Debunking and rewriting of the ancient myths in the works of Margaret Atwood and Jeanette Winterson

The analysis of The Penelopiad and Weight in terms of Jungian archetypes of rebirth, shadow, trickster and scapegoat constitutes the intellectual impulse of this study. This study puts forward that the main aim of these two novellas is to show that the goal of human endeavour is the quest for individuation through inner knowledge. Myths and archetypes play an important role in this individuation process. The characters in the novellas complete such a quest by coming across with rebirth, shadow, trickster, and scapegoat archetypes that they unconsciously experience while the readers go through the same process through identifying themselves with the mythical characters and through recognizing the presence of rebirth, shadow, trickster, and scapegoat archetypes in their own lives and cultures. In The Penelopiad and Weight, Margaret Atwood and Jeanette Winterson rewrite the ancient myths of Penelope and Odysseus, Atlas and Heracles in a way that fills the gap between mythical thought and contemporary realities.Keywords: The Penelopiad, Weight, archetype, rebirth, shadow, trickster, scapegoat, individuation.