The Cassandra complex draws a caricature of those who think it can predict the future, but feels unable to change it. This curious phenomenon can haunt those who suffer from it by making predictions that others do not believe in.
In Greek mythology, Cassandra was one of the princesses of Troy, daughter of Riame and Hecuba, according to legends, she was a beautiful woman who had the opportunity to see the future, however, this ability was accompanied by a curse: no one believed that.
- For this reason.
- Cassandra was able to anticipate the outcome of many disastrous events.
- Such as the acceptance by the Trojans of the famous Greek horse.
- Cassandra’s family thought she was crazy and did not believe her crazy story about the Greeks’ intentions to attack the city.
- Of course.
- The most famous story ended with the defeat of the Trojans and the destruction of their city.
Versions of the story vary, and in some of them, Cassandra is even imprisoned for her insanity. In short, Cassandra has always been portrayed as a misunderstood woman, which is why the origins of the myth can be found in the tales of divine punishment. that the god Apollo imposed on this woman. This punishment was due to the god having been rejected by Cassandra, so he avenged himself with a gift that would only bring frustration and despair.
After stories related to the Cassandra myth, the term “Cassandra complex” was coined, which applies to people who generally make predictions, usually catastrophic, without others creating it. As a result of advances in scientific knowledge, the general mindset of our society tends towards rationality and empiricism that ignore aspects related to the non-rational, such as imaginative visions.
Therefore, this type of discovery is often invisible and is considered a mere coincidence. In ancient Greece, the dominant patriarchal society was characterized by equating the feminine with the needy, the weak and what is likely to be dominated and exploited.
Submission and silence were the ideal virtues of women’s behavior; this mentality, which lives partly today, has given way to many invisible women; however, there is multiple evidence of how women are present in a relevant way in a large number of historical facts, both in the political, scientific and artistic spheres.
The Cassandra complex can explain how patriarchal logic has absorbed these achievements, giving the merits of all these women and transferring their role to personalities such as their parents, siblings or husbands, today it is not difficult to see examples of this phenomenon of invisibility among women. in the media, where many of his chances of success depend on his physical appearance.
The myth tells how, after the invasion and looting of Troy, Cassandra was handed over as spoils of war to the Greek king Agamemnon. History paints an archaic portrait of how a woman’s body, even in our historical heights, is still used as merchandise, as an object of pleasure for men or as a showcase for selling a product.
The objectation of the female body is the order of the day. For example, most women face significant barriers to their personal or professional development if they are judged by their physical appearance or age, not by their abilities, intellectual potential, or accomplishments.
In addition, many women face structural disbelief. In a patriarchal society, women who want to fight to eliminate gender roles and stereotypes are often silenced or marginalized.
Many women, after overcoming various obstacles and disadvantages and gaining positions of power and gaining recognition that goes beyond what is traditionally expected of them as the beauty or care of others, are dislegitimated, disqualified or not taken seriously.
This may be directly related to the Cassandra phenomenon and to the way society is deaf to the achievements of a woman fleeing what is expected of her.