Morgan Burdick
Nic Helms
Critical Theory
08 March 2024
Moneta: The Femme Fatale in Hyperion
Paired with a cigarette and a fur boa, Femme Fatales have captivated audiences since their appearance in mainstream media. They are dark, mysterious, seductive, and overall a complex character to have in any form of media. Even in forms that don’t hold the same aesthetic of the famous archetype; such as Science Fiction. Dan Simmon’s novel “Hyperion” includes at least one Femme Fatale character out of only a few female characters. That alone is a feat in itself as the novel was written in the 1980’s. This novel follows seven strangers on a pilgrimage to stop the evil Shrike from reaching the Time Tombs. So, although it doesn’t seem likely, a Femme Fatale character is present in this novel and is a disturbing joy to read. The portrayal of the Femme Fatale in Hyperion serves as a complex and multifaceted reflection of power, desire, and agency within the narrative.
“She’ll only come out at night…watch out boy she’ll chew you up…she’s a maneater.” (Hall and Oates.) Daryl Hall and John Oates described the archetype of the Femme Fatale almost perfectly in their song “Maneater.” Femme Fatale is French for “fatal woman” and as such, is often depicted as a woman who seduces the main character (typically a man) into dangerous traps or situations purely for her benefit. (Hogan.) Plenty of modern-day cinema or literature have a version of a Femme Fatale, and why wouldn’t they? They add a level of depth to the story and bewitch nearly everyone in the piece of work and those enjoying the text. After all, she is “but a symptom of male fears about feminism.” (Mercure, pg 5.) It even happens in pieces of fiction that don’t seem the typical aesthetic for them to be present. The Femme Fatale was brought to the limelight by Noir films in the 1930s-1950s. From this archetype grew a complex that many girls and women feel affects their day-to-day lives about a hundred years later: The Madonna Whore Complex. The Madonna Whore Complex (MWC) is a psychological complex that came to fruition by heterosexual cisgender men that essentially divided women into two categories. The Madonna: young, virtuous, naive, and pure; The Whore: mature, promiscuous, manipulative, and overly sexual. This theory was coined by every psychologist’s favorite Sigmund Freud, when he was trying to theorize why some men couldn’t differentiate between their love for their mother and their love for their partner. (Brownlee.) “Men suffering from MWC often can’t view women’s sexuality as ‘loving’ and ‘sexual.’”(Brownlee.) Freud coined this term to describe men that no longer felt any sexual attraction to their partner, but felt romantic feelings toward their partner instead. The sexual feelings and desire they craved were placed on other women that they deemed more enticing. For example, in Game of Thrones, we see Tyrion in a “love” triangle between Sansa and Shae. Sansa is the literal virgin in this scenario and thus is still considered naive and pure, while Shae is a whore and is much more sexual and promiscuous and in the end a bit manipulative. Tyrion viewed Sansa, his wife, as less sexually appealing while he viewed Shae, his whore, as able to satisfy his desires. But nowadays, it appears as if the script has changed, at least for women. Women have recently been calling out the misogynistic beliefs behind this complex and have been learning to embrace both the Madonna and the Whore. Women nowadays feel more comfortable with their sexuality as well as their innocence. They call it the beauty of being born a female, and I like to believe it started to begin in the 80s. The 80s were a time when women were starting to become more independent. They could work, own their own money, buy their own homes, and have national access to reproductive healthcare (sadly not the case anymore, but I digress.) The 80s were when women started embracing both sides of the complex, which is shown in all forms of media as it was just starting. For instance, Dan Simmon’s Hyperion is a science fiction novel, written in the 1980’s.
In his novel, there are only a few women present. The only women we have met in the novel thus far, that are relevant to the plot, and have had speaking lines are Moneta and Brawne Lamia. We barely know anything about either woman as of right now (Chapter 4) but we do know that Monet towards the end of Chapter 2 was not all what she appeared to be. According to Kassad, Monet was “perhaps the most beautiful woman that he had ever seen,” and then moments later they make love. (Simmons, pg 128.) Right from the get-go, Moneta is described as this mysterious and beautiful seductress. It was she who wooed Kassad and immediately started stripping him. It was her that showed equal parts of beauty and power. It was she who would ultimately lead him into a dangerous situation. “…and sees the great thorn of steel rising from between Moneta’s breasts, almost impaling him..”(Simmons, pg 171.) This quote is taken from a passage where Kassad and Moneta were passionately but dangerously making love on top of the ground where they killed dozens of people and had an unexpected visitor; the Shrike. Unfortunately, it appears as if the Shrike had been taking on the persona of Moneta, all for (presumedly) killing Kassad for its benefit. Just like a Femme Fatale. Now…this is a bit complicated because we, as the audience, have no idea when the Shrike took Moneta’s place or if it even did. Perhaps Kassad was hallucinating? Was Moneta the Shrike all along? No one can safely say for certain. That is up to the reader’s speculation, but I like to believe that the Shrike took Moneta’s place on the battlefield as they were fighting off Kassad’s enemies. Up until that point, Moneta was the maneater. I believe this because of her power and seduction right from the start, it doesn’t become graphic (and I use this word loosely) until after the battle where they make love on the corpses they killed. As for the other two women in the story, I really can’t say much. We haven’t read that far into the story, but if I had to guess…I would assume Rachel Weintraub to take on the archetype of the Madonna while Brawne Lamia is a good mix of the Femme Fatale and the Madonna. I will most likely, out of desire, update their character analyses once I learn more about them. What I know about all three of these women, is that they play important roles and will most likely take on deeper themes as the story progresses. Moneta, I imagine, takes on the theme of a cautionary tale, while Lamia takes on the theme of love or the pursuit of life/meaning, and Rachel will take on the theme of loss or destruction.
Every great story has a variety of themes present in the text, but an even greater story will have those themes embodied by the characters themselves just to add a little pizazz. Dan Simmons does this beautifully in his writing regarding Moneta and the Femme Fatale archetype. The Femme Fatale is supposed to represent power, desire, temptation, and betrayal. She is “an actress in every sense of the word. She lies, cheats, double-crosses, even murders her victims, and then cries, screams, sings, or whispers words of affection to the male protagonist to win him over, only to double-cross him again.” (Mercure.) Moneta is the epitome of the Femme Fatale. She is a powerful fighter as described later on in Chapter 2: “Kassad paused in the eye of the storm to see Moneta in the center of her own circle of carnage.” (Simmons, pg 168.) She is a seductress and easily tempts Kassad into desiring her: “The gown whispered to the floor. She wore nothing underneath.” (Simmons, pg 162.) She eventually betrays Kassad, or at least the Shrike taking the form of Moneta does: “Her face is dark, the sun behind her, but he sees red flames dying in the multifaceted pits of her eyes.” (Simmons, 172.) Hyperion is filled with themes that the characters, thus far, have embodied. Martin Silenus (The Poet) embodies the pursuit of meaning in life and he does this through his writing. Kassad embodies the themes of sacrifice, heroism, and redemption. Moneta embodies power, allure, mystery, and unpredictability. Her intentions remain elusive until the very end of the chapter where it is revealed Moneta was the Shrike in disguise. She is the embodiment of the Whore in the Madonna Whore Complex. She is made to fit all of Kassad’s expectations and desires whether she wants to or not. Just like everyday women, or female-presenting individuals. They are given a choice to fit in box A or box B, and this is shown on Social Media. “Are you a Dark Feminine or a Light Feminine?” “Do you have Doe eyes or Siren eyes?” “Are you Bunny pretty or Fox pretty?” All of these trends on Social Media are varieties of the Madonna Whore Complex and is feeding into the idea that women have to fit in either one of the boxes when in reality they don’t. They can easily fit into both boxes if they choose, one or the other or none at all, and that’s the beauty of being a woman. Dan Simmons wrote the very few women in his story to each (upon my speculation) fit into a different box, but each being important and relevant to the story.
Without an evil seductress every now and then in contemporary media, I’m afraid to admit the storylines would grow dull over the years. Femme Fatales add complexity and depth to the stories that are adored by audiences all around the world. Thanks to Dan Simmons we see this complexity take place in his novel and are given a chance to see the contributions made (unintentionally or not) to broaden the ideas of gender and power. While his Femme Fatale isn’t perfect, Moneta is a good jumping stone into more complex Femme Fatale characters and their intentions. But luckily for us, these characters have become more flushed out in modern entertainment and will often leave an impression on us. So…just in case you want to tap into the Femme Fatale energy, don’t forget your fur boa.
Works Cited
Brownlee, Brooke . “The Psychology of the Madonna Whore Complex.” Modern Intimacy, 11 Aug. 2022, www.modernintimacy.com/the-psychology-of-the-madonna-whore-complex/.
“Daryl Hall & John Oates – Maneater.” Genius.com, genius.com/Daryl-hall-and-john-oates-maneater-lyrics.
Hogan, Brianne. “What Is a Femme Fatale Character?” ScreenCraft, 14 Aug. 2023, https://screencraft.org/blog/what-is-a-femme-fatale-character/.
Mercure, Michelle (2010). The “Bad Girl” Turned Feminist: The Femme Fatale and the Performance of Theory. Undergraduate Review, 6, 113-119.
Simmons, Dan. Hyperion. Vol. 1. New York, Doubleday, 1989.
For those who find reading on WordPress difficult, here is a link that leads straight to the document: https://docs.google.com/document/d/14rcXE1bymmhgsBoB6UexXv7mQ6KUq96KtEMbDcDyenU/edit?usp=sharing
Sprockets and Springes 