Sophocles Antigone's Clytemnestra

Clytemnestra fits the character of one of the Argos’s contaminations because of her adulterous acts with Aegisthus and her psychotic murderous plans to kill her husband Agamemnon. In her point of view, justice will only be obtained of she avenges the death of her daughter Iphigenia by killing the one who murdered her, Agamemnon. Cassandra mentions this cycle of fertility and decay when she talks about “the babies wailing, skewered on the sword, their flesh charred, the father gorging on their parts” referring to Thyestes’ babies (A 1095-1097). More blood vengeance and violence only fuels what becomes a never ending cycle of death and decay within the House of Atreus. When Clytaemnestra finally kills Agamemnon she cries, “So he goes down, and the life is bursting out of him—great sprays of blood, and the murderous shower wounds me, dyes me black and I, I revel like the Earth when the spring rains come down, the blessed gifts of god, and the new green spear splits the sheath and rips to birth in glory!”, and she feels reborn from his death and even calls it a gift from the god (A 1410-1415). Not only does Clytaemnestra feel renewed from murdering Agamemnon, but she feels that it was the proper and just thing to do. Although the Furies don’t go after her since this is not a crime of matricide or patricide, killing her husband is unwise and unfair because in Agamemnon’s

Clytaemestra, whose infidelity and Agamemnon`s murder create a domino effect, which in turn brings a reign of chaos and killing begins as conspiracies and family secrets are reveled. Clytaemestra can be viewed as the unethical, evil character, nevertheless, her independed will and ability to murder, translate into strength and intellect. Clytaemestra drives the plot into "the complicated" which forms the majority of the tragedy itself.

Episode 3 begins with Creon inquiring whether Haeman is angry for the verdict of his bride, Antigone. Haeman responds that he is obedient and loves his father, despite the news on Antigone, which pleases Creon. Creon gives a speech explaining the reasons why Antigone must be killed. Creon’s reasons include maintaining control over the Thebes, as well as appearing to be a liar and inferior to women if he does not execute Antigone. Haeman responds by defending Antigone, calling his father close-minded and selfish. Creon is now outraged, as the two argue, Haeman says that if Antigone is killed, another will go to, meaning he will kill himself. Creon declares he will bring Antigone out to be killed before Haeman’s eyes. Haeman states if this happens

The Oresteia and Oedipus Trilogy have characters that either emotionally engage you to feel sympathy or sorrow for them while they go through troubles. There are also characters in these works that make you want to detest them on the basis of their character, actions, or behavior. The character that tugs at my heart strings the most between the works of Aeschylus and Sophocles is Antigone. The character between the Oresteia and the Oedipus trilogy that evokes contempt or anger is Clytemnestra. Antigone has to live with the major effects on her family after her father’s curse compounds itself into the slow deterioration of the city and her family. Antigone’s love for her family despite all odds provides an emotional connection to her since it is relatable to family life and how one wants to protect their close ones despite circumstance. I find her a sympathetic character also due to the fact that she always seems alone in her ideals. Clytemnestra on the other hand is on the other side of the spectrum; she is a manipulative sweet talker that pulls the heart strings of the reader then detaches the readers’ string and sympathy through her actions.

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 second play, The Libation Bearers, lays the foundation for Orestes to murder his mother, which is directly related to her hatred of men and her only son. Due to her hatred of men, such as her husband Agamemnon, Clytemnestra forgets that Orestes is also her son. In The Libation Bearers, Orestes confronts his mother about her selfish will to love another man and control the kingdom after the death of Agamemnon: “Clytemnestra: Thou growest fain to slay thy mother, child/Orestes: Nay, ‘tis thyself wilt slay thyself, not I” (Aeschylus, 1996, p.104). This dialogue defines the hateful and venomous self-centered of Clytemnestra, which Orestes countermands by making her take responsibility for her own murderous actions. In this way, Orestes may be the individual that kills his mother, but he more focused on the danger that poses to himself and other family members that defy her will. This form of abandonment is why Clytemnestra is such a monstrous smother, since she is only

Before going into a deliberation on why Clytaemnestra is not a victim of injustice, a definition of justice must first be established. Justice is the correct decision by a higher court that achieves equilibrium for a wrongdoing, with a victim being compensated for a crime that an aggressor has performed. This does not just require the proof of an aggressor – it also requires proof that the one who claims to be a victim is in fact such. In The Eumenides, the Ghost of Clytaemnestra attempts to establish herself as a victim by stating that “she [is] stripped of honor, alone among the dead…I suffered terribly…and none of my spirits rages to avenge me” (The Eumenides, 99-105). The person that the Ghost of Clytaemnestra claims to be her aggressor

Clytemnestra was not expected to kill her husband, even after hearing the prophesy the chorus still manage to ask Cassandra, “What man is it who moves this beastly thing to be?” (Agamemnon, 1251). Clytemnestra acts like no woman was expected to act, therefore making it hard to believe that a woman would ever commit a crime like killing their own husband without feeling regret. Women were meant to not be discrete and they were meant to be submissive, so when Clytemnestra killed her husband it left people in shock because women were not supposed to overrule their husbands, especially if he was a

The daughter of Tyndareus and Leda, Clytemnestra is also the half twin sister of Helen. In the Oresteia, Clytemnestra is a problematic character; in the beginning of the Oresteia the Watchman says that “Oh she’s a woman all right, a woman with a man’s heart.” (Oresteia, p.3) proving that he’s not her biggest admirer. Clytemnestra is an example for double role of man and woman, she is a woman but the culture of the ancient time considers her

The first play, Agamemnon, tells about the return of the King from the Trojan wars and how his wife has chosen to react to the reunion. Clytemnestra is the queen who was angered by the fact that Agamemnon was away for a decade and that the King sacrificed their daughter Iphigenia to one of the gods. In one part of the play, the Chorus of Elders chants "Zeus who hath paved a way for human thought, by ordaining this firm law 'He who learns, suffers'" (Aeschylus, trans. 1893, 1.176-179) which speaks to the law that was formed by the words. The people of Greece followed the law that a person who commits a crime, whether that be a recognized law or one that the punisher deemed appropriate, is subject to some form of punishment. In Agamemnon's case, Clytemnestra believed that his actions justified his death. She did not believe that it was murder because his actions justified her actions.

The Oresteia is a story of tragedy and compromises an outline of revenge. In modern Western principles, revenge appears to be a slightly restricted concern. However, in the hierarchical world of Greece, revenge is an enacted and endorsed principle that is a societal norm. In the Oresteia, revenge is used to examine the nature of human act and impulse, just like justice and transgression. The Oresteia emphases on revenge happening within a family that leads to ferocity and differing commitments.

Anyone that reads Sophocles’ Antigone knows it’s a perfect tragedy. The plot twist in the story makes it a perfect tragedy deep down. The nature of the play is even clearer, when the choir appears in the middle of the story telling the listeners tragedy is coming.

In “Antigone” by Sophocles, a famous ancient Greek tragedian, the main character, Antigone, demonstrates a prohibited action in a strict, male-dominated society. Greek civilization upheld strong values and rules that were designed to enforce orderly behavior among its people. There were state laws created by the King, Creon, and divine laws created by the Gods. Divine law was superior to the king laws, and if that rule was disrupted, eternal consequences could ruin an individual. In this society, men were mighty, powerful, and in control of the kingdom. Women were traditionally treated as an underclass with no voice or power. Women were restricted from performing any masculine jobs, holding high civilization positions, and disobeying men. Although Greek civilization had strict standards for women, Antigone challenges the law through her actions in order to satisfy the Gods because it is what she thought was the right decision.

When one person thinks about the word suffering a lot of emotions and meanings can all flow in at once. It is a word that not many people want to talk about let alone feel it. However it is a truly amazing emotion; to suffer. That word can mean so many different things to so many different people. It is up to that one person to make a choice and define that word for themselves. The reason as to why one must define the word themselves is because it is a personal emotion. One person cannot tell another that they are suffering or that the event that has just occurred made them suffer. Unfortunately this feeling does occur quite often but in many different scenarios. For example in Sophocles’ play Antigone there are a few characters that one might say suffered. The two characters that are believed to suffer the most in this play are Antigone and Creon, however Creon does suffer more than Antigone.

Society establishes a set of expectations by which males and females are expected to conduct themselves. For example, a mother is expected to nurture her child, stay at home to take care of her children, be patient, be kind, love unconditionally and to never get angry. If a mother does not live up to these expectations established by society, then that mother is deemed a “bad mother.” Since a mother gives birth to her children and nurtures them, a mother who kills her children is considered to be unredeemably bad. Medea, in the play of the same name, kills her two sons and by societal standards, she would be deemed a bad mother. Contrary to society’s expectations of mothers, I will argue that Medea is not a bad mother. I will do this by proving that: Medea defies the social conventions of motherhood in three ways; she kills her children in order to protect them; and, that she rebels against her husband’s control and male domination by depriving him of his “immortality” by killing his sons and ending his bloodline.