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The character of Medea in Medea
The character of Medea in Medea
The character of Medea in Medea
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Writings from the ancient world allow us an insight to Greek life and beliefs. Many of the stories we have today show different variations of particular myths. One of such myths is the ones concerning Medea. This essay will explore the different retellings and variations of what happens to Medea once she flees to Athens with the help of Aegeus.
The first source is written by a Greek writer Apollodorus’ library of Greek mythology, which dates to 2nd century BCE . This particular book is a sort of mythological handbook summarising many of the myths relating to someone or something, amalgamating them into a book that shares the myths without the emotive parts. The library of Greek Mythology is generally seen as a good source from the ancient world
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as most of it is still intact today. It gives us an insight to many Greek myths and sheds light on entirely lost epics and tragedians. This passage tells the end of Medea’s time with Aegeus. It focuses on how she is driven out from Athens in retaliation for her plot to kill Theseus.
Apollodorus’ take on this myth relating to Medea is discussed in many secondary sources. One such modern secondary source is the book Looking at Medea. This books main discussion is the play Medea by Euripides but it diverges briefly into other sources and characters that relate. The particular chapter with this passage focuses on her getting banished from Athens. This source tries its best to make Medea seem more like a victim. Typically this source would be reliable especially for an in depth analysis however you must be wary of the scattered strong opinions throughout. Another secondary source mentioning this work is an online journal called the Text History of the Bibliotheca. This source contains an ancient source written by Photius, a roman religion leader, which talks about Apollodorus’ work. This source exhibits a clear bias about the work. Although he talks about the book as a good source of information he says it in a way that talks down on the Greeks clearly making a point that Romans are superior. Nevertheless the reliability of this source is still good, one should just approach it with caution when using its information. Alternatively
to other telling’s of this myth; Apollodorus’ spelling of Aegeus is different. Apollodorus swaps out a letter to make the spelling become Aigeus. It is unlikely that this is a spelling mistake due to its frequent use; it is most likely a choice of translation. Apollodorus isn’t the only person to compile myths into one source but he is one of the first. Many others after him decided to do the same. Diodorus Siculus is another Greek historian, from Sicily, who also compiled different myths into one source. This passage is from Diodorus Siculus’ Library of History, which dates back to c. 80-20 BCE. Like Apollodorus, Diodorus assembled a mythological handbook but, unlike Apollodorus, Diodorus, rather than simplifying, tries to rationalise the myths and establish a historical order. Diodorus’ complete work has not survived in tact: we have the first five books and XI and XX still fully undamaged, where as the rest only exist in fragments and in the works of others. This particular passage comes from Book 4 meaning it is in its entirety making this source a fairly reliable one in terms of being able to fully understand the myth unlike one that comes from fragments of remaining text. Unlike the previous passage, this describes the way in which Medea came to be in Athens with Aegeus. In this retelling of the myth Medea escapes Corinth after killing her children she flees to find Hercules before ending up in Athens. Unlike in other sources here Medea is seen having a trial for her actions against Creon and his daughter. This work and passage of Diodorus’ is mentioned quite a bit among secondary sources. An example of this is in a source written by Photius. This ancient source provides a brief analysis of the work and what it tells us. In the work he talks about himself reading the work which enabled historians today to be able to make guess about what was in the fragmented part of his work that we have today. The work exhibits no bias and is purely informative about Diodorus’ work. This source seems reliable despite it being a very brief overview. Theoi, an online classical database, also mentions this passage. Theoi provides translations of Diodorus’ work and provides a description about him and his writings. Theoi should be considered as a reliable source as most of the content on the site has been translated from the original ancient sources. Unlike Apollodorus and Diodorus, Ovid was a Roman writer writing in the time of Augustus’ rule, late 1st century BC and early 1st century AD. The passage involving Medea comes from his compilation of poems the Metamorphoses. The Metamorphoses consisted of 15 books consisting of many mock-epic poems, as they are written in dactylic hexameter. Today we have all 15 books making this a very complete source and one of the most important sources we have today. All of the works within this book feature a change of some sort. The passage discussing Medea in this text focuses on her going through with her plan to kill Theseus and making her poison. Ovid’s Metamorphoses is one of the most talked about sources among classical scholars. One such source is Medea: Essays on Medea in Myth. This discusses the treatment of Medea saying she is more humanised and portrayed, in the beginning as a lovesick maiden. This source’s reliability seems favourable. It gives you many different interpretations of Medea not just in this source but compared to others as well but like always you should always approach sources with some caution. Another source that comments on Ovid and his Metamorphoses is Classical Myth. This book seems to be very reliable as everything said is backed up by the original myths themselves. However the book only briefly mentions Ovid’s portrayal of Medea and focuses generally on the book itself. Hyginus, like Ovid, is another Roman writer writing in Latin. His works date back to the middle to late 1st century AD. Hyginus’ Fabulae, where this source comes form, has gone through a form of Chinese whispers as it has been changed so many times by many different writers, which is likely the reason for the many spelling mistakes that feature within this work. The reliability of this source has come into question because of this but due to the limited sources we have from antiquity it still is a valid resource. The passage seen here discusses the end of Medea’s time in Athens and where she goes afterwards, in this case it is Colchic. There is a lack of many secondary sources that talk about Hyginus’ description of the Medea myth. One secondary source that mentions this is Theoi. Theoi gives a translation of various parts of his work as well as a description about him and the other writings he has done. Overall it is a reliable source as it is mostly just translated text from antiquity but for information about this topic is adequate. Other secondary sources mention him but lack in information about his works. All four passages have many overlapping similarities and differences with each other. This could be because of whom they were writing for and each writer’s purpose for writing. All four sources base their Medea retelling on the Euripides’ play Medea but try to put their own spin on the tale. Compared to the other three sources, Apollodorus takes a very harsh view against Medea. It is written in a way that would tell Athenians how to act. It gives a clear view that foreigners are not to be trusted. Diodorus and Ovid paint Medea in a much softer light, putting forward that she is more of a victim of the god’s intervention. You see this clearly in Diodorus’ work as he talks about a charge of poisoning being given to her but Aegeus grants her safety to leave. During the time he was writing, killing a family member would still be a grave offence so it is odd that Aegeus grants her safe passage. Hyginus is slightly harsher than the previous two but gives her a redeeming quality, which is ridding the town of the snakes. All four sources are a compilation of many different myths however they are all done in different ways. The two Greek writers, Apollodorus and Diodorus, tell the myths in quite a factual way trying to apply them to history, where as the Roman writers take on a more literary style. The normal portrayal of Medea’s story, after leaving Jason, usually begins with her leaving Corinth with Aegeus whom she then marries and has a child with. Following this she tries to poison Theseus, Aegeus’ son, and gets banished from Athens. The excerpts provided mostly follow this structure some exhibiting a few differences. Diodorus for example makes Medea originally travel to find Herakles before going to Athens. This may have been used as an explanation to how Herakles gets out of his frenzied state. Other sources that talk about this myth are Euripides’ Medea and Seneca’s Medea. Euripides’ play is what a lot of the other sources based their writings of Medea on and is usually considered the normal portrayal of this myth. Seneca’s portrayal of Medea is vicious and ugly yet it still follows the same pattern of events as the normal portrayal.
In ancient Greece, women lacked many of the fundamental rights held by men. Medea feels that this is unjust. These feelings are shown on page 195 when Medea states “...we must pay a great dowry to a husband who will be the tyrant of our bodies; and there is another fearful hazard: whether we shall get a good man or a bad. For separations bring disgrace on the woman and it is not possible to renounce one’s husband…” After being rejected by the one she loved, she beings to question the morals of those around her. She assumes that Greek women are weak and naive for allowing men to treat them this way; allowing men to cast them away at their heart’s content.
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
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.
Medea and Lysistrata are two Greek literatures that depict the power which women are driven to achieve in an aim to defy gender inequality. In The Medea, Medea is battling against her husband Jason whom she hates. On the other hand, in Aristophanes' Lysistrata, the protagonist Lysistrata plotted to convince and organize the female gender to protest against the stubbornness of men. In terms of defining the purpose of these two literatures, it is apparent that Euripedes and Aristophanes created characters that demonstrate resistance against the domination of men in the society.
Greek Mythology originated around 775 B.C.E. It all started with Homer’s Iliad and continued on with Hesiod’s Theogany. These were the first two myths to be recorded in Greek mythology.
The two contemporary productions of Medea were selected for this essay in an effort to contrast the ancient Greek version of the play with two modernized versions, which would demonstrate a wide distinction between the styles of production. Furthermore, both modernized versions of the play add their own innovation to the production, making for an even broader dissimilarity among the plays. Moreover, both recent productions are fashioned within cultures which have borrowed their political, social, and moral ways of life from Ancient Greek society, specifically, South Africa¹ (British Colonies), and The United States².
Though Medea is a foreigner, her first few lines (214-224) present us, nevertheless, with an arresting flexibility and adaptability to the Greeks and to their unique social and political creation, the polis. Similarly, her language reveals the kind of adroitness that is characteristic of the sophistication born out of the town life of the fifth-century Greek aristocrat. (115).
Deception and manipulative motives don’t get you anywhere, but back to square one. You are angry and feel betrayed, so you become deceiving and manipulative, but soon the tables will turn and people will see you for who you are. The lights come on and your true self is revealed and you lose the people closest to you. Medea was betrayed, someone left her, she became deceiving, people saw her true colors, and she ended up alone. Medea always gets what she wants and people don’t realize that. She doesn’t know any other way to communicate with people without manipulating them at the same time. The façade of being clever only lasted for so long until the community realized Medea is conniving.
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 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.
These focus elements, of pity and fear are essentially what formulate the action within Medea, and in turn, reflect upon the characters creating a relevance to the audience, and the cathartic response for which Aristotle was so passionate. A key point within the text of Medea, which represents the perpetuation of these emotive elements, is when she is informed by Kreon, [Lord of Corinth] that she is to be exiled, as the following excerpt details.
... 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.
Ironically, Medea’s actions are similar to a man when she takes charge of her marriage, living situation, and family life when she devices a plan to engulf her husband with grief. With this in mind, Medea had accepts her place in a man’s world unti...
Medea was a very diverse character who possesses several characteristics which were unlike the average woman during her time. As a result of these characteristics she was treated differently by members of the society. Media was a different woman for several reasons; she possessed super natural powers , she was manipulative, vindictive, and she was driven by revenge. The life that Medea lived and the situations she encountered, (one could say) were partly responsible for these characteristics and her actions.
Medea is a tragedy of a woman who feels that her husband has betrayed her with another woman and the jealousy that consumes her. She is the protagonist who arouses sympathy and admiration because of how her desperate situation is. I thought I was going to feel sorry for Medea, but that quickly changed as soon as I saw her true colors. I understand that her emotions were all over the place. First, she was angry, then cold and conniving. The lower she sinks the more terrible revenge she wants to reap on Jason.