Gender Conflicts In Medea

From what we have already read, Medea is a play that has different ideas, and conflicts which we haven’t read yet. Until this point, we have read about Greek females who perform actions out of the love they have for their husband or family members. However, Medea is a female who performs a gruesome action because she wants “revenge” on her husband who she thinks betrayed her for another woman. The author of Greek Tragedy, Simon Goldhill, told us that Greek tragedies often held gender conflicts while portraying females as a threat to the society. Medea is a prime example of Goldhill’s statement. Since Jason left Medea, Medea could not live knowing her husband is remarried to another woman. She becomes a threat to him and his new family because

After she left her home to move to Corinth with Jason, she found that she no longer had a home or family in Corinth. Medea states “When I came here with you, I betrayed my home and my country. My loved ones at home have learned to hate me; the others, whom I need not have harmed, I have made enemies to oblige you” (Hadas, 1981, p.49). I believe that Medea could be seen as women who sacrificed her life and self-image to perform the womanly roles by moving and leaving her own home for her husband. In those actions, she is showing her family identity. On the other hand, she can also be seen as an individual because she is leaving her princess title and family to move to a different city for her husband. However, when we talk about the play specifically, I strongly believe Medea is a woman who should be identified as an individual. She shows nothing but self-interest when she decides to kill her former husband’s mistress, King Creon, and her own two children out of anger against Jason

Jason, the formal husband of Medea, remarried Creon’s daughter, which caused the conflict throughout the play. I would identify Jason as a scared male, who only remarried for the sake of his own family. Jason claimed “I wanted first and foremost, was a good home where we would lack for nothing, and secondly, I wanted to bring up the children in a style worthy of my house” (Hadas, 1981, p.50). I would classify Jason as a community or family man because he stresses to Medea, that the reason for remarrying was for her and their family. He didn’t decide to remarry because he was no longer in love with Medea but because he didn’t want his family to have to live poor anymore. In the Ancient Greek times, it wasn’t unusual for a male to have two families. Jason was doing what he thought would be best not only for him but for his children and wife, and only a family/ community person would do such thing. According to the Leader throughout the play, he strongly stresses to Jason that “You have acted unjustly in betraying your wife” (Hadas, 1981, p.51). However, I strongly disagree with the leader. I believe Jason was doing what he thought was best for his family. He put his image before his family and acted as the bad guy, in hope he can bring more to his family. Jason was looking for a better lifestyle for his family because he believed they deserved more, and to me, that is a just,