Women to be feared Flashcards
When did Medea meet Jason?
When he was on his quest to find the golden fleece
Who was Medeas the daughter of
Aites, the King of Colchis
Summarise Jason’s quest for the golden fleece:
- Jason was promised the thone of Thessaly by his uncle Pelias if he got the golden fleece
- Jason built a ship called the Argo, and collected a group of heroes, who became known as the Argonauts
- The King of Colchis, Aites, didn’t want Jason to get the fleece so he set him a challenge
- Jason had to yoke a pair of oxen to a plough, use them to plow a field and then sow the field with serpent’s teeth
What would happen once the field had been sowed with the serpent’s teeth?
Warriors would spring up from the earth
What where the oxen?
Beasts made of metal that breathed fire
How was Hera involved in Jason’s quest?
- Jason was one of Hera’s favourite mortals
- She knew the quest for the fleece would be difficult so she made Medea fall in love with Jason
- Hera hoped that Medea would help Jason complete the quest with her magical powers
Which Greek epic poet narrated the moment Medea fell in love with Jason ?
Appolonius
The love Eros inspired in Medea was…
Overwhelming (she longed for nothing else but to save Jason’s life)
How did Medea help Jason?
- She gave Jason a charm that would make him invulnerable
- She used a combination of magic, chants and drugs to lull the serpent to sleep
- In return, Jason promised to take Medea back to Greece with him and marry her
Why was it a problem that Medea helped Jason?
She was betraying her father and her country
What Greek word is Medea’s name derived from?
Planner, or deviser
How did Medea slow down the Colchians as they chased after the Argonauts?
She killed her brother Apsyrtus and cut his body into pieces - every time the Colchians got close she’d throw some of his body into the water, so they’d have to stop to collect is, as the Colchians believed in proper burials
When Jason and Medea arrived in Thessaly..
King Pelias was shocked that Jason had gotten the golden fleece and refused to give up the throne
What was Medea’s plan to get the throne of Thessaly?
- She showed Pelias’ two daughters a magic ritual that could reverse the aging process
- She demonstrated it by cutting up an old ram and boiling it in a cauldron
- When the girls weren’t looking she replaced it with a lamb, tricking the girls
- The girls tried it on their father, and killed him in the process
What happened to Medea and Jason after the death of King Pelias?
They were driven out of Thessaly by angry townsfolk, and had to seek refuge in the Greek city of Corinth
Medea’s unpopularity in Corinth:
- Jason and Medea settled down in Corinth and had 2 sons
- Medea had gained an unfavourable status or barbarian foreigner which meant Jason was unable to get on with local rulers
- Jason left Medea so he could improve his status, and his new bride was Glauce, Princess of Corinth
Medea’s revenge:
- On the day of Glauce’s wedding, Medea sends her a coronet and a wedding dress
- The dress burns the princess as soon as she puts it on
- King Creon tries to help his daughter by removing the dress, but instead, it burns him too, and they both die
- Medea kills her two sons to hurt Jason
How does Medea predict Jason will die?
He’ll be hit on the head by a piece of the Argo- a very unheroic death
Cleopatra’s background?
- Born around 69BC and grew up in a royal household
- Her family was the Ptolemy’s, who had ruled Egypt since the fall of Alexander Great in 323 BC
- She became ruler in 55BC
Cleopatra’s sole rule of Egypt:
- Believed that a man and woman should rule together, although the woman should be subservient towards the man
- Her father Ptolemy died when she was 18, making her younger brother the new monarch
- Cleopatra took advantage of her brother’s young age and took control
- Her sole rule was short lived as she had to flee Egypt in 45 BC as a result of a coup that removed her from power
The Roman civil war:
- Between Julius Caesar, and Pompey, two military generals, who were former allies
- After a military defeat, Pompey fled to Alexandria
- Pharaoh Ptolemy xiii ordered Pomepy’s execution in an attempt to win Caesar’s favour
- Caesar only wanted Pompey’s defeat, not death so he took control of Alexandria
Cleopatra and the civil war:
- She saw Caesar’s control of Alexandria as an opportunity to reclaim her throne
- She sought to make her claim to the Egyptian throne to Ptolemy herself
Plutarch’s description of how Cleoptatra got the throne:
- Cleopatra arranged a meeting alone with Caesar
- Her plan relied on Caesar preferring her over her brother
- Caesar declared that Cleopatra would jointly rule with her brother
Caesar and Cleopatra’s relationship:
She became his lover and they had a child together- Ptolemy Caesar (Caeserion)
