Euripides' Medea Flashcards
The Quest Theme
1
Q
who are the main characters in Medea?
A
- Medea
- Jason
- Creon (king of Corinth)
- Glauce (daughter of Creon)
- Aigeus (king of Athens & father of Theseus)
2
Q
what are the main plot points of Medea?
(post-Argonautica)
A
- death of Pelias
- Jason & Medea exiled from everywhere except Corinth
- Jason starts regretting marriage to Medea
- Creon tells him to divorce Medea & marry Glauce
- Medea uses her magic to help king Aigeus conceive a child → he swears oath offering her refuge in Athens
- Medea sends Glauce poisoned wedding garments (Glauce & Creon burn to death trying to remove them)
- Medea kills her & Jason’s children before fleeing to Athens on chariot of Helios (her grandfather)
Medea pained by the death of her children but decides her hatred for Jason outweighs her love for them
3
Q
what main themes of the course are reflected in Medea?
A
foreign princess motif:
- daughter of hero’s (male) enemy
- becomes smitten w/ hero
- aids hero at expense of her father
- flees w/ hero
4
Q
what is the literary & historical context of Medea?
A
- Euripides = 1/3 major tragedians of Classican Athens (+ Aeschylus & Sophocles)
- first performed at City Dionysia festival in Athens during Peloponnesian Wars (5th c.)
- Medea’s barbaric origins emphasized as an explanation for her violence
