Book description
Medea, in which a spurned woman takes revenge upon her lover by killing
her children, is one of the most shocking and horrific of all the Greek
tragedies. Dominating the play is Medea herself, a towering and powerful
figure who demonstrates Euripides' unusual willingness to give voice to
a woman's case. Alcestis, a tragicomedy, is based on a magical myth in
which Death is overcome, and The Children of Heracles examines the
conflict between might and right, while Hippolytus deals with
self-destructive integrity and moral dilemmas. These plays show
Euripides transforming the awesome figures of Greek mythology into
recognizable, fallible human beings. Euripides was an Athenian born in
484BC. A member of a family of considerable rank, he disliked performing
the public duties expected of him, preferring a life of introspection.
He was not a popular figure, and at some point (and for a reason
unknown) he went into voluntary exile at the court of Archelaus, King of
Macedon. He died c. 407BC and is thought to have written around
ninety-two plays, of which seventeen survive.
