By our standards, Medea's behavior is understandable but grossly unacceptable. If Medea were a modern American woman, what would she be? Why? Would she have a profession or vocation? If so, what?
Medea is clearly a conflicted, complex character. Though she ultimately kills her brother and her children, their deaths exact a terrible personal cost. The decision to kill her children is excruciating. Euripides pulls back the curtain of her mind to reveal the battle between a mother's devotion to her children and a jilted lover's lust for revenge. "Why should I deprive them of their growing up, their wedding, and their happy times? For they carry no blame upon their small shoulders! And surely this unspeakable deed would hurt me twice as much as it would hurt Jason!" (237). Medea will not be mocked: "Everyone will laugh at me!" (237). In the end, her anger drives her to kill her own children (239).
Jody Foster as an American woman who understands Medea's need for vengeance. While I have no reason believe that Foster herself is vengeful, her performance in the 2007 film "The Brave One" convinced me that she would understand Medea. Foster played an NPR-inspired radio host named Erica Bain. Bain and her boyfriend are brutally beaten by New York thugs. Her boyfriend eventually succumbs to his injuries and dies. Before becoming a victim of crime, Foster's character was an idealistic, sunny optimist. Instead of retreating from the world, Bain finds a "stranger inside her" that longs for only one thing: revenge. Erica buys a gun and pursues a life of vigilante justice.
Erica Bain and Medea eventually get revenge on the people who wronged them. Neither character finds healing or solace in their vengeance, however. Erica Bain is asked how a person recovers from being the victim of a crime so terrible. Her response is, "You don't."
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Euripides' Medea
The following summary of Medea is due to SparkNotes.
Euripedes' Medea opens in a state of conflict. Jason has abandoned his wife, Medea, along with their two children. He hopes to advance his station by remarrying with Glauce, the daughter of Creon, king of Corinth, the Greek city where the play is set. All the events of play proceed out of this initial dilemma, and the involved parties become its central characters.
Outside the royal palace, a nurse laments the events that have lead to the present crisis. After a long series of trials and adventures, which ultimately forced Jason and Medea to seek exile in Corinth, the pair had settled down and established their family, achieving a degree of fame and respectability. Jason's recent abandonment of that family has crushed Medea emotionally, to the degree that she curses her own existence, as well as that of her two children.
Fearing a possible plot of revenge, Creon banishes Medea and her children from the city. After pleading for mercy, Medea is granted one day before she must leave, during which she plans to complete her quest for "justice"--at this stage in her thinking, the murder of Creon, Glauce, and Jason. Jason accuses Medea of overreacting. By voicing her grievances so publicly, she has endangered her life and that of their children. He claims that his decision to remarry was in everyone's best interest. Medea finds him spineless, and she refuses to accept his token offers of help.
Appearing by chance in Corinth, Aegeus, King of Athens, offers Medea sanctuary in his home city in exchange for her knowledge of certain drugs that can cure his sterility. Now guaranteed an eventual haven in Athens, Medea has cleared all obstacles to completing her revenge, a plan which grows to include the murder of her own children; the pain their loss will cause her does not outweigh the satisfaction she will feel in making Jason suffer.
For the balance of the play, Medea engages in a ruse; she pretends to sympathize with Jason (bringing him into her confidence) and offers his wife "gifts," a coronet and dress. Ostensibly, the gifts are meant to convince Glauce to ask her father to allow the children to stay in Corinth. The coronet and dress are actually poisoned, however, and their delivery causes Glauce's death. Seeing his daughter ravaged by the poison, Creon chooses to die by her side by dramatically embracing her and absorbing the poison himself.
A messenger recounts the gruesome details of these deaths, which Medea absorbs with cool attentiveness. Her earlier state of anxiety, which intensified as she struggled with the decision to commit infanticide, has now given way to an assured determination to fulfill her plans. Against the protests of the chorus, Medea murders her children and flees the scene in a dragon-pulled chariot provided by her grandfather, the Sun-God. Jason is left cursing his lot; his hope of advancing his station by abandoning Medea and marrying Glauce, the conflict which opened the play, has been annihilated, and everything he values has been lost through the deaths that conclude the tragedy.
Jason IV: Medea's Motivation
Medea is a conflicted character. She is torn between her feelings for Jason and her perceived duty to her father. Question: To what degree is she responsible for her actions?
The issue of whether or not Medea is responsible for her actions is central to understanding "Jason and the Golden Fleece." There are two possibilities. The first is that Medea is a puppet of the gods. In this case, "Jason" is really a story about how Hera exacts revenge on Pelias. The second is that Medea, while influenced by Hera, ultimately chooses to side with Jason out of love. In this case, "Jason" is about Medea's devotion.
The answer to this question hinges on whether or not the gods are irresistible. Dr. Rosenberg addresses this question in the introduction to the "Illiad." She indicates, "Even though the gods may give advice or help, a mortal's actions in response to any given situation are determined by his or her own personality and ability. Consequently, a mortal's fate is created by the interaction between personality and situation. Because the Homeric gods are not all-powerful, mortals can be dignified, morally responsible, and important. The world of ancient Greece contains no puppets" (123).
Let's look at the text of "Jason" to see if there is a reading that supports this view.
In fairness, Medea's love for Jason begins with divine interference when Eros shoots her with an arrow (180). After this, the relationship between the actions of the gods and of Medea becomes more complicated. On pages 186 and 187, Medea wrestles with the choice to help Jason or to remain loyal to her father. She becomes so distraught that she even considers suicide (186). Hera intervenes and renews her will to live. Medea, however, makes the choice to "save the man I love" (187).
Ultimately, Medea's own skills and talents enable her to aid Jason in his quest. She uses her magic to dismember Jason (191), her herbs protect him when he fights the bulls (193), and her spell sends the dragon to sleep (199). Without Medea's active, willful participation, the quest for the Fleece would have ended in disaster. In summary, I believe that while Medea is influenced by the gods, her most important choices remain her own.
The issue of whether or not Medea is responsible for her actions is central to understanding "Jason and the Golden Fleece." There are two possibilities. The first is that Medea is a puppet of the gods. In this case, "Jason" is really a story about how Hera exacts revenge on Pelias. The second is that Medea, while influenced by Hera, ultimately chooses to side with Jason out of love. In this case, "Jason" is about Medea's devotion.
The answer to this question hinges on whether or not the gods are irresistible. Dr. Rosenberg addresses this question in the introduction to the "Illiad." She indicates, "Even though the gods may give advice or help, a mortal's actions in response to any given situation are determined by his or her own personality and ability. Consequently, a mortal's fate is created by the interaction between personality and situation. Because the Homeric gods are not all-powerful, mortals can be dignified, morally responsible, and important. The world of ancient Greece contains no puppets" (123).
Let's look at the text of "Jason" to see if there is a reading that supports this view.
In fairness, Medea's love for Jason begins with divine interference when Eros shoots her with an arrow (180). After this, the relationship between the actions of the gods and of Medea becomes more complicated. On pages 186 and 187, Medea wrestles with the choice to help Jason or to remain loyal to her father. She becomes so distraught that she even considers suicide (186). Hera intervenes and renews her will to live. Medea, however, makes the choice to "save the man I love" (187).
Ultimately, Medea's own skills and talents enable her to aid Jason in his quest. She uses her magic to dismember Jason (191), her herbs protect him when he fights the bulls (193), and her spell sends the dragon to sleep (199). Without Medea's active, willful participation, the quest for the Fleece would have ended in disaster. In summary, I believe that while Medea is influenced by the gods, her most important choices remain her own.
Jason III: Faust
Pelias, Phineus, Jason, and later, Medea all become victims of the behavior pattern that Phineus described to the Argonauts (176). Give at least one example of a situation from popular culture where a person becomes the victim of the pattern of arete, hubris, ate, and nemesis.
The mythology surrounding the character Faust has enjoyed a number of pop culture incarnations, including the 1967 film "Dr. Faustus" starring Richard Burton. The film is based on Christopher Marlowe's "The Tragical History of Dr. Faustus" and provides us with a perfect example of the cycle of arete, hubris, ate, and nemesis. In my view, Marlowe's play is one of the most under appreciated works of English literature. Faust is a brilliant man who seems to have mastered many disciplines (arete). The story opens with Faust rejecting the limitations of traditional sources of knowledge: "Aristotle on logic, Galen on medicine, the Byzantine emperor Justinian on law, and the Bible on religion" (SparkNotes, Doctor Faustus). Faust is not satisfied with the knowledge available to unaided Man and turns to black magic (hubris). Listen to Faust himself:
"All things that move between the quiet poles
Shall be at my command: emperors and kings
Are but obeyed in their several provinces,
Nor can they raise the wind, or rend the clouds;
But his dominion that exceeds in this [sorcery]
Stretcheth as far as doth the mind of man:
A sound magician is a mighty god" (Marlowe 994).
Faust's thirst of the power of knowledge is so great that he sells his soul to Lucifer in exchange for the service of a devil named Mephastophilis for twenty-four years (ate). Mephastophilis reveals the hidden nature of the Universe, but refuses to tell Faust who created the world. Faust travels the world, but instead of using his new found knowledge for the benefit of mankind, is reduced to playing practical jokes (SparkNotes, Doctor Faustus). As the end of the twenty-four years approaches, Faust begins to regret his choice. He begs for deliverance: "O God, if thou wilt not have mercy on my soul, Yet for Christ's sake, whose blood hath ransomed me" (Marlowe, 1022). In the end, a group of devils drag Faust of to hell (nemesis). Here are his chilling last words: "Ugly hell gape not! Come not, Lucifer! I'll burn my books-ah, Mephastophilis!" (Marlowe, 1023).
Works Cited
"Doctor Faustus." SparkNotes.
Marlowe, Christopher. "The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus." The Norton Anthology of English Literature. Seventh Edition. Vol. I. New York: Norton, 2000.
The mythology surrounding the character Faust has enjoyed a number of pop culture incarnations, including the 1967 film "Dr. Faustus" starring Richard Burton. The film is based on Christopher Marlowe's "The Tragical History of Dr. Faustus" and provides us with a perfect example of the cycle of arete, hubris, ate, and nemesis. In my view, Marlowe's play is one of the most under appreciated works of English literature. Faust is a brilliant man who seems to have mastered many disciplines (arete). The story opens with Faust rejecting the limitations of traditional sources of knowledge: "Aristotle on logic, Galen on medicine, the Byzantine emperor Justinian on law, and the Bible on religion" (SparkNotes, Doctor Faustus). Faust is not satisfied with the knowledge available to unaided Man and turns to black magic (hubris). Listen to Faust himself:
"All things that move between the quiet poles
Shall be at my command: emperors and kings
Are but obeyed in their several provinces,
Nor can they raise the wind, or rend the clouds;
But his dominion that exceeds in this [sorcery]
Stretcheth as far as doth the mind of man:
A sound magician is a mighty god" (Marlowe 994).
Faust's thirst of the power of knowledge is so great that he sells his soul to Lucifer in exchange for the service of a devil named Mephastophilis for twenty-four years (ate). Mephastophilis reveals the hidden nature of the Universe, but refuses to tell Faust who created the world. Faust travels the world, but instead of using his new found knowledge for the benefit of mankind, is reduced to playing practical jokes (SparkNotes, Doctor Faustus). As the end of the twenty-four years approaches, Faust begins to regret his choice. He begs for deliverance: "O God, if thou wilt not have mercy on my soul, Yet for Christ's sake, whose blood hath ransomed me" (Marlowe, 1022). In the end, a group of devils drag Faust of to hell (nemesis). Here are his chilling last words: "Ugly hell gape not! Come not, Lucifer! I'll burn my books-ah, Mephastophilis!" (Marlowe, 1023).
Works Cited
"Doctor Faustus." SparkNotes.
Marlowe, Christopher. "The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus." The Norton Anthology of English Literature. Seventh Edition. Vol. I. New York: Norton, 2000.
Jason II: Medea the Hero
Who is more responsible for Jason's success in his quest for the Golden Fleece: Medea or Jason?
Medea is the real reason for the success of the quest for the Golden Fleece. Despite her fear of dishonoring her family, Medea decides to help Jason (186-187). Jason is able to withstand the fire of the bulls' breath because of the herbs the Medea provides (193). Jason possesses the strength to yoke the bulls and plow the field because of Medea's magic (191). Jason tricks the "earth-born warriors" into killing each other because of Medea's advice to throw a stone into their midst (195). Finally, Medea warns Jason of Aeetes' treachery and leads him to the Golden Fleece (197). Without Medea's skills and courage, the quest would have been a dismal failure.
Medea is the real reason for the success of the quest for the Golden Fleece. Despite her fear of dishonoring her family, Medea decides to help Jason (186-187). Jason is able to withstand the fire of the bulls' breath because of the herbs the Medea provides (193). Jason possesses the strength to yoke the bulls and plow the field because of Medea's magic (191). Jason tricks the "earth-born warriors" into killing each other because of Medea's advice to throw a stone into their midst (195). Finally, Medea warns Jason of Aeetes' treachery and leads him to the Golden Fleece (197). Without Medea's skills and courage, the quest would have been a dismal failure.
Jason I: The Secret to Jason's Success
Think of the monomyth (4.1). Jason's threshold crossing would be his dismemberment. The elixir theft would be his theft of the fleece. But, the narrative you read doesn't really emphasize these things. It emphasizes tests and helpers. Why? What is it about Jason that makes others quick to help him? Is it his looks (image)? His money? His character? His really big ship (image)? Some combination of these or other elements? Not even poor Heracles (image) had the kind of help Jason gets.
Jason does not rely upon himself alone to accomplish his quest for the Fleece. The key to Jason's success is his ability to delegate tasks to others and convince them to accomplish their task. I don't believe that he is successful in this endeavor because of any particular personal quality. The crew of the Argo simply understands that they all need to contribute something for them to accomplish the quest. For instance, no particular rhetorical skill or personal charm convinces the sons of Boreas to attack the harpies. They simply have the skills to do the job. "And it came to pass that, swift as the wind, the sons of Boreas rose to meet the Harpies" (177). Later, Medea would not have helped Jason if Aphrodite had not directed Eros to cause Medea to fall in love with Jason. "'Foam-born Aphrodite must have her son, Eros - whose love-inspiring arrows flood even the hearts of the Olympian gods with fear - aim his bow at King Aeetes' maiden daughter'" (178). Jason simply benefits from Hera's desire to punish Pelias.
Jason does not rely upon himself alone to accomplish his quest for the Fleece. The key to Jason's success is his ability to delegate tasks to others and convince them to accomplish their task. I don't believe that he is successful in this endeavor because of any particular personal quality. The crew of the Argo simply understands that they all need to contribute something for them to accomplish the quest. For instance, no particular rhetorical skill or personal charm convinces the sons of Boreas to attack the harpies. They simply have the skills to do the job. "And it came to pass that, swift as the wind, the sons of Boreas rose to meet the Harpies" (177). Later, Medea would not have helped Jason if Aphrodite had not directed Eros to cause Medea to fall in love with Jason. "'Foam-born Aphrodite must have her son, Eros - whose love-inspiring arrows flood even the hearts of the Olympian gods with fear - aim his bow at King Aeetes' maiden daughter'" (178). Jason simply benefits from Hera's desire to punish Pelias.
Jason and the Golden Fleece
The following is a summary of Edith Hamilton's take on Jason and the Golden Fleece by Apollonius of Rhodes (SparkNotes).
Hamilton’s account of the Golden Fleece comes from Apollonius of Rhodes, a Greek poet from about 300 b.c. Athamas, a king, gets tired of his first wife, Nephele, and marries a second, Ino. Ino wants Nephele’s son, Phrixus, out of the way so her own son can inherit the throne. Hermes sends a flying golden ram to rescue Phrixus and his sister, Helle, who falls off the ram and dies. Phrixus safely reaches the land of Colchis, where he sacrifices the ram to Zeus and gives its skin—the Golden Fleece—to Colchis’s king, Aetes.
Meanwhile, a man named Pelias has usurped the throne of Phrixus’s uncle, a Greek king. Jason, the deposed king’s son, grows up and returns to reclaim the throne. En route to Pelias’s kingdom, Jason loses a sandal. Pelias is afraid when he sees Jason approach, as an oracle has told him that he will be overthrown by a stranger wearing only one sandal. The wicked Pelias pretends to acquiesce but says that the gods have told him that the Golden Fleece must be retrieved for the kingdom first. This is a lie—Pelias assumes that anyone sent on that dangerous journey will never come back. Jason, intrigued by the challenge, assembles a remarkable group of heroes to help him, including Hercules, Theseus, Peleus, and Orpheus. Their ship is named the Argo, so the group is called the Argonauts.
The Argonauts face many challenges on the way to Colchis. They first meet the fierce women of Lemnos, who have killed their men, but find them atypically kind. Hercules leaves the crew, and the Argonauts meet an oracle, Phineus. The sons of Boreas, the North Wind, help Phineus by driving off some terrible Harpies who foul his food whenever he tries to eat. Phineus gives the Argonauts information that helps them pass safely through their next challenge—the Symplegades, gigantic rocks that smash together when a ship sail through them. After narrowly avoiding conflict with the Amazons, bloody women warriors, and passing by the chained Prometheus, the Argonauts finally arrive at Colchis.
Though more trials await here, Hera and Aphrodite help Jason. Like Pelias, Aetes pretends to want to give Jason the Fleece but first demands that he complete two tasks that are designed to kill him. Aphrodite sends Cupid to make Aetes’s daughter, a witch named Medea, fall in love with Jason and help him through the tasks. The first challenge is to yoke two fierce magical bulls with hooves of bronze and breath of fire, and Medea gives Jason an ointment that makes him invincible. The second task is to use the bulls to plow a field and sow it with dragon’s teeth, which causes armed men to spring up from the earth and attack Jason. Medea tells him that if he throws a rock in the middle of the armed men, they will attack each other, not him. After Jason’s success, Aetes plots to kill the Argonauts at night, but Medea again intercedes, warning Jason and enabling him to steal the Fleece by putting its guardian serpent to sleep. Medea joins the Argonauts and flees back to Greece. On the way home, she commits the ultimate act of love for Jason: to help evade the ship’s pursuers, she kills her own brother, Apsyrtus.
On the way home, the Argonauts pass more challenges, including safely navigating Scylla, the dreaded rock; Charybdis, the whirlpool; and Talus, the giant bronze man. Upon returning, Jason finds that Pelias has killed his father and that his mother has died of sadness. Jason and Medea plot revenge—Medea convinces Pelias’s daughters that they will restore Pelias to youth if they kill him, chop him up, and put the pieces into her magic pot. Out of love for their father, they slice him to bits, but Medea leaves the city, taking her magic pot with her after first restoring Jason’s father to life.
Medea and Jason have two children, but Jason leaves out of personal ambition to marry the daughter of the king of Corinth, who banishes Medea and her children. Infuriated by the unsympathetic Jason, Medea enacts a terrible revenge, sending her two sons with a beautiful magic robe as a gift for Jason’s new bride. When the girl dons the robe, it bursts into flame, consuming her and the king as he rushes to her. Medea then kills the two sons she had with Jason and flies away on a magic chariot. This tragic final chapter in the story of Jason and Medea is the subject of Euripides’ play, Medea.
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