The Medea of Greek Mythology was the inspiration for Black Poplar's antagonist. I used the story of her relationship with Jason as the foundation for a re-imagining of what might occur if the sorceress had lived today. In Black Poplar she represents sorcery, feminism, love, romance, power and insanity. On the upside, she's smart, experienced and passionate. She's also aging and maddened by loss.
In 1998 Margaret Atwood published an article in Bold Type magazine titled: On Medea. The article is a recap of the Medea story/themes and a review of Christa Wolf's novel. From the article:
"Of all the seductive, sinister and transgressive women who have haunted the Western imagination, none has a reputation more lurid than Medea's. Judith, Salome, Jezebel, Delilah, Lady Macbeth -- these murdered or betrayed grown men, but Medea's crimes are yet more chilling: credited with having slaughtered her younger brother, she is also said to have sacrificed her own two children out of revenge for rejected love."