Firefly asked Madeline Miller:

I enjoyed both the Iliad and the Song of Achilles, and it was interesting to see how many differences there were between the two. But one thing I've been wondering about TSoA is were some of the women (especially Deidamia) meant to be unlikable, or is it this way because the story is told not just from a male Ancient Grecian perspective as well as the society of the time?

Madeline Miller Hello, and thanks for the question! Deidameia was one of my favorite minor characters to imagine. Personally, I find her situation extremely sympathetic. She is clever, passionate, lively and curious about the world, but she's trapped on a backwater island without any real companionship or opportunity. She longs to join the world, experience excitement, and have some control over her destiny, but as a woman she's barred from all of that, and she's being raised by a father who doesn't represent her interests very well. When Patroclus first meets her, all he can see is that she's a childish princess, and an obstacle to him. As a young man, he has very little idea of what it's like to be a woman in this world, and how constricting it is; men are simply not taught to imagine women's lives. Meanwhile, Deidameia is trying to use every bit of power she has to affect her future, but she's also very young, and unsophisticated in the ways of the world. By marrying Achilles, she thinks she's going to be part of a grand love story, a grand adventure tale, but she's just a pawn in Thetis' plot to keep Achilles from war, and produce an heir. When she realizes that she's been tricked, and is now more trapped than ever, she's devastated with anger and grief, and acts out in self-destructive ways, which, especially at her age, I find totally understandable. And then Thetis takes her child from her. That's a very very long way around to say that: I never found her unlikable at all! She and Thetis are both antagonists at moments to Patroclus, but I never thought of them as villains in any way. We see them only through Patroclus' eyes, and he is often blinded by his own assumptions and desires. Later he is able to begin understanding both of them, and to feel empathy, and even connection. If you want to know a character that I found personally very unlikable, Agamemnon tops the list!

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