Medea Background Notes
Modes of persuasion
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Over 2,000 years ago the Greek
philosopher Aristotle argued that there
were three basic ways to persuade an
audience of your position: ethos, logos,
and pathos (Jason and Medea use these)
I. Origin of Tragedy
A. Religious festivals in the spring to honor Dionysus
Dionysus (Bacchus),
god of wine and revelry
B. Thespis, “Father of Drama” (thespians)
introduced the first actor and dialogue
2. The three great tragedians: Aeschylus (525456BC), Sophocles (496-406BC), and Euripides
(480-406BC)
1.
C. Sophocles
1. added third actor
2. fixed number of the Chorus to 15
3. introduced painted scenery
4. made each play of a trilogy separate in nature
(each play could stand alone)
 Oedipus
Rex
 Oedipus on Colunus
 Antigone
II. Structure of Theatre
A. theatron: “seeing” place where the
audience sat
B. orchestra: circular dancing place where
actors and Chorus performed
C. thymele: altar to Dionysus in center of the
orchestra
D. skene: building used as dressing room
E. proskenion: façade of skene building which
served as backdrop
Greek Theatre
Play
structure
 Prologue: monologue or scene presented before
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the Chorus enters and the action of the play
begins. Informs the audience of the play’s
setting and important past events.
Parados: first entrance of the Chorus
Episode: Scene in the play
Stasimon: Choral commentary that follows a
scene
Kommos: song in which the Chorus interacts
directly with the characters
Exodos: action takes place after the final
stasimon and serves as conclusion.
III. Actors and Acting
A. The playwright took the leading role
B. All male performers (played female roles too)
C. Never more than 3 actors (changed characters)
1. protagonist, deuteragonist, tritagonist
D. Costumes and Masks
1. long, flowing robes (colored symbolically)
2. high boots with raised soles
3. large masks made of wood, linen, cork
a. identified age, gender, emotion
b. exaggerated features (eyes, open mouth)
IV. The Chorus
A. Music and Dance
1. music: flute, lyre, drums
2. dance: expressive rhythmic movements
B. Function of the Chorus
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
sets overall mood and expresses theme
adds beauty through song and dance
gives background information
divides action and offers reflection on events
questions, advises, expresses opinion (usually
through Chorus leader)
V. Conventions of Greek Theatre
A. Aristotle’s Unities
1. action (simple plot)
2. time (single day)
3. place (one scene throughout)
B. The Messenger (sentry)
1. tells news happening away from the scene
2. reports acts of violence not allowed to be seen
C. Limitations of the Theatre
1. the Chorus is constantly on the stage
2. no intermission
3. no lighting, no curtains
VI. Important Terms
1. tragedy: Drama written in which a noble
protagonist falls to ruin during a struggle
caused by a flaw in their character.
2. tragic hero: a character, usually of noble
birth, neither totally good nor totally evil,
whose downfall is brought about by some
weakness and error in judgment (a tragic
flaw)
3. hamartia: a tragic flaw, weakness of character
or error in judgment which causes the downfall
of the hero (tragic flaw)
4. hubris: the tragic flaw of pride
5. catharsis: the “purging” or release of emotions
the audience feels
6. deus ex machina: a person or god that
intervenes in the action
The Tragic Figure
All tragedies focus on a tragic figure: a
person who is moral and good.
 The character suffers from a tragic flaw,
or hamartia, which leads to their downfall
 Tragic figures are ignorant of tragic flaw
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VII. Euripides' Contribution
to Drama

Along with Sophocles
and Aeschylus,
Euripides (484-406
B.C.) was one of the
three greatest writers
of tragedy in ancient
Greece. He wrote
more than ninety
plays, but only
nineteen survive.
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depicted gods
unfavorably and even
questioned the existence
of the traditional gods of
Homeric myths.
key contribution to—was
that he developed
characters whose
downfall results from
their own
Euripides was a close
friend of Socrates,
Euripides

Euripides represented
the new moral, social,
and political
movements that were
taking place in Athens
towards the end of
the 5th century BC.

It was a period of
enormous intellectual
discovery, in which
"wisdom" ranked as
the highest earthly
accomplishment.
Euripides
Lego youtube
Jason and medea

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nL75b28pJ4
The play Medea, first performed in 431
B.C., was based on the mythical
accounts of Medea, the sorceress,
who helped Jason in his search of the
Golden Fleece and who, for Jason's
love, betrayed her family and
fatherland, but was herself finally
betrayed by her husband.
http://www.pbs.org/mythsandheroes/video_jason_storyteller.html?playertype=quicktime;speed=lo;mediatype=video;media=%2Fmyths
andheroes%2Fjason_storyteller_lo.rm%2C%2Fmythsandheroes%2Fjason_storyteller_hi.rm%2C%2Fmythsandheroes%2Fjason_storytell
er_lo.mov%2C%2Fmythsandheroes%2Fjason_storyteller_hi.mov;playertemplate=%2Fmythsandheroes%2Fvideotemplate.html;title=%
27The%20Argonautica%27%2C%20Valcrius%20Flaccus%20and%20%91The%20Argonautica%92%20Apollonius%20of%20Rhodes;wi
descreen=true;basepath=%2Fmythsandheroes%2Fvideo_jason_storyteller.html;prefchange=1
Who Is Jason?
Jason is the Greek legendary hero best
known for his leadership of the Argonauts
in the quest for the Golden Fleece and for
his wife Medea.
Athens
The Argonauts in Greek
mythology are the people
who sailed on the ship called
the Argo, builder, Argus. The
crew were named for the
boat plus a word for sailors
(naut-) -- Argonauts.
Medea: Character Profile
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Niece of Circe
Granddaughter of sun
god Helios
Woman of great passion
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Sorceress
Priestess of Hecate,
goddess of underworld
Jason's father was Aison (Aeson). His
mother was Polymede. Aison was the
oldest son of winds ruler Aeolus’ son
Cretheus, and should have been king of
Icolchus , but Pelias Cretheus' stepson
was king. Fearing for their son after Pelias
usurped the throne, Jason's parents
pretended their baby had died at birth.
They sent him to the wise centaur Chiron
to be raised. Chiron may have named the
boy Jason (Iason).
Why Did Pelias Assign Jason the Task of Fetching the
Golden Fleece?:
The explanations for why Jason was sent revolve around the
issue of Pelias' occupying a throne for which Jason thought his
side of the family had a better claim.
The simplest explanation is that the fleece was the price of
becoming king. Pelias could keep the herds and land, but the
throne would go to the direct line of Cretheus after Jason
brought back the golden fleece.
The more popular story is that Pelias, having told the onesandaled stranger that his death at the hand of a fellowcitizen had been foretold, asked Jason what he would do.
Jason said to send him for the fleece. So Pelias ordered Jason
to do so.
Jason Marries Medea:
On the return voyage of the Argonauts, they
stopped at the island of the Phaeacians,
ruled by King Alcinoos and his wife Arete
(featured in The Odyssey). Their pursuers
from Colchis arrived at about the same
time and demanded the return of Medea.
Alcinoos agreed to the Colchians' demand,
but only if Medea weren't already married.
Arete secretly arranged the marriage
between Jason and Medea, with Hera's
blessings.
Jason decides to repudiate Medea and marry
the Corinthian king Creon's daughter,
Glauce. Medea doesn't accept this change
in status gracefully, but arranges the death
of the king's daughter by poison gown, and
then kills the 2 children she has borne
Jason.
How does Medea help Jason?
Aphrodite sent Cupid to make Medea fall
in love with Jason
 Medea was a powerful magician and could
save the Argonauts
 The Colchis princess, Medea, immediately
fell in love with Jason.
 Jason thought of Medea, who could help
him get the golden fleece.
 Medea agreed to help Jason by giving him
a charm.
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All of the action takes place at the
house of Jason and Medea in
Corinth, Greece. Corinth is in
southern Greece in the extreme
northeastern part of a large
peninsula known as the
Peloponnesus, Peloponnese.
Setting
Characters

Protagonist: Medea
Antagonists: Jason,
Medea's Powerful
Emotions
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Medea: Sorceress with wondrous
powers who falls desperately in love
with Jason after he arrives in Colchis,
on the Black Sea, in quest of the
fabled Golden Fleece, a coat of golden
wool sheared from a ram. She is the
daughter of the King of Aea in Colchis
and granddaughter of the sun god,
Helios.
Jason: Heroic but selfish and
ambitious son of Aeson, King of
Iolchos in Thessaly, Greece. Renowned
for his bravery in retrieving the Golden
Fleece, he seeks to capitalize on his
fame by pledging to marry Glauce, the
daughter of Creon, King of Corinth,
even though he has already been
married for several years to Medea
and fathered two sons.
Themes
Revenge
.......After Jason rejects Medea for
Princess Glauce, Medea's thirst
for venegeance rules her,
overcoming all of her other
 Oppression of Women
.......Men treat women as mere
objects
 Human Conduct and Destiny
.......Human beings—not fate, not
the gods, not bad luck—are
the authors of their own
misfortunes.
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Love between parents and
children
.......Jason loves his children.
Medea uses them against
Jason. Creon loves Glauce.
Barbarism /Foreigners
.......Civilized Greece can be just
as barbaric as uncivilized
Colchis. The Corinthians regard
Medea as crude and uncivilized
 Blind Passion
.......Medea's love for Jason is all
consuming. So is her hatred for
him after he abandons her.
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IRONY:
Medea is a powerful sorceress,
capable of working wondrous
magic. Yet her magic is powerless
against Jason's infidelity and
maltreatment of her. In
desperation she resorts to the
unspeakable crime of murdering
her own children.
The chorus of Corinthian women sympathizes
with Medea throughout the play, in large part
because they well know that Medea is right when
she says that Greek males treat Greek females
unjustly. However, these women time and again
express horror at Medea's plan to kill her
children, for they realize that Medea is going too
far. Nevertheless, they remain silent—in
compliance with Medea's expressed wish—when
she announces her plan to kill the children and
later carries it out. It is hard to believe that this
chorus of women would look the other way under
these circumstances.
Women in Ancient Greece
No rights
 Oppressed due to gender
discrimination
 Unable to leave home or
participate in public life
 Biggest contribution is
having male heirs to
serve in military or civil
service
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Girls, married as young as
11
 Men, late twenties, early
30s
 Arranged marriages
 Prohibited from leaving
house
 Common for men to
cheat on wives
 Divorce did exist. Easy for
men, NOT women!
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Remember your mythology?
Why was a proper burial so
important to the Greeks?
You need to get to Hades!
Once a person has died, s/he must pay the
ferryman, Charon, to take him/her across the
River Styx to the Underworld. Otherwise, the
soul will not be able to rest.
Michelangelo’s
Last Judgment
After the Play
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Medea marries, has son
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with Aegeus
Tries to poison Aegeus’
first son Theseus (fails; is 
banished)
Goes back to Colchis,
helps father get kingdom
back
Eventually becomes
immortal
Jason dies alone, in
obscurity
Piece of his own ship
falls on him
Medea a foreigner
Jason reminds Medea
that he has done her
a great favor by
bringing her from her
barbarian land of
Colchis to Greece.
 Jason doesn’t feel
indebted to Medea for
the Golden Fleece.
 Doesn’t feel betrayal
for marrying Glauce
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Jason belittles Medea
for being foreigner
(savage behavior).
 Uses foreign status to
bring her esteem
down.
 Once abandoned,
Medea has nowhere
to go and no one to
turn to.
 Medea sad to be
separated from
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3 major ancient works you will
study:
The Odyssey, written by Homer, in 800 BC
 Medea, written by Euripides, in 431 BC
 Oedipus Rex, Oedipus at Colonus and
Antigone, written by Sophocles, in 429 BC
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Quiz Thursday
One 3x5 notecard.
 Must have proper heading in upper left
 This is the only type of notes you can use.
 Any information from Monday –
Wednesday could be on quiz so be
prepared.

Journal #8 (collecting)
Teenagers make important decisions
everyday. Provide a specific example of a
decision you have had to make recently and
discuss how your personal morals affected
that decision.
It originated in the following fashion. Phrixus and Helle were
the children of Athamus and the goddess Nephele. When
Athamas remarried, the children's stepmother, Ino, became
jealous of them and plotted to get rid of them. She arranged
to have seed-corn roasted so that it would not sprout. When
the crop failed, messengers were sent to consult the oracle at
Delphi, and Ino persuaded the ssengers to say that that the
oracle required the sacrifice of Phrixus to restore fertility to
the fields. Before Phrixus could be sacrificed, however,
Nephele sent a golden ram which carried both children off
through the air. Helle fell into the Hellespont (which was
named after her), but Phrixus arrived safely at Colchis, where
he married the daughter of King Aeetes. Phrixus sacrificed the
ram to Zeus, and gave its pelt (the Golden Fleece) to Aeetes.
Aeetes placed the fleece in an oak tree, where it remained
until Jason arrived to claim it.
Susan Smith
Motivations
 Discuss and list at least five
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