Medea
Ancient Athenian Drama
deus ex machina: It means god from the machine. The term
has evolved to mean a plot device whereby a unsolvable problem is suddenly and
abruptly resolved by the contrived and unexpected intervention of some new
event, character, ability or object. Depending on how it is done, it can be
intended to move the story forward when the writer has painted himself'' into a corner'' and sees no other way
out, to surprise the audience, to bring the tale to a happy ending, or as a
comedic device.
"The choral songs
and dances can allow the dramatist to put the events of the play in a broader: the chorus may takes back in time, looking to earlier
events in the same myth, or tracing parallel’s between this story and
others " page 608
Two important dialogue techniques page 607
One is the agon and the other is stichomythia.
agon: it refers to a struggle or contest. It
referred to a contest in athletics, chariot or horse racing, music or
literature at a public festival in ancient Greece.
stichomythia: is a technique in verse drama in which
sequences of single alternating lines, or half-lines. It typically features
repetition and antithesis. It is particularly well suited to sections of
dramatic dialogue where two characters are in violent dispute.
Medea
An ancient Greek
tragedy written by Eurpides, based on the myth of Jason and Medea and first
produced in 431 BCE. The plot centers on the actions of Medea, a barbarian and
the wife of Jason. She finds her position in the Greek world threatened Jason
leaves her for a Greek princess of Corinth. She takes vengeance on Jason by
killing Jason’s new wife as well as her own children with them, after which she
escapes to Athens to start a new life.
Story of Medea
Jason has
abandoned his wife, Medea, along with her two children. He hopes to advance his
station by remarrying with Glauce, the daughter of Creon, king of Corinth.
Medea took her revenge by sending Glauce a dress.
Previous of Medea
Jason is the son
of Aeson, King of Iolcos, but his crown was taken by Pelias when he was a
child. A servant sent the young Jason out secretly. Many years were gone by,
Jason came back to fight for the throne which belongs to him while he is the
age of 19.Pelias didn’t say no but he told Jason that he didn’t have any
contribution to this country so even he is the blood of the old king, its hard
for people to support him. Therefore, Pelius suggested that if Jason could find
the Golden Fleece, he could give him the
crown back. Thus Jason built his ship, Argo, and picked his crew from the
Olympic Games. Meanwhile, Pelius secretly arranged his own son to follow Jason
for robbing the Golden Fleece when the time’s right. Of course, his son died
eventually. As for Medea, she was an extraordinary girl with special powers.
Because she fell in love with Jason, she
killed the monster, got the Golden Fleece for Jason, and followed him back to
Iolcos. When they arrived Iolcos, Pelius’ s daughter heard Medea could bring
back the life of a goat after bloodletting and told the weak Pelius. Hence, Pelius
asked Medea to cure him. Medea agreed so she help Pelius with bloodletting.
However, she didn’t cure him. She let him die directly. Pelius’s daughter was
furious and commanded to hunt them down. Ultimately, Medea and Jason escaped
from Iolcos to Corinth.
In the beginning of Medea, the first character, Nurse came on the
stage first and said "I wish the Argo
never had set sail"page745
Why Nurse
say that? Because if there was no crew, Jason wouldn’t meet Medea.
Argo is the
first ship, constructed by Jason for his quest for the Golden Fleece.[mission]
Golden Fleece: is the
fleece of the gold-hair winged ram, which was held in Colchis. The fleece is a symbol of authority and kingship. It figures in
the tale of hero Jason and his band of Argonauts, who set out on a quest for
the fleece by order of King Pelias, in order to place Jason rightfully on the
throne of lolcus in Thessaly.
"No: this is my deceit, to kill the princess. I’ll send them to her,
bearing gifts in hand—a delicate robe, and a
garland worked in gold. If she takes these fine things and puts them on, she
and anyone who touches her, will die a painful death. Such are the drugs with
which I will smear them. " page765
In Medea, the character of Glauce is rather flat and almost
stereotypical. Jason marries Glauce for her status and wealth; as the daughter
of Creon, Glauce provides Jason with opportunities for advancement within
Corinth. Although she is technically Jason’s second wife, she insists that she
be revered. She allows Medea to stay around only to
appease Jason’s sons, and when they bring her the poisoned gifts, she snubs
them before being taking in by her own greed.
Jason
He was an ancient Greek mythological hero
who was famous for his role as the leader of the Argonauts and their quest for the Golden Fleece. He was the son
of Aeson, the rightful king of Ioclos. He was married to the sorceress Medea.
Because he belongs mythology, he may have existed before the Greek Dark Ages.
Aeson
He was the son of Cretheus and Tyro. He had two other brothers Pheres and
Amythaon. He was the father of Jason and Promachus with Polymele, the daughter
of Autolyus.
Circe
She is a goddess of magic. She is the
daughter of Helios, the god of the sun, and Perse. Her brothers are Aeetes, the
keeper of the Golden Fleece, and Perses. Her sisters is Pasiphae, the wife of
King Minos and mother of the Minotaur. She was renowned for her vast knowledge
of potions and herbs. Through the use of magical potions and a wand or a staff,
she transformed her enemies, or those who offended her, into animals. Some way
she was exiled to the solitary island of
Aeaea by her subjects and her father for ending the life of her husband, the
prince of Colchis. Later traditions tell of her leaving or even destroying the
island and moving to Italy, where she was identified with Cape Cireo.
Term explanation
Greek
chorus: It is a non-individualized group of performers in the plays of
classical Greece, who comment with a collective voice on the dramatic action.
The chorus consisted of between 12 and 50 players, who variously danced, sang
or spoke their lines in unison and sometimes wore masks.
Catharsis: It is the purification of emotions—especially
pity and fear—through art or any extreme change in emotion that results in
renewal and restoration. It is a metaphor originally used by Aristotle in the
Poetics to describe the effects of tragedy on the spectator.
Argonauts
They were a band of heroes in Greek mythology, who in the years before
the Trojan War, around 1300 BCE, accompanied Jason to Colchis in his quest to
find the Golden Fleece. Their name comes from their ship, Argo named after its
builder, Argus.
Iambic pentameter
It is commonly used type of metrical line in tradition English poetry and
verse drama. The term describes the rhythm that the words establish in that
line, which is measured in small groups of syllables called feet. The word
iambic refers the type of foot that is used known as the iamb, which in English
is an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable.
Sophist
It was a specific kind of teacher in both Ancient Greece
and in the Roman Empire. Many sophists specialized in using the tools of
philosophy and rhetoric, though other sophists taught subjects such as music,
athletics, and mathematics. The early sophists' practice of charging money for
education and providing wisdom only to those who could pay resulted in the
condemnations made by Socrates through Plato in his Dialogues, as well as by
Xenophon in Memorabilia and, somewhat controversially, by Aristotle who, being
paid to tutor Alexander the Great, could be accused of being a Sophist.
Euripides
"Euripides has lost some of his
power to shock, provoke, amuse, and engage his audiences " page742
He is reported as a prolific
writer and he is told to have many works
when he is still alive.
He was a tragedian of classical Athens. He is one of the few whose plays
have survived, with the others being Aeschylus, Sophocles, and potentially
Euphorion. More of his plays have survived intact than those of Aeschylus and
Sophocles together, partly due to mere chance and partly because his popularity
grew as theirs decline—he became, in the Hellenistic Age, a cornerstone of
ancient literary education, along with Homer, Demosthenes and Menander.
Vocabulary
contr: contrast
controversial: causing much decision, disagreement, or argument
di: one divide into two
diagram: a drawing
that explains or shows the parts of something
aut: people
argonauts: they were a
band of heroes in Greek mythology, who in the years before the Trojan War,
around 1300 BCE, accompanied Jason to Colchis in his quest to find the Golden
Fleece.
thematic: relating to a particular theme
heroine: a woman who is admired for doing something
infidelity: when someone has sex with a person who is not
their wife or husband
fidelity: the quality of being faithful to your husband,
wife, or sexual partner
Plot
Additional
Supplement
Fido dido: it is a cartoon character created by Joanna
Ferrone.
Video
Lost civilizations
