The setting of the Medea,
as in the case of most Greek tragedies, does not require a change
of scene. Throughout the play the skene with at least one door
represents the facade of Jason's
house in Corinth. Even when the poet directs the audience's attention
to events elsewhere, as in the case of the deaths of Creon
and his daughter in the royal palace, there is no shift of scene.
These events are described in a speech delivered by a messenger
(1136-1230)1 rather than enacted before the audience.
The messenger speech eliminates the need for scene changes, which,
due to the limited resources of the ancient theater, would have
been difficult and awkward.2 Euripides,
made a virtue of the necessity of this convention of the ancient
theater by writing elaborate messenger speeches which provide
a vivid word picture of the offstage action.
refer to lines in the Medea.
2This also explains why Creon rather surprisingly
comes to Medea's house to deliver his decree of banishment (271
ff.) instead of summoning her to the royal palace.
In the exodos of the
play Medea appears with the bodies of her children in a chariot
drawn by dragons either on the roof of the skene or suspended
from the mechane
in the manner of a deus ex machina3 She indeed
acts with the power, authority and prophetic knowledge of a "god
from the machine" when she establishes a festival and ritual
in honor of her dead children, reveals her plans for the future
and prophesies the death of Jason (1378-1388).
there are virtually no stage directions in the texts of tragedies,
we cannot be sure which manner of presentation Euripides intended.
EXERCISE FOR READING, COMPREHENSION
Prologue (1-130) - Nurse,
What is the dramatic
purpose of the Nurse's speech (1-48)? The Nurse begins by referring
to Jason's ship Argo which brought Medea to Greece from her home
in Colchis (Black Sea area). According to the Nurse, why did
Medea sail with Jason (8)? What did Medea do upon arriving in
Greece at Iolcus (9-10)? What is the present situation in Corinth
(17-25)? What is Medea's attitude toward her children and what
does the Nurse fear she might do (36-43)? What rumor has the
Tutor heard (70-71)? What is the Nurse's view of Jason's behavior
(82-84)? the Tutor's (85-88)? What feelings does Medea herself
express (111-114)? What moral does the Nurse draw from the situation
Parados (131-212) - Chorus,
Medea and Nurse
The parados is
chanted by the Chorus along with the Nurse and Medea. How does
the Chorus of Corinthian women feel toward Medea (176-183)?
First Episode (214-409) -
Medea, Chorus, Creon
How does Medea view
her situation in Corinth (214-224)? her situation as a married
woman and mother (228-251)? as a foreigner (252-258)? What request
does Medea make of the Chorus (259-266)?
What order does Creon give to
Medea (272-276)? Why does he do this (282-291)? How does Medea
reply to Creon's concerns (306-315)? How does Creon react to
Medea's reply (316-323)? What request does Medea make of Creon
(340-343)? What appeal does she make in support of her request
(344-347)? What is Creon's reaction to her request (348-356)?
After Creon's departure, how
does Medea explain her behavior (368-372)? What does Medea intend
to do (373-385)? What problem is a concern to Medea (386-390)?
How determined is Medea to put her plan into action (390-394)?
What is Medea's motivation (395-398; 404-405)? Medea's reference
to her planning and contriving (401) would remind the audience
of the meaning of the name Medea 'the cunning contriver'. Her
mention of her grandfather Helius, the sun god, calls attention
to her divine ancestry (406). What is Medea's view of the female
First Stasimon (410-445)
What is the Chorus's
reaction to the last two lines (408-409) of Medea's speech (410-420)?
What answer does the Chorus give to the ancient poets' depiction
of female faithlessness (421-430)? What is their view of Medea's
situation (431-445)? To what is the Chorus referring when they
mention the lack of respect for oaths and of shame in Greece
Second Episode (446-626)
- Jason, Chorus and Medea
What criticism does
Jason make of Medea (446-458)? What does he intend to do for
her and his children (459-464)? What answer does Medea give to
Jason's offer (465-472)? What had Medea done for Jason (476-487)?4
What accusation does Medea make against Jason (492-495; 510-511)?
What is Medea's predicament (502-515)?
fearing because of a prophecy that Jason would bring about his
death, was hostile to the hero and had tried to bring about Jason's
death by sending him on the quest for the Golden Fleece.
What is Jason's view of why
Medea had helped him (527-533)? According to Jason what advantages
did Medea derive from coming to Greece with him (535-544)? What
are the reasons that Jason gives for marrying the Corinthian
princess (548-567)? What criticism does Jason make of women in
general (569-575)? What criticism does Medea make of Jason's
arguments (580-587)? What help does Jason offer Medea (610-614)?
What is Medea's reaction to this offer (616-618)?
Second Stasimon (627-662)
What view of love ("Cypris"
does the Chorus present in the first stanza (627-634)? What prayer
does the Chorus make in reference to Cypris in the second stanza
(635-641)? To whom is the Chorus referring in the third and fourth
Third Episode (663-823) -
Aegeus, Medea and Chorus
What question did Aegeus
ask of the Delphic Oracle (669)? What was the oracle's answer
(679-681)? What request does Medea make of Aegeus (710-713)?
What does Medea offer to do in return for Aegeus (715-718)? What
is Aegeus's reply (723-724)? What is the only condition under
which Aegeus will receive Medea into his land (Athens) (727-730)?
What does Medea require Aegeus to do(731-732)? Why (734-740)?
What is Aegeus's reaction to this requirement (741-745)? By whom
does Medea make Aegeus swear (746)?
After Aegeus's departure why
does Medea rejoice (764-771)? What will Medea do now with regard
to Jason's intended bride (783-790)? What does she plan to do
next (792-793)? What will she achieve through this action (794-806;
817)? What is her motivation in this action (797; 807-810)? Why
at this point in the play has Medea decided on this form of revenge?
Third Stasimon (824-865)
What has occasioned
this choral ode in praise of Athens ("descendants of Erechtheus"
= Athenians)? What does the Chorus specifically praise in reference
to Athens (824-845)? What does the Chorus ask Medea in the second
half of the ode (846-865)?
Fourth Episode (866-975)
- Jason, Medea, and Chorus
What general attitude
does Medea now present to Jason (869-905)? What is Jason's reaction
to Medea's apparent change of mind (908-913)? How are lines 916-921
ironic? What does Medea want Jason to do (939-940)? How does
Medea suggest Jason should go about this (942-943)? What will
Medea do to help Jason in this endeavor (947-955)? What does
Jason think of this help (959-963)?
Fourth Stasimon (976-1001)
What does the Chorus
predict for Jason's intended bride, Jason, and Medea?
Fifth Episode (1002-1250)
What news does the Tutor
report to Medea (1002-1004)? What is Medea's reaction to this
news (1005-1016)? Why does she react in this way? What reasons
does Medea give why she should kill her children? Explain how
Medea is ambivalent with regard to what she is considering (1021-1080)?
What is the Chorus's view of
the parent-child relationship (1081-1115)? What specific relevance
do these general comments have for the immediate situation of
The Messenger reports the deaths
of the princess and Creon himself to Medea. How were their deaths
accomplished (1168-1221)? What general comments does the Messenger
make on what has just happened (1224-1230)? What does Medea intend
to do now (1236-1250)?
Fifth Stasimon (1251-1292)
What prayer does the
Chorus make to the Earth and the Sun (1251-1260)? What warning
does the Chorus give to Medea (1261-1270)?
Exodos (1293-end) - Jason,
Chorus and Medea
What concern does Jason
express upon hearing of his children's deaths5 (1326)?
What assumption does Jason make about the attitude of the Sun
(Helius) toward Medea's action (1327)? Is he correct in this
assumption? Explain your answer. According to Jason, why did
Medea kill her children (1338)? What plans does Medea have for
her children (1378-1383)? for herself (1384-1385)? What does
she predict for Jason (1386-1388)? What reason does Medea give
for having killed her children (1398)? What comment does the
Chorus make on the events of the play (1415-1419)?
of the children by Medea seems to have been an invention of Euripides.
In other versions of the legend Medea does not murder her children.
One version has Medea kill her children accidentally, while another
has them killed by the Corinthians; yet another has Creon's kinsmen
kill them in revenge for Creon's death and circulate a rumor
that Medea had murdered them.