Agamemnon Response
Agamemnon-Final Response
The main theme in Agamemnon is revenge. It is clearly shown throughout the play and it is even seen in other works unrelated to the story. In order to get to war, Agamemnon must sacrifice his daughter, Iphigenia. Clytemnestra, wants revenge, in the form of death, on Agamemnon after this event. In addition, she wants Agamemnon to die because he has had a mistress during the time he is at war, and because she wants to continue to have her affair with Aegisthus, Agamemnon’s brother. In The Odyssey, when Odysseus visits the underworld he sees Agamemnon, who wishes he could have revenge on Clytemnestra.
Lines 537-550 In this passage there is a conversation between the Herald and the Leader of the Chorus. The Herald has just arrived to the land of Argos, and comes bringing good news that Troy has actually fallen, and that Agamemnon and the rest of the army is returning home. He is so happy that he has fulfilled his duty that he says he can die, “Yes. Glad indeed! So glad that at the gods’ demand/I should no longer hesitate to die” (Agamemnon, lines 538-539). He says he can die because he will be rewarded in the underworld. This reward is given …show more content…
“Why, why at the doors/Of my fore-seeing heart/Does this terror keep beating its wings?” (Agamemnon, lines 975-977). The Chorus claims that they can see the future and that terror is right outside. They give the terror wings, like it can actually move. The next few lines use a simile to discuss how the prophets cannot explain what they see, comparing them to the enigmas of dreams. “And my song play the prophet/Unbidden, unhired—/Which I cannot spit out/Like the enigmas of dreams” (Agamemnon, lines 978-981). The Chorus claims that the prophet is never trusted or used, hence “unhired.” They use figurative language using “song” as another name for
The main theme in Agamemnon is revenge. It is clearly shown throughout the play and it is even seen in other works unrelated to the story. In order to get to war, Agamemnon must sacrifice his daughter, Iphigenia. Clytemnestra, wants revenge, in the form of death, on Agamemnon after this event. In addition, she wants Agamemnon to die because he has had a mistress during the time he is at war, and because she wants to continue to have her affair with Aegisthus, Agamemnon’s brother. In The Odyssey, when Odysseus visits the underworld he sees Agamemnon, who wishes he could have revenge on Clytemnestra.
Lines 537-550 In this passage there is a conversation between the Herald and the Leader of the Chorus. The Herald has just arrived to the land of Argos, and comes bringing good news that Troy has actually fallen, and that Agamemnon and the rest of the army is returning home. He is so happy that he has fulfilled his duty that he says he can die, “Yes. Glad indeed! So glad that at the gods’ demand/I should no longer hesitate to die” (Agamemnon, lines 538-539). He says he can die because he will be rewarded in the underworld. This reward is given …show more content…
“Why, why at the doors/Of my fore-seeing heart/Does this terror keep beating its wings?” (Agamemnon, lines 975-977). The Chorus claims that they can see the future and that terror is right outside. They give the terror wings, like it can actually move. The next few lines use a simile to discuss how the prophets cannot explain what they see, comparing them to the enigmas of dreams. “And my song play the prophet/Unbidden, unhired—/Which I cannot spit out/Like the enigmas of dreams” (Agamemnon, lines 978-981). The Chorus claims that the prophet is never trusted or used, hence “unhired.” They use figurative language using “song” as another name for