The Greek playwright, Euripides, is considered one of the three great tragedians of classical Athens. His individuality is attributed to the way he “pushes to the limits of what an audience can stand” . His masterpiece Medea , a fascinating classic centered on the Greek goddess Medea, is a prime example of his eccentricity. This piece was unpopular during the time of its release since it defied the commons themes of tragedies during the 430s B.C.E.; it, instead, introduced a nihilistic and disturbing drama focused on women, slaves and persons from the lower class. Euripides’ mastery shines through as he guides the audience to sympathize with Medea despite her committing filicide, a seemingly horrendous act. He induces this sympathy through the Chorus, the Nurse, and the Children, which are all minor characters, as present her as a victim of Jason’ deeds, establish the development of her emotional state, and ascertaining the importance of her pride. Although these characters guide the audience towards similar concepts, they represent a contradiction regarding the slaughter of the Children.
The Chorus in Medea consists of middle-aged Corinthian women who are present on-stage throughout the entire play. They defy their customary purpose of solely observing, and instead in Medea, they give their opinion on the events of the production and directly speak to the characters. For an instance, they warn Jason by saying: “you are acting wrongly in thus abandoning your wife” (p. 34). In this quotation, they voice the audience’s thoughts and feelings, while foreshadowing the consequences of the events.
The Nurse also shares a similar role with the Chorus. Euripides uses her to introduce Medea and give an introduction to the play. She is the...
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...ting the deaths as inevitable and Medea’s decision to murder them herself as merciful.
In the play Euripides skillfully uses the Chorus, the Nurse, and the children to help the audience feel compassionate with Medea though portraying her as the victim on Jason’s evil, present Medea’s emotional development, and the importance of the children’s pride to her. Besides their different views on the murder, they generally support each other. Thus, Euripides changes a tale of jealousy and betrayal, to a play depicting fundamental maternal emotions portrayed by Medea.
Works Cited
The Cambridge History of Classical Literature I: Greek Literature, P.Easterling and B.Knox (ed.s), Cambridge University Press (1985), page 339
All references to Medea are from Euripides, Medea and Another Plays translated by Philip Vellacott, Harmonsworth, Middlesex: Penguin Books, 1963.
Euripides uses indirect/direct characterization of Medea, the plays antagonist, to help the readers understand a deeper reason for the things she has done, including kill her own brother and children. Through the use of the chorus, and other minor factors, we, as the audience, get to mentally interpret Medea’s side of the problems she and Jason undergo, and try to understand what she is going through and how she feels. Does she do it out of spite or out of revenge? Was she really in love with Jason, and was he worth killing all of these people she so deeply cared about? Although Medea is portrayed as the villain in the play due to her actions and rage, indirect/direct characterization from herself, other characters, and most importantly, the chorus, all reveal a deeper understanding as to why Medea did what she did and how she felt in the midst of all these problems she faced.
The speech itself highlights women's subordinate status in ancient Greek society, especially in the public eye." When Medea points out that women, especially "foreign" women, "require some knowledge of magic and other covert arts to exert influence over their husbands in the bedroom," she argues for a kind of alternative power that women can enjoy. A power that remains invisible to men and unknown by society, yet sways each with unquestionable force. Medea also supplies a method for interpreting her own character towards the end of her speech (lines 251-257): we should read her history of exile as a metaphoric exaggeration of all women's alienation; in fact, her whole predicament, past and yet to come, can be read as an allegory of women's suffering and the heights of tragedy it may unleash if left unattended. Under this model of interpretation, Medea portrays the rebellion of women against their "wretchedness." Such a transparent social allegory may seem forced or clichéd in our own contemporary setting, but in Euripides' time it would have been revolutionary, as tragedy generally spoke to the sufferings of a generic (perhaps idealized) individual, rather than a group. It would be a mistake, however, to claim that Medea's speech elaborates a clearly progressive political message, as her concluding remarks appeal to women's natural talent for devious manipulation (line 414). While Euripides' play manifests many revolutionary political sentiments, its social criticisms remain sporadic, forming just a part of some of the many trains of thought he follows.
In Euripides Greek tragedy, Medea, it is the civilised values of Greek culture, which govern all facets of Corinthian life, yet Medea’s triumph is not a celebration of such values, but a mockery of them. While on the surface, Medea’s triumph appears an act of personal revenge out of pure passion, the implications of her actions extend far beyond one individual to encompass an entire civilisation. In committing “vile” acts of infanticide, Medea not only absolves herself from the one- dimensional role of women in a patriarchal society, but also transcends the social orders of that society. Moreover, it also serves as a warning to sacrificing all reasoning and rationality, and allowing
In Greek society, the role of women was considered to be insignificant compared to the Greek men. The women had very few rights, no room to voice personal opinions, and a very bleak future with few options for a better life. According to Moses Hades, professor of Greek studies, women in ancient Greek plays are known to be the main characters and take the role of the villain, victim, or the heroine. In Euripides’ play Medea, Medea, the main character, plays all these roles. She represents the heroine by helping her husband secure the Golden Fleece prior to their marriage, and then portrays the victim by being betrayed by her husband, and finally the villain by murdering her loved ones. Therefore, Euripides follows the standard format for a Greek tragedy.
Medea is a tragedy written by acclaimed Greek playwright Euripides.fortunately, had the opportunity to view last night's performance. Euripides cleverly uncovers the reality of Ancient Greek society, shining a light on the treatment of women and the emotions and thoughts that provoked during their time in society. As they were voiceless, Euripides acted as a voice. The scene is set during a male- dominated society, Medea the protagonist challenges the views and chooses to ignore the normality of civilisation. Treated as an outsider her passion for revenge conquers the motherly instincts she possesses, provoking a deep hatred and sparking revenge towards her once loved family.
The journal may not help the essay directly but in my own understanding of the culture in which the tragedy Medea was written. With
Euripides shows his views on female power through Medea. As a writer of the marginalized in society, Medea is the prime example of minorities of the age. She is a single mother, with 2 illegitimate children, in a foreign place. Despite all these disadvantages, Medea is the cleverest character in the story. Medea is a warning to the consequences that follow when society underestimates the
*Although Medea is arguably the most intelligent character in Euripides’s piece, shown in her dialogue with Creon, she has become ridiculed, and viewed as barbarous and less desirable following her separation from Jason. She is no longer a wife to a Greek man. She is simply an outsider, and a burden on a prosperous
The tragic play Medea is a struggle between reason and violence. Medea is deliberately portrayed as not a ‘normal woman’, but excessive in her passions. Medea is a torment to herself and to others; that is why Euripides shows her blazing her way through life leaving wreckage behind her. Euripides has presented Medea as a figure previously thought of exclusively as a male- hero. Her balance of character is a combination of the outstanding qualities of Achilles and Odysseus.
Medea's identity as a weak woman is emphasised at the very start of the play. It is made very clear that she has come to misfortune through no fault of her own and is powerless in her problem ("her world has turned to enmity"). Being unable to change her situation is an example of her portrayal as a weak woman figure. We are told that she has been crying for days ("lies collapsed in agony"). Soon after these descriptions of her weeping, the Tutor arrives and informs us that yet more bad news is coming her way ("not heard the worst" "banish them"). At this point all the pity is directed towards Medea, shunned by her husband and unable to control what is happening around her, instead crying uncontrollably ("shouting shrill, pitiful accusations").
Euripides’ style of work mostly focus on personal issues and dilemmas. He portrayed the flaws of humans and heros in his plays during ancient Greek, thus he was not a very popular writer during his time. As shown in one of his famous work, Medea, centralizes on the characters Medea and Jason and their broken marriage and erratic behaviors. Euripides use his main characters to express his opinion of Greek society during his time. In Medea, he uses Medea and Jason to express his concern of the disfunction of marriage, divorce, and vengeance. He reveals the flaws of Medea and Jason as he develops through the play. Medea and Jason made decisions that hurt each other, their marriage, and other victims. They justified their wrongdoings not because they were saving themselves, because they
Aristotle, a philosopher, scientist, spiritualist and passionate critic of the arts, spent many years studying human nature and its relevance to the stage. His rules of tragedy in fact made a deep imprint on the writing of tragic works, while he influenced the structure of theatre, with his analysis of human nature. Euripides 'Medea', a Greek tragedy written with partial adherence to the Aristotelian rules, explores the continuation of the ancient Greek tales surrounding the mythology of Medea, Princess of Colchis, and granddaughter of Helios, the sun god, with heartlessness to rival the infamous Circe. While the structure of this play undoubtedly perpetuates many of the Aristotelian rules, there are some dramatic structures which challenge its standing with relevance to Aristotle's guidelines, and the judgment of Medea as a dramatic success within the tragic genre.
Medea’s illegitimate marriage and the betrayal of Jason drive Medea to extreme revenge. Medea chooses to act with her immortal self and commit inhumane acts of murder rather than rationalize the outcomes of her actions. Medea see’s this option as her only resort as she has been banished and has nowhere to go, “stripped of her place”. To create sympathy for Medea, Euripides plays down Medea’s supernatural powers until the end of the play. Throughout the play Medea represents all characteristics found in individual women put together, including; love, passion, betrayal and revenge. Medea’s portrayal of human flaws creates empathetic emotions from the audience. The audience commiserates with Medea’s human flaws as they recognize them in themselves. Medea plays the major role in this play as she demonstrates many behavioral and psychological patterns unlike any of the other Greek women in the play; this draws the audience’s attention to Medea for sympathy and respect.
The Chorus, in this play, guides the audience. In the end, it is up to the individual as to what reaction they have to the play, but the Chorus is there to, in a way makes this reaction more complicated. One could leave the play totally condemning Medea, but the Chorus display’s Medea in a way that makes the audience sympathise with her, and so the moral conclusions that need to be come to side, become more complex. The audience has to base their reaction to Medea on what crimes they have seen her commit, and on what they have heard of her through the Chorus. Their integral part in the play acts in many ways, to follow, revise, and extend the plot of the play, and to influence the opinions and sympathies of the audience. It is a literary, and dramatic device that Euripedes uses, and uses well, to help portray a tragedy, and also a moralistic play, in which the Chorus is the voice that provides the morals.
... takes matters into her own hands and doesn’t wait for a man to handle things for her. Also, her internal conflict that is visible throughout the entire play signify that she actually thinks for herself, and is strong enough to need to make serious decisions on her own, regardless of her gender. All of this goes back on the traditional Greek society, and helps make Medea into a play that is ahead of its time. With Euripides challenging the notion of misogyny, he creates Medea to show how powerful and dangerous a woman can be in a story, even though it was never heard of in the modern eras.