they could influence how many people acted.

I didn't have any preconceived idea of how the prophecy would play out so I wasn't surprised. I think that both prophecies and religion are society's way of explaining the mysteries of life and answering global questions.

One of the advantages of a print book (over an audio book) is that sometimes you get additional materials, in this case, the family trees of Tyndareus and Atreus, so you can see (in advance) that at least the three oldest daughters of Leda will indeed be married multiple times. As to how this takes place.... Yes, I was surprised (and saddened) at how Clytemnestra's first marriage ended, but the others (for Clytemnestra and Helen) are pretty well "documented". I was not as familiar with Timandra so the stories of her marriage were not familiar, and they seemed to be cited more as carrying out the prophecy than for actually moving the story along.

As far as the priestess's prophecy concerning the Spartan royal women is concerned, I was familiar with Helen's story but not that of Clytemnestra and Tantalus or that of Timandra and Echemus.

The ancient Greeks had their oracles and seers---and we have our tarot cards and fortunetellers to warn us of portending ruin or good fortune. The alliance between Agamemnon and Calchas, however, truly bothers me because the "king of kings" did not believe in a seer's prophecies, as Clytemnestra claims, and yet he sacrifices his eldest daughter Iphegenia, beloved by Clytemnestra, because "a prophet of evil" declares the winds will blow if this sacrifice is made without demur. Yes, I know the ships need to sail to Troy, and the story needs to continue, but ...