Euripides’ Hippolytus shows three key themes that are significant to the play, by showing the theme of lust, honour and betrayal which are shown from the lines 490-512, they set up the flow of the play and relates directly to the dramatic conflict between the lust and continence of Phaedra and Hippolytus, this scene shows Phaedra to be the true central character of the play since her actions are pivotal to the fate Hippolytus and herself.
The extract epitomises the theme of lust. In the exchange the nurse encourages Phaedra to give in to her lust to cure her feelings, ‘I would never egg you on like this to get you into bed with your man.’ (Euripides, 2003, Line 494). This suggests that instead of fighting the feelings in silence as Phaedra
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This scene gives an insight in to the character of Phaedra as opposed to the effect Aphrodite has had over her. The scene shows that Phaedra is disgusted by the nurse’s insistence on bedding Hippolytus, ‘what an appalling thing to say!’ (Euripides, 2003, Line 498) Phaedra’s reaction to the nurse’ encouragement of adultery shows that her honour and virtue is of more importance, but she is losing her battle, ‘I shall be consumed in what I am trying to shun’ (Euripides, 2003, Line 506). The nurse however does not see the implications that acting upon Phaedra’s feelings would have. This shows the significance of the scene as it sets the flow of the play and leads to the death of both Phaedra and Hippolytus.
Betrayal is a theme throughout Euripides’ Hippolytus, in the exchange between the nurse and Phaedra the theme of betrayal is alluded to, the nurse attempts to convince Phaedra to betray Theseus by giving in to her emotions to cure her of her lust for Hippolytus. Phaedra is unwilling to betray Theseus, but the nurse convinces her that using her love charm would ‘do no harm to your wits or your reputation’ ((Euripides, 2003, Line 511). This sets the theme for the rest of the
Artemis’ informative speech to Hippolytus not only displays the dramatic irony present throughout the play, but also solidifies many predominant themes present during the play. This passage summarizes the entire play as Artemis describes the plans of the characters, going on to blame Phaedra, the Nurse, Aphrodite, and Theseus. (Halleran, 276) Through Artemis’ passage (Euripides, 1283-1312), the truth about Phaedra and Hippolytus, unknown and misunderstood by Theseus, finally surfaces. As Artemis reveals the plot to Theseus in the passage, the themes of honour and relationship between man and god are evident. Hippolytus’ relationship with the goddesses Artemis and Aphrodite, along with his honour and pride, are
This quote from the passage portrays how annoyed the nurse has become towards the suitors. In addition, it reveals how the suitors behave, especially when a stranger visits Odysseus’ home. They are rude, aggressive and unwelcoming. It’s also revealed how much the nurse truly loves her masters. Her loyalty and dedication to Penelope and Odysseus is shown through her respect of her work. She does what she is asked, without questions and is always on Penelope’s side. She doesn’t care for the suitors and seems to want Odysseus to return nearly as much as Penelope does. This passage establishes the nurse’s important role in the story, and highlights the nuisance of the suitors. Then, later in the story, while the nurse is washing the disguised Odysseus’ feet, Eurycleia is struck by how similar the “old beggar” is to Odysseus himself. She confesses to the
During the time of Euripides, approximately the second half of the fifth century B.C., it was a period of immense cultural crisis and political convulsion (Arrowsmith 350). Euripides, like many other of his contemporaries, used the whole machinery of the theater as a way of thinking about their world (Arrowsmith 349). His interest in particular was the analysis of culture and relationship between culture and the individual. Euripides used his characters as a function to shape the ideas of the play (Arrowsmith 359).
In addition to the interactions between Medea and the Greek Chorus, it is important to explore the scenes preceding the tirade. The nurse’s opening monologue offers great insight into Medea’s state of characterization prior to her newfound interactions. The nurse anaphorically describes Medea’s actions towards Jason. The Nurse begins, “She wouldn’t have made the daughters of Pelias kill him, she wouldn’t have had to flee to Corinth here, she wouldn’t have done all that she did for Jason, She wouldn’t have been so darned complaisant to Jason” (311). Euripides’ use of anaphora creates emphasis on everything Medea has done for Jason. The Nurse believes that upon meeting Jason, “she wouldn’t have” fallen in love with Jason. Medea’s motivation was a clear passion to woo Jason. Formerly, Medea completes Jason’s task of achieving the Golden Fleece, originally a man’s task. With her cunningness, she uses her witch supremacies to her advantage, acting on her desire for Jason. Furthermore, the Nurse foreshadows Medea’s shift in characterization from anguish to dexterity in her
Firstly, in the outset of the play, Aphrodite’s speech is necessary for both plot development and characterisation. Her contempt towards Hippolytus and her dark intentions are at first revealed to
The female characters portrayed in Aeschylus and Sophocles’ works have considerably different personalities and roles, yet those females all have the common weaknesses of being short-sighted and stubborn. They intensify the conflicts within their families while being inconsiderate of the impacts that they may bring to their nations and societies, which leads to consequences that they are incapable of taking responsibilities for. Clytemnestra and Antigone, two major characters in their respective author’s works, possess different motivations for their deeds in the stories. While Clytemnestra is driven by the desire of revenge to murder her husband Agamemnon, Antigone acts against Creon’s will and strives to properly bury her brother. Despite having different motivations and personalities, Clytemnestra and Antigone both commit
The poetic tone of Aristophanes' Lysistrata differs greatly from the poetic tone of the Greek tragedies we have read in class. However, after analyzing this Greek comedy, it seems to share some of the main characteristics of Euripides' Medea. Within these plays, we meet shrewd, powerful masculine women who use the art of manipulation to get what they want from others and to accomplish their goals. This theme of manipulation is employed through various means and techniques. The women of these plays also seem to contradict the stereotypical woman and have characteristics similar to the Homeric Greek warrior.
Euripides Medea is a play that largely embodies themes of sex and gender within Greek life, marriage and society. Lars Von Trier, Danish Screen writer, controversially took on and altered Euripides' classic Medea in the form of film. Although complex and compelling, Von Trier's film fails to capture major themes and qualities presented in the text version of the infamous Medea and relay them to an audience. Through the use of close reading and comparison, it can be proved that Lars Von Trier's film depiction of Euripides' Medea does not allow an audience to see the complexity and major themes of gender and masculinity that Euripides originally portrays to his audience, but rather depicts a story of lost love and femininity within the protagonist.
Thésée’s accusation of “d 'inceste et d 'adultère” against Hippolytus triggered him to confess his love for Aricia as a defense. However, it enraged Thésée even more as he perceived it as his son’s atrocious attempt to cover up his “brutale insolence”. This scene helped to transit the play to the ‘falling action’ in which Hippolytus and Thésée unwittingly became the victims of Oenone’s perfidy.
The story of Theseus and Hippolytus is another myth that shows the role of women in Greco-Roman society. In this story Hippolytus rejects Aphrodite to follow Artemis. In revenge, Aphrodite makes Hippolytus' mother Phaedra fall in love with him. Phaedra, unable to control her sexual desire, makes her move on Hippolytus. After he rejects her, she hangs her self and leaves a note saying that Hippolytus raped her. When his father Theseus returns he kills him. This story shows that the Roman-Greco society thought women were filled with lies and the cause of many bad things. This is different than women's roles in today society because today it is usually thought that more men lie to avoid
Lysistrata by Aristophanes is seen to be a comical play used to show the impact of war not only on the ones physically in the war, but the ones mentally involved also. This play was written to help express the feeling the author had about the war occurring during the time the work was written. Lysistrata, the main character, is a strong woman who decides to become as what could be said as being “rebellious”. She does this by refusing to have sexual relations with the men in the city until it was agreed that peace would be declared between the two troops. She calls a meeting with the women in the city and include them in her vindictive ideas to bring the war to an end. This play is sure to bring a smile to the readers face due to the comical events that occur. However, comedy is not the only thing that becomes apparent within the play. Throughout the work of Lysistrata there are three themes that become apparent during this play: peace and harmony, control by gender, and politics.
The different portrayals of female characters Antigone and Lysistrata illustrate the fundamental nature of the proper Athenian woman. Sophocles' Antigone allows the reader to see that outrage over social injustices does not give women the excuse to rebel against authority, while Aristophanes' Lysistrata reveals that challenging authority in the polis becomes acceptable only when it's faced with destruction through war. Sophocles and Aristophanes use different means to illustrate the same idea; the ideal Athenian woman's ultimate loyalty lies with her polis. This Greek concept of the proper woman seems so vital when considering Athenian society because both a tragedy and comedy revolve around this concept. The differing roles accorded to
As the play begins to unfold love is immediately illustrated to be the main theme of the play; starting with a wedding and leading up to tears shed by miserable lovers.Although it is an extremely rewarding, love is never an easy adventure. Lovers must be prepared to protect and fight for one another against everyone and anyone. In Hermia’s tragic situation her enemy was her father. Egeus passionately voices his disapproval by taking his daughter to Theseus and stating, “ full of vexation come I with complaint Against my child, my daughter Hermia.—Stand forth, Demetrius.—My noble lord,This man hath my consent to marry her.—Stand forth, Lysander.—And my gracious duke,This man hath bewitched the bosom of my child” (1.1. 22-27). When love is at last passionately felt amongst both lovers, it encounters a malevolent invincible demon; parental disapproval. Hermia and Lysander’s love is cursed and forbidden by her father’s
Amongst Euripides' most famous plays, Medea went against the audience's expectations at his time. Indeed, the main character of the play is Medea, a strong independent female who neglected moral and . She was therefore in all ways different to how women were perceived in Ancient Greece. This essay will explore how Euripides' controversial characters demonstrate that his views were ahead of his time.
As the famous Greek playwright Euripides once said: “Stronger than lover's love is lover's hate. Incurable, in each, the wounds they make.” Such ideas are portrayed in one of him most famous plays, Medea. This play is a fascinating classic centered on the Greek goddess Medea. Despite its recent fame, during his time, Euripides was unpopular since he used what would be considered a ‘modern’ view where he would focus on women, slaves and persons from the lower classes. In the play, Medea commits filicide, which initially appears extremely horrendous, but as the audience is guided through the play, they develop sympathy towards Medea. In order to achieve this empathy and enhance the understanding of Medea’s pride and ideals, Euripides