The Furies

Goddesses of Vengeance

William-Adolphe Bouguereau. Orestes Pursued by the Furies,
1862. Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, Virginia (1)

Introduction

The Furies are modernly depicted as monstrous and vengeful. However, in ancient times, their stories served as a reminder and an incentive to behave. The Furies were a check on society and the respect and duty towards family.

Origin

The Furies — Artist Unknown (3)

The origins of the Furies vary from myth to myth. According to some versions, the Furies were daughters of Gaia, born from the spilled blood of a castrated Uranus (2). Other myths declare they originate from the Night (Nyx), the Earth, or the Darkness (Skotos) (7). Before the writer Euripides, the Furies were without a definite number, however, after, their number was typically fixed at three sisters (7). 

Furies are female deities of vengeance and retribution, also known as the Erinyes or Eumenides. Erinyes means “name that cannot be spoken” and is the most ancient name for the sisters (6); Eumenides means “the kindly ones,” a term to address the goddesses in a way to gain their favor (4). During the time the name Eumenides was adopted, Greek society believed in a judicial system based on fairness, not vengeance. To stay with the times, the name change was needed (6). They are often shown in black costumes, with snakes for hair and eyes that weep blood and puss—women, but not women (4).

Symbolic Meanings

Orestes Pursued by the Furies 
by John Singer Sargent (1921) (6)

Justice and Vengeance

The Furies were a symbol of justice and the ones who exacted “divine retribution” from the guilty. They especially punished those who committed acts of matricide, patricide, or any other family-related crime (2). Any offense which challenges the foundation of human society is the duty of the Furies to avenge (7). The Furies live simply by the rule, “an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth” (7). 

Social and Moral Order

The threat of curses, disease, and madness scared people away from committing heinous acts (2). Additionally, the goddesses were considered protectors of senior family members and social outcasts, such as beggars (2). They were the “guarantors of oaths and the punishers of those who swore false oaths” (2). “For the punishment of the evil secures the well-being of the good” (7). The symbolic nature of the goddesses ensured order in society.

Meet the Sisters

While the number of Furies is unknown, many myths eventually fix the number at three. The names of the sisters are Allecto, Tisphone, and Magaera (7). Allecto translates to “she who rests not.” Tisiphone means “ avenger of murder” and Magaera translates to “ the jealous one” (7). While the sisters are rarely named together, combined they are the avengers of any transgression, especially killing parents. 

Associations in Greek Mythology

Hades and the Underworld

The dark nature of the Furies’ revenge and torments associated them with Hades and the Underworld (4). The punishment of the Furies “begins on earth and is continued after death” (7). The Furies play a large role in making the Underworld the terrifying and punishing place to end up (6). In some myths, the Furies are described as “the personification of the ghost of those who had been murdered” (6).

Orestes Pursued By a Fury

By Jastrow (2016) (2)

Oresteia

Throughout Greek mythology, the 

Furies pursue many who have killed 

their mother or father. Aeschylus, 

an Ancient Greek author who 

mentioned the Furies in a trilogy 

of plays, is a major reason the 

Furies are so well known to this 

day (6). In the stage play, The 

Eumenides, the Furies are 

shown exacting justice on 

Orestes for killing his mother

 (4). This act of vengeance is 

depicted on a red-figure vase 

from Paestum, 330 BCE.

Modern Depictions

Movie Cover (8)

Movies

The Vietnamese movie Furies, has aspects of the Furies in Greek mythology.    Three women exact revenge on a sinister crime organization. They band together and train to commit acts of violence and terror to avenge the assault of their friend. 

Additionally, in the 1990s TV series Xena: Warrior Princess, the Furies were portrayed as three alluring, if not scandalous, sisters.

Books

Book Cover (5)

The Furies are seen in the popular book series Percy Jackson. In the series, the Furies do the bidding of Hades and are described as having “leathery wings like bats, claws, mouths full of huge yellow fangs, and glowing eyes” (3). In the book, the Furies are able to disguise themselves as normal women. This modern retelling focuses less on exacting justice and more on the monstrosity of their nature. 

The Furies have also featured in T. S. Eliot’s play The Family Reunion (1939) and Neil Gaiman’s graphic novel series The Sandman (1989–). The mythology of the Erinyes inspired novels by Anthony Powell and Jonathan Littell (5).

Works Cited

1. Brooklyn Museum. “Brooklyn Museum: The Furies.”
                Www.brooklynmuseum.org,www.brooklynmuseum.org/eascfa/dinner_party/

                heritage_floor/the_furies. Accessed 20 Feb. 2025. 

2. Cartwright, Mark. “Furies.” World History Encyclopedia, 1 June 2016, www.world

                history.org/Furies/. Accessed 20 Feb. 2025.

3. Clio. “The Myth Behind: The Furies.” Halfblood | Aminoapps.com, AminoApps, 

                31 May 2017, aminoapps.com/c/halfblood/page/blog/the-myth-behind-the-                                    furies/Z6aj_zP6SBugVla5qZJRkQ15qknvezBrN7G. Accessed 20 Feb. 2025.

4. “Eumenides.” Duke.edu, 2025, 

                 people.duke.edu/~wj25/UC_Web_Site/tragedy/eumenides.html.

                 Accessed 20 Feb. 2025.

5. “Furies.” Riordan Wiki, FANDOM, riordan.fandom.com/wiki/Furies. Accessed 20 

                  Feb. 2025.

6. Kapach, Avi. “Erinyes (Furies).” Mythopedia, 9 Mar. 2023,

                   mythopedia.com/topics/erinyes. Accessed 20 Feb. 2025.

7. Kerkhof, Maup van de. “The Furies: Goddesses of Vengeance or Justice? | History 

                   Cooperative.” History Cooperative, 29 Aug. 2022,

                   historycooperative.org/the-furies/. Accessed 20 Feb. 2025.

8. Những người đóng góp vào các dự án Wikimedia. “Phim Điện Ảnh Năm 2022 Của

                   Ngô Thanh Vân.” Wikipedia.org, Quỹ Wikimedia, 23 Mar. 2022,                                                   vi.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thanh_S%C3%B3i_%E2%80%93_C%C3%BAc_d%

                  E1%BA%A1i_trong_%C4%91%C3%AAm. Accessed 20 Feb. 2025.

9. Struck, Peter. “Greek & Roman Mythology - Tools.” Www2.Classics.upenn.edu,

                  2020, www2.classics.upenn.edu/myth/php/tools/dictionary.php?                                                         regexp=ERINYES.&method=standard. Accessed 20 Feb. 2025.