The Kassandra complex

The Cassandra complex paints a caricature of someone who thinks they can predict the future, but feels unable to change it. This curious phenomenon It can torment those who suffer from it, by making predictions that are not believed by others.

In Greek mythology, Cassandra was one of the princesses of Troy, daughter of Priam and Hebuca. According to legends, she was a beautiful woman who was blessed with the gift of seeing the future.. However, this ability was accompanied with the curse: no one believed it.

Because of this, Cassandra was able to anticipate the outcome of many disastrous events, such as the acceptance of the famous Greek horse by the Trojans. Cassandra’s family thought she was crazy and did not believe her crazy story about the Greeks’ intentions to storm the city. Of course, the more than famous story ended with the defeat of the Trojans and the destruction and looting of their city.

Versions of the story vary, and in some of them Cassandra is even imprisoned for her madness. Definitely, Cassandra has always been shown as a woman not understood. Thus, the origins of the myth are in the stories about a divine punishment that the god Apollo imposed on this woman. This punishment was due to the god being rejected by Cassandra, so he took revenge with a gift that would only bring him frustration and despair.

The Cassandra complex from the myth: the invisibility of women

After the stories related to the myth of Cassandra, the term “Cassandra complex” has been coined, which is applied to those people who tend to make predictions, usually catastrophic, without being believed by others. Due to advances in scientific knowledge, The general mentality of our society tends towards rationality and empiricism that leaves aside aspects related to the non-rational.like imaginative visions.

Therefore, These types of findings are often made invisible and taken as simple coincidences. Already in Ancient Greece, the patriarchal society that prevailed was characterized by equating the feminine with what was lacking, what was weak, and what was susceptible to being dominated and exploited.

Submission and silence were the ideal virtues for women’s behavior. This mentality, which in part survives today, has given rise to many invisible women. However, There is multiple evidence related to how women have been present in a relevant way in a large number of historical events.both in the political, scientific and artistic spheres.

The Cassandra complex can explain how patriarchal logic has absorbed these achievements, removing the merit from all these women and transferring their role to figures such as their fathers, brothers or husbands. Nowadays, it is not difficult to see examples of this phenomenon of invisibility of women in the media.where a good part of your chances of success are based on your physical appearance.

Women as merchandise and property

The myth tells how, once Troy was invaded and sacked, Cassandra was given as war booty to the Greek king Agamemnon. History draws an archaic portrait of how the woman’s body, even at this point in history, continues to be used as a commodity, as an object of pleasure for men or as a showcase to sell a product.

The objectification of the female body is the order of the day. So, the majority of women encounter significant barriers in their personal or professional development being judged by their physical appearance or age, rather than by their abilities, intellectual potential or achievements.

Besides, a lot of women have to deal with structural disbelief. In a patriarchal society, women who want to fight to eliminate gender roles and stereotypes are often silenced or marginalized.

A lot of women, After overcoming multiple obstacles and disadvantages, they manage to access positions of power and achieve recognition that goes beyond what has traditionally been expected of them – such as beauty or caring for others – is delegitimized, disqualified or not taken seriously.

This can be directly related to the Cassandra phenomenon, and how society turns a deaf ear to the achievements of a woman who goes beyond what is supposedly expected.

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