Clytemnestra Essay, Research Paper
“An eye for an eye” seems to be a phrase that people will always live by. Any person that has wrong done to them seeks revenge and justice. If they don’t take action than they at least have some thought of vengeance. Women, historically more than men, seem to abide by this saying. Greek tragedy is a perfect example of how women seek vengeance. Clytemnestra, Medea, and Antigone all seek revenge and justice to keep their pride and to prove themselves towards their foes and enemies.
When a child’s life is taken away the mother is willing to do anything to bring justice to its place. In Aeschylus’ Agamemnon, Agamemnon sacrifices his own daughter (Iphigenia) to win a war. This brings great agony to his wife, Clytemnestra, and knowing that she is not happy with his decision, he also brings a new mistress (Cassandra) into the household. Before he husbands return home, Clytemnestra starts to contemplate about the situation she is in. Finally she decides whether it be her husband or not, she is willing to give up everything to bring her daughter’s death to justice and to show her husband and his mistress that she will always remain the head of the household.
Clytemnestra’s vengeance starts at Agamemnon’s homecoming. She greets him with generous open arms and listens to his request for kind treatment of Cassandra. Welcoming both of them into the house, she has already plotted both of their deaths. She murders Cassandra only because she will not be humiliated by her husband’s unwise choice to bring back a concubine, after sacrificing their innocent daughter. She states “his death the work of my right hand, whose craftsmanship justice acknowledges,“ showing no shame or remorse for killing her husband to justify
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their daughter’s death. When the chorus is outraged by her act, she simply states to them that “the guile I used to kill him, he used himself the first” referring to him killing his daughter. She talks fiercely and intelligently to the chorus about her actions, and how she is prepared for anyone’s reaction. The act is concluded with Clytemnestra satisfied and Iphigenia’s death justified.
Seeking revenge due to a betrayal, especially by her husband, seems to be almost like second nature to all women. In Euripides Medea, Medea is willing to go through a series of murders, just to get keep her pride and to avenge her husband’s affair. Medea, a sorceress and princess has left her own homeland, betraying a string of people, just to be with her husband. When he decides to divorce her and marry Glauce, daughter of Creon, Medea is outraged. Her emotional transformation goes from suicidal to fury. Cursing her husband Jason and all people that have laughed behind her she vows to “see my enemies punished as they deserve.”
Medea’s main strategy is to emotionally get back at Jason by killing their two sons. She does struggle within herself between the devotion as a mother and the justice and pride for herself. However, the anger inside of her outweighs her motherhood side, “yes, I can endure guilt, however horrible; the laughter of my enemies I will not endure“, and she continues to set her plan. She uses her children to bring Glauce a gift of ’peace’ – a golden dress and a gold coronet. However, she poisons both of these materials, anyone touching them having to face the most horrifying death. When the news is brought that both Glauce and Creon are dead, Medea sets forth her children’s murder. Noting the “horror” of what she is about to do, she sees that “anger” is her only loyalty, which has sprung out of her love and
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needs to vindicate itself through revenge. She then “sacrifices” her children, leaving Jason fatherless, widowed, and homeless.
In The Oedipus Trilogy, Antigone is the daughter of Oedipus. When she goes against the King Creon’s wishes to give proper burial for her brother, Polynices, she is sentenced to death. Although Antigone believes that going against Creon’s wishes is her way of revenge and justification for the death of her father, Oedipus, her main motive is driven by her family pride towards her uncle. Because her father, Oedipus was treated so poorly by his brother, Creon, she believes by undermining him she is rebelling against a male power structure. With Creon’s hubris she is sure that this will anger him and embarrass him.
Anitgone is also aware of Haemon’s love for her. Haemon, although not intentionally part of Antigone’s plan, does end up going against his own father and sides with Antigone. Maybe the Gods decided to side with Antigone, but she got her vengeance with Creon when Haemon kills himself, after attempting to murder his father. Before the play ends, not only does Creon not have a son anymore, but his wife also goes and commits suicide.
All three of these women, in these three plays, display bravery more than any man can display. Yet, because of their vixen like ways of scheming, they are not fully justified for their acts. At the time, when they are justifying wrongdoings that were done on them it seems fair. However, when they start to get their pride and hubris in the way, their motives start to change, and their act of vengeance no longer seems right.
Of course it is like second nature for all humans to seek revenge on people that
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have done them wrong. People not only do this to make it “eye for an eye” but also so that they are not humiliated by the people around them. Pride seems to be the hidden motive of any cause of revenge, especially among women. However, no matter how much one tries to justify the acts done by oneself, if done by the means of vengeance it is never justifiable.