his audience’s society. Electra gains power and influence throughout the play; Sophocles depicts both Electra and Clytemnestra as very strong-willed. Sophocles’ defining characteristic is presenting Electra as powerful as well as good and wise. With Clytemnestra dead and Aegisthus also about to die at her brother Orestes’ hands‚ Electra shows that her goal in the murder of Clytemnestra and Aegisthus is not simplistic vengeance or fury‚ but a release from the hatred she has harbored while remaining
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protagonist in the story. Next is Clytemnestra‚ the twin sister of Helen. Clytemnestra does not like Helen and was mean to her until she had to leave Sparta. She got married to an evil ruler by force when she had to leave Sparta. Another character is Ione‚ who takes care of Helen. Ione is Helen’s nurse and she watches Helen all the time. Next we have Castor and Polydeuces. They are Helen brothers and train with Helen in Sparta. They had to escort Helen and Clytemnestra to Clytemnestra’s wedding. They
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It is a well-known fact that the Greeks of old practiced sacrifice. Many believe that they also practiced human sacrifice. However‚ not many can say to what extent or for what specific purposes where such sacrifices made. Very few historical texts are available depicting the true nature of these sacrifices and whether or not they played a role in the everyday society of ancient Greece. Our best depictions of ancient Greek history can be found in their mythologies. Thus we can only begin to decipher
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In the Oresteia‚ revenge is a major theme that can be seen throughout each of the tragedies. An example of this is when Clytemnestra kills her husband‚ Agamemnon‚ to avenge his crime of killing their daughter‚ Iphigenia. The timing of this murder is noteworthy because it occurs right after Agamemnon returns home from a great victory in Troy. The response that one might expect at this time from a queen who hasn’t seen her husband in years would be one that is joyful and happy to be reunited. The reason
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expectations. The animation of Greek Heroines reflects the modern and contemporary philosophy present in Homer’s legendary epics‚ which reveals his influence in establishing a progressive Greek society. Therefore‚ heroines such as Helen‚ Nausicaa‚ Clytemnestra‚ and Penelope are fictional revolutionists whose personas sculpted modern humanity. The infamous Helen of Troy is portrayed as a divine and philosophical mistress apart from her renowned physical beauty. The notable aptitude of Helen
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society. The first type of woman‚ the bad‚ disrespectful woman is portrayed through two characters. Clytemnestra is the unfaithful wife of Agamemnon‚ and Melantho‚ is the disloyal maidservant of Penelope. The story of Clytemnestra is repeated numerous times throughout the poem. When Odysseus travels to the underworld‚ the Kingdom of the Dead‚ he meets Agamemnon‚ the dead husband of Clytemnestra. He is describing his story to Odysseus when he says‚ “…she turned her back on me‚ well on my way to Death—she
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(Agamemnon 4003-408). Thousands of men died while she sat in her castle. It goes to show how powerful a woman’s beauty can be. We then have Clytemnestra‚ wife of Agamemnon and queen of Argos. Clytemnestra was described as “a woman with a man’s heart” (Agamemnon 11); she was depicted as a very brutal and treacherous woman but she was also very intelligent. Clytemnestra knew how intelligent she was and even proved it to the Argive elders‚ in line 351 of the play Agamemnon the y tell her “[she speaks] wisely
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set the mood instead of the mask. Also‚ I wished the live production had used three main actors like the original production would have used‚ making it a more successful version of the Oresteia (we know the three actor rule was not upheld because Clytemnestra and Cassandra were on stage together) (xii-xiii). With the masks and costumes covering the entire body it would have been possible to stick to three actors‚ and the vague entrances in the text could have provided for the support to make this
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Euripides and Sophocles wrote their own versions of the Electra story. The basic plot is as follows: Agamemnon is killed by Clytemnestra and her lover Aegisthus after he returns from the Trojan war to reclaim his sister-in-law Helen from the Trojans. Electra and her brother Orestes plot to kill their mother and her lover to revenge his death. Both authors wrote about the same plot‚ but the built the story very differently. Sophocles focused on Orestes‚ and Euripides focused more on the
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Aeschylus’ Agamemnon of The Oresteia has one of the most morally intriguing characters and story lines in all of ancient Greek tragedies. Clytemnestra‚ the queen and wife of Agamemnon has many reasons for why she murdered him; however‚ it is difficult to quickly jump to conclusions on her innocence. The inherent nature of Greek tragedies‚ the belief in prophecy and fate‚ and the lack of marital faithfulness are all themes in Agamemnon that weigh heavily on the debate of her innocence. Through passages
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