Euripides treats the legend of Heracles differently than other dramatists, focusing on his disgrace and misery. The play quickly turns to the assassination of Creon by Lycus, who usurps the kingship of Thebes, where Heracles’ family lives. Lycus seeks to destroy all of Creon’s heirs, including Heracles’ three sons. Heracles’ father, Amphitryon, and wife, Megara, keep the children in Zeus’ temple as long as possible.
In the temple, Amphytrion curses Zeus for allowing his grandchildren, Heracles’ sons, to be murdered by Lycus. The chorus then recites the twelve mighty deeds Heracles has wrought, including: killing a lion, a race of centaurs, and a hind; taming Diomede’s man-eating horses; executing Cycnus and the dragon that guarded the golden apples; supporting the heavens on his shoulders; stealing the girdle of the Amazon queen; slaying the Hydra and a three-bodied shepherd monster; and entering the underworld alive. Meanwhile, Megara believes that Heracles has died trying to carry out the twelve tasks demanded of him by Eurystheus, his old enemy, so she prays for Heracles’ ghost to come and scare Lycus away. As she is praying, Heracles himself returns, having finished his twelve tasks, the last one being to descend into Hades alive and return again to the world of the living. He explains that he was delayed because he stayed longer in Hades in order to free his friend, Theseus.
Heracles, along with his wife and father, set a trap for Lycus. When Lycus comes to murder Heracles’ sons, he is caught by surprise and killed by Heracles. But as soon as he has freed Thebes of the usurper, Hera sends Iris and Madness to punish Heracles for killing his grandfather in the course of completing his twelve tasks. While purifying himself to make an offering to Zeus, Heracles goes mad, and foaming at the mouth he hallucinates, thinking he is attacking his old enemy Eurystheus and his sons while in actuality he kills his three sons and his wife. He is knocked unconscious by Athena’s messenger before he can kill his father. The people of Thebes tie Heracles up so he can’t do any more harm.
When Heracles awakens, he thinks he is back in Hades when he sees all the carnage. When he realizes that he was the one who killed his wife and sons, he vows to commit suicide. However, Theseus comes to console him and talks him out of killing himself. He invites Heracles to return with him to Athens and he does.
I was reminded how often we, like Heracles’ father, complain to God for allowing evil to befall us without waiting patiently for his salvation. The Greeks also had a profound sense of retribution for evil actions, even when those actions were not intended. Heracles was punished by Hera for killing a relative, just like Orestes was put on trial for killing his mother and Oedipus was cursed for unwittingly killing his father and marrying his mother. Hubris and evil are punished by the gods, and Heracles was no exception.
Heracles also had to suffer the wrath of Hera because his mother conceived him by mating with Zeus. Many Greek heros had to suffer the jealousy and revenge of the gods. Fortunately, in Christ, there is no condemnation since the wrath of God has been propitiated by Christ’s death on the cross. While God will still discipline us for acts of hubris and sin, He does not seek revenge, but pardons us when we repent.
Heracles’ love for his friend Theseus drove him to put himself in danger in order to rescue him from the underworld. Because he risked his own life to save Theseus from Hades, Theseus was there to console him and keep him from committing suicide. So Heracles’ good deed was instrumental in the preservation of his own life. We should do good to all men, especially to those who are our brothers in Christ, not to get a reward, but realizing that by helping others we are also helping ourselves.
The Greeks also believed that the greater a man was the greater his sorrow would be. Greek tragedy abounds with examples of men, like Heracles, who do mighty deeds and exhibit superhuman character and then suffer incredible pain and loss. Those who desire to live godly lives in Christ will also be persecuted and suffer as Christ did.
Showing posts with label Greek Plays. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Greek Plays. Show all posts
Monday, July 30, 2007
Wednesday, May 9, 2007
Bacchantes
In his last days, Euripides wrote the tragedy Bacchantes, which was performed after his death in 405 B.C.. While living with King Archelaus of Macedon, Euripides became disillusioned with the corruption in Athens and the excesses of the fanatical Dionysian festivals.
The story takes place outside the palace of Thebes near the shrine of Semele, who gave birth to Dionysus after copulating with Zeus. Semele’s sisters have been driven mad by Dionysus because they claim that he is merely a mortal and not the son of Zeus. The women are all reveling in a drunken stupor caused by Dionysus. Among the women is Agave, the king’s mother, daughter of Cadmus, the prior king, and sister of Semele.
Pentheus, king of Thebes, is outraged at this display of excess and tries to stop the madness by arresting the women. The women miraculously escape from prison and Pentheus then has Dionysus arrested since he is causing the problem. Dionysus escapes and then leads Pentheus to the women, who are engaging in a wild sexual orgy in a secret spot in the forest. When Pentheus finds the women, Dionysus calls to them and tells them to attack Pentheus who is spying on them. The women attack him and tear him limb from limb, scattering the parts of his body all around.
Agave returns to the palace proudly holding the head of Pentheus, her son, thinking it is the head of a lion. When her father Cadmus sees what has happened, he has all the parts of Pentheus gathered and brought back to Thebes. He then convinces Agave that the head belongs to her son and not a lion. When she finally realizes what she has done, she is struck with horror and regret. The play ends with her being exiled from Thebes for her vicious crime. Dionysus has gotten his revenge on the two most outspoken critics of his deity.
The story takes place outside the palace of Thebes near the shrine of Semele, who gave birth to Dionysus after copulating with Zeus. Semele’s sisters have been driven mad by Dionysus because they claim that he is merely a mortal and not the son of Zeus. The women are all reveling in a drunken stupor caused by Dionysus. Among the women is Agave, the king’s mother, daughter of Cadmus, the prior king, and sister of Semele.
Pentheus, king of Thebes, is outraged at this display of excess and tries to stop the madness by arresting the women. The women miraculously escape from prison and Pentheus then has Dionysus arrested since he is causing the problem. Dionysus escapes and then leads Pentheus to the women, who are engaging in a wild sexual orgy in a secret spot in the forest. When Pentheus finds the women, Dionysus calls to them and tells them to attack Pentheus who is spying on them. The women attack him and tear him limb from limb, scattering the parts of his body all around.
Agave returns to the palace proudly holding the head of Pentheus, her son, thinking it is the head of a lion. When her father Cadmus sees what has happened, he has all the parts of Pentheus gathered and brought back to Thebes. He then convinces Agave that the head belongs to her son and not a lion. When she finally realizes what she has done, she is struck with horror and regret. The play ends with her being exiled from Thebes for her vicious crime. Dionysus has gotten his revenge on the two most outspoken critics of his deity.
Saturday, March 17, 2007
Electra
Euripides’ version of the Electra story differs from Sophocles’ in both setting and focus. The story tells the revenge Electra and her brother Orestes take on their mother and step-father for murdering their father, Agamemnon. Clytemnestra, and her lover Aegisthus, murdered Agamemnon on his return from the Trojan war, and then plotted to kill both Electra and Orestes. The head servant hid Orestes and took him to safety where he lived as an exile. Clytemnestra pleaded with Aegisthus not to kill Electra, so he forced her to marry an old peasant so that any children she might bear would be poor and of ignoble birth, making it unlikely that they would threaten his usurped throne.
Orestes now returns in disguise to avenge his father’s death. He reveals himself to his sister, Electra, and they plot to kill Aegisthus and their mother. Orestes hacks down Aegisthus with a meat cleaver while he is offering a sacrifice to the nymphs. He hides the body in Electra’s house and they wait for their mother to complete their task. Clytemnestra comes and tries to justify her murder of Agamemnon by claiming it was revenge for his offering their daughter as a sacrifice before leaving for Troy, as well as for bringing back Cassandra as a concubine from Troy. The dialogue between Electra and her mother highlights the differences in their values; Electra values justice while Clytemnestra values expediency.
Electra then invites her mother into the house and is slaughtered by Orestes who is waiting for her. She cries out for mercy and tries to play on Orestes’ instincts for loving his mother, but he refuses to listen to her desperate cries for mercy. Orestes and Electra emerge from the house, covered in blood and gore, shocked at the horror of their deed.
Electra must atone for her deed by marrying Orestes’ companion and Orestes must go to Athens to stand trial, most likely to be acquitted. Euripides clearly sees the two as innocent for seeking vengeance but still realizes the horror of killing one’s mother. The end of the play is a graphic description of how revenge wreaks havoc on those who pursue it. While contemplating revenge, Electra and Orestes are convinced of the justice of their actions, but after the deed is done, they are forever changed by the horror of their actions. You cannot get revenge without affecting the core of your being.
One quote from the play that I found profound was the line Electra speaks to Aegisthus, condemning him for marrying her mother: “Who so fixes his gaze on wealth or noble birth and weds a wicked woman, is a fool; better is a humble partner in his home, if she be virtuous than a proud one.” Great advice.
Orestes now returns in disguise to avenge his father’s death. He reveals himself to his sister, Electra, and they plot to kill Aegisthus and their mother. Orestes hacks down Aegisthus with a meat cleaver while he is offering a sacrifice to the nymphs. He hides the body in Electra’s house and they wait for their mother to complete their task. Clytemnestra comes and tries to justify her murder of Agamemnon by claiming it was revenge for his offering their daughter as a sacrifice before leaving for Troy, as well as for bringing back Cassandra as a concubine from Troy. The dialogue between Electra and her mother highlights the differences in their values; Electra values justice while Clytemnestra values expediency.
Electra then invites her mother into the house and is slaughtered by Orestes who is waiting for her. She cries out for mercy and tries to play on Orestes’ instincts for loving his mother, but he refuses to listen to her desperate cries for mercy. Orestes and Electra emerge from the house, covered in blood and gore, shocked at the horror of their deed.
Electra must atone for her deed by marrying Orestes’ companion and Orestes must go to Athens to stand trial, most likely to be acquitted. Euripides clearly sees the two as innocent for seeking vengeance but still realizes the horror of killing one’s mother. The end of the play is a graphic description of how revenge wreaks havoc on those who pursue it. While contemplating revenge, Electra and Orestes are convinced of the justice of their actions, but after the deed is done, they are forever changed by the horror of their actions. You cannot get revenge without affecting the core of your being.
One quote from the play that I found profound was the line Electra speaks to Aegisthus, condemning him for marrying her mother: “Who so fixes his gaze on wealth or noble birth and weds a wicked woman, is a fool; better is a humble partner in his home, if she be virtuous than a proud one.” Great advice.
Monday, February 12, 2007
Helen
Most people are familiar with the story of Helen and how her running off with Paris to Troy started the Trojan War depicted in Homer’s Iliad. However, I was surprised to discover that there is an alternate tradition that exonerates Helen by placing her in Egypt while the war was supposed to have taken place. Even Herodotus writes in his history that Egyptian priests reported a tradition that Helen stayed in Egypt. Euripides picks up on this tradition in his play Helen, which was most likely influenced by a sixth century BC poet Stesichorus.
According to Euripides’ play, Helen was not guilty of running off with Paris because she had been whisked away to Egypt while a wraith was put in her place to mislead Paris and start the war. The play opens with Helen in Egypt living in a temple. The king, Theoclymenus is determined to marry Helen, but she repeatedly refuses because she believes her husband, Menelaus, will come rescue her. After the ten year long war ends in the fall of Troy, Menelaus is tossed about at sea for seven years until his ship is wrecked and he is washed ashore at Egypt.
Theoclymenus hears of the Greek shipwreck and searches for survivors in order to kill them. Menelaus escapes capture and discovers Helen, who has to work hard to convince him she is the real Helen. When word comes that the wraith Helen has vanished, Menelaus believes the real Helen and they plan their escape. Menelaus is no longer angry at Helen, since he now knows that it wasn’t her at all who left him for Paris.
Helen deceives Theoclymenus by telling him that her husband was killed in the shipwreck and she agrees to marry him after a proper Greek ceremony is performed at sea. Theoclymenus thinks that Menelaus is merely a lowly sailor from the shipwreck, so he agrees to let Helen and the stranger carry out the ceremony. Helen, Menelaus and a small band of Greek sailors who survived the wreck board the ship supplied by Theoclymenus. As they get far enough from shore the Greeks overpower the Egyptian sailors, capture the ship, and sail for Greece.
It shows the love that Helen has for her husband and how she has remained chaste for seventeen years while waiting for him to rescue her. This is in stark contrast to the view of Helen in the Iliad, who is complicit in seducing Paris and leaving her husband for him. About the only other interesting thing about this play is the vivid description of the Greek’s battle to capture the ship from the Egyptians.
According to Euripides’ play, Helen was not guilty of running off with Paris because she had been whisked away to Egypt while a wraith was put in her place to mislead Paris and start the war. The play opens with Helen in Egypt living in a temple. The king, Theoclymenus is determined to marry Helen, but she repeatedly refuses because she believes her husband, Menelaus, will come rescue her. After the ten year long war ends in the fall of Troy, Menelaus is tossed about at sea for seven years until his ship is wrecked and he is washed ashore at Egypt.
Theoclymenus hears of the Greek shipwreck and searches for survivors in order to kill them. Menelaus escapes capture and discovers Helen, who has to work hard to convince him she is the real Helen. When word comes that the wraith Helen has vanished, Menelaus believes the real Helen and they plan their escape. Menelaus is no longer angry at Helen, since he now knows that it wasn’t her at all who left him for Paris.
Helen deceives Theoclymenus by telling him that her husband was killed in the shipwreck and she agrees to marry him after a proper Greek ceremony is performed at sea. Theoclymenus thinks that Menelaus is merely a lowly sailor from the shipwreck, so he agrees to let Helen and the stranger carry out the ceremony. Helen, Menelaus and a small band of Greek sailors who survived the wreck board the ship supplied by Theoclymenus. As they get far enough from shore the Greeks overpower the Egyptian sailors, capture the ship, and sail for Greece.
It shows the love that Helen has for her husband and how she has remained chaste for seventeen years while waiting for him to rescue her. This is in stark contrast to the view of Helen in the Iliad, who is complicit in seducing Paris and leaving her husband for him. About the only other interesting thing about this play is the vivid description of the Greek’s battle to capture the ship from the Egyptians.
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Ion
In his play, Ion, Euripides attempts to answer the question of why the gods hold back justice. In the play, Creusa is seduced by Apollo and she becomes pregnant. In order to avoid shaming her father, Creusa abandons her son in a cave near Apollo’s temple at Delphi. She later marries Xuthus, who is unaware that she ever gave birth to a child. The two travel from Athens to Delphi because Xuthus wants to seek an oracle from Apollo concerning a male heir since they are childless.
At the temple, Creusa meets a young man named Ion who is the keeper of the temple. He tells Creusa of how he was abandoned as an infant and taken into custody at the temple, where he has lived for his whole life. He longs to know his mother and father but has lost all hope of ever knowing who they were. Touched by his sad story, Creusa tells of her misfortune, only she says it is a story of one of her friends.
Meanwhile, Xuthus receives an oracle in the temple telling him the next person he sees will be his son. As soon as he exits the temple he sees the Ion and runs and embraces him. Ion is startled, but when he hears that he will be adopted as Xuthus’s heir, he rejoices because at least he will have a father and a future.
Creusa, however, is outraged at this, fearing that Xuthus will kill her and give her inheritance and kingdom to Ion. She devises a plan to murder Ion with poison, lest she lose all she has. She has her servant put a drop of gorgon venom into Ion’s wine cup while he is partying with his friends over his good fortune and Xuthus is offering a sacrifice to Apollo. Ion, however, anticipates treachery and pours out the wine and has new wine brought. A bird drinks the wine and dies, confirming Ion’s suspicions. He calls the leaders of the city to arrest Creusa and throw her off a cliff for her crime.
Creusa hides in the temple but is found by Ion. Fortunately, Creusa realizes that Ion is the son she abandoned many years earlier when he tells her about the blanket and the basket he was left in. Ion rejoices to be reunited with his real mother and to learn that his father is a god. He agrees to keep this a secret from Xuthus, and they prepare to return to Athens as a happy family.
As they are leaving the temple, Athena appears and explains why Apollo had them wait so long to be reunited and why they had to go through such trying circumstances. Creusa repents of her anger and hatred towards Apollo, realizing that he had a greater plan to bless the region with a powerful new nation. Ion will have four sons who will set up power city states along the coast and on the islands of the Aegean Sea. This Ionian kingdom with have great influence throughout Asia and Europe. Xuthus will also have a natural son, Dorus, who will become a powerful king in Achaea.
Athena concludes her speech: “Heaven’s justice may tarry a while, yet comes it at the last in no wise weakened.”
The play ends with the chorus chanting: “’Tis only right that he, whose house is sore beset with trouble, should reverence God and keep good heart; for at the last the righteous find their just reward, but the wicked, as their nature is, will never prosper.”
The Greeks, as well as the Hebrews, struggled with the sovereignty of God (the gods) and the problem of evil. Both concluded that while the righteous may suffer, in the end, they will be blessed by God, and while the wicked may prosper for a while, they will not ultimately prosper in the end. God is in control and has our ultimate blessing in mind even though we may have to endure some trouble along the way. Don’t curse God when trouble comes; be patient and remain righteous.
At the temple, Creusa meets a young man named Ion who is the keeper of the temple. He tells Creusa of how he was abandoned as an infant and taken into custody at the temple, where he has lived for his whole life. He longs to know his mother and father but has lost all hope of ever knowing who they were. Touched by his sad story, Creusa tells of her misfortune, only she says it is a story of one of her friends.
Meanwhile, Xuthus receives an oracle in the temple telling him the next person he sees will be his son. As soon as he exits the temple he sees the Ion and runs and embraces him. Ion is startled, but when he hears that he will be adopted as Xuthus’s heir, he rejoices because at least he will have a father and a future.
Creusa, however, is outraged at this, fearing that Xuthus will kill her and give her inheritance and kingdom to Ion. She devises a plan to murder Ion with poison, lest she lose all she has. She has her servant put a drop of gorgon venom into Ion’s wine cup while he is partying with his friends over his good fortune and Xuthus is offering a sacrifice to Apollo. Ion, however, anticipates treachery and pours out the wine and has new wine brought. A bird drinks the wine and dies, confirming Ion’s suspicions. He calls the leaders of the city to arrest Creusa and throw her off a cliff for her crime.
Creusa hides in the temple but is found by Ion. Fortunately, Creusa realizes that Ion is the son she abandoned many years earlier when he tells her about the blanket and the basket he was left in. Ion rejoices to be reunited with his real mother and to learn that his father is a god. He agrees to keep this a secret from Xuthus, and they prepare to return to Athens as a happy family.
As they are leaving the temple, Athena appears and explains why Apollo had them wait so long to be reunited and why they had to go through such trying circumstances. Creusa repents of her anger and hatred towards Apollo, realizing that he had a greater plan to bless the region with a powerful new nation. Ion will have four sons who will set up power city states along the coast and on the islands of the Aegean Sea. This Ionian kingdom with have great influence throughout Asia and Europe. Xuthus will also have a natural son, Dorus, who will become a powerful king in Achaea.
Athena concludes her speech: “Heaven’s justice may tarry a while, yet comes it at the last in no wise weakened.”
The play ends with the chorus chanting: “’Tis only right that he, whose house is sore beset with trouble, should reverence God and keep good heart; for at the last the righteous find their just reward, but the wicked, as their nature is, will never prosper.”
The Greeks, as well as the Hebrews, struggled with the sovereignty of God (the gods) and the problem of evil. Both concluded that while the righteous may suffer, in the end, they will be blessed by God, and while the wicked may prosper for a while, they will not ultimately prosper in the end. God is in control and has our ultimate blessing in mind even though we may have to endure some trouble along the way. Don’t curse God when trouble comes; be patient and remain righteous.
Monday, January 22, 2007
The Trojan Women
In his epic poem, The Illiad, Homer describes the heroic deeds of both the Greek and the Trojan warriors. Euripides, however, takes a different vantage point to the fall of Troy in his play, The Trojan Women. Instead of painting war in the colors of valor and heroism, Euripides paints war in the colors of sorrow and loss by focusing on the fate of the women of Troy after the fall of their city. The horrors of war and the tragedy suffered by non-combatants are a counterbalance to the popular view of the war.
The story chronicles the fate of Hecuba, queen of Troy, widow of king Priam and mother of Paris and Hector. Hecuba, along with her daughters, Cassandra and Polyxena, along with the other Trojan women have been raffled off to the Greek generals. Hecuba is to be given to Odysseus, Cassandra belongs to Agamemnon, and Polyxena, fated to guard the grave of Achilles, commits suicide and lies dead on his tomb. Andromache, Hector’s widow, has been given to Neoptolemus, Achilles’ son, and her infant son, Astyanax, by command of Odysseus, is thrown down from the city walls and killed. Hecuba tries to commit suicide but is stopped and forced to return to Ithaca with Odysseus.
Helen, who had left her husband Menelaus to marry Paris, is captured and brought to the Greeks. Menelaus is furious with her and almost has her stoned to death. Helen tries to lie, saying that she was taken by force and had tried to escape many times but failed. Hecuba is outraged by Helen’s feeble attempt to escape punishment and tells Menelaus the truth that Helen came to Troy willingly and never once regretted her decision. The play ends with the women boarding the Greek ships as Troy burns to the ground.
Euripides effectively shows that war is not as glorious as the Greeks believe. Many innocent non-combatants suffer and the conquered are frequently mistreated. I feel it is good to balance the heroism and valor of soldiers in war with the suffering and pain caused by those warriors. We need both Homer and Euripides in order to have a more complete view of the Trojan war. Both remind us to look at both sides of war today so that we do not become too enamored with it.
The story chronicles the fate of Hecuba, queen of Troy, widow of king Priam and mother of Paris and Hector. Hecuba, along with her daughters, Cassandra and Polyxena, along with the other Trojan women have been raffled off to the Greek generals. Hecuba is to be given to Odysseus, Cassandra belongs to Agamemnon, and Polyxena, fated to guard the grave of Achilles, commits suicide and lies dead on his tomb. Andromache, Hector’s widow, has been given to Neoptolemus, Achilles’ son, and her infant son, Astyanax, by command of Odysseus, is thrown down from the city walls and killed. Hecuba tries to commit suicide but is stopped and forced to return to Ithaca with Odysseus.
Helen, who had left her husband Menelaus to marry Paris, is captured and brought to the Greeks. Menelaus is furious with her and almost has her stoned to death. Helen tries to lie, saying that she was taken by force and had tried to escape many times but failed. Hecuba is outraged by Helen’s feeble attempt to escape punishment and tells Menelaus the truth that Helen came to Troy willingly and never once regretted her decision. The play ends with the women boarding the Greek ships as Troy burns to the ground.
Euripides effectively shows that war is not as glorious as the Greeks believe. Many innocent non-combatants suffer and the conquered are frequently mistreated. I feel it is good to balance the heroism and valor of soldiers in war with the suffering and pain caused by those warriors. We need both Homer and Euripides in order to have a more complete view of the Trojan war. Both remind us to look at both sides of war today so that we do not become too enamored with it.
Monday, January 15, 2007
The Suppliants by Euripides
One of my long-term goals is to finish reading all 54 volumes of the Great Books of the Western World. Right now I am reading the Greek plays of Euripides. While Euripides was not as popular as Aeschylus or Sophocles during his lifetime, his plays were in greater demand after his death, so that more than twice as many of his plays exist today than the others. Of the three, Sophocles is my favorite.
I just finished reading the Suppliants, a tragedy about the death of the seven valiant warriors of Argos who died trying to regain the Theban kingdom for Polyneices which was usurped by Creon after the death of Oedipus, Polyneices’ father. Creon refused to allow anyone to bury the dead warriors, forcing the aged king of Argos to plead for help from Thesseus, legendary king of Athens. Theseus agrees to help, moved by the Suppliants (mothers of the dead warriors) and Aethra, his wife, even though he is insulted and warned by Creon’s messenge not to interfere.
Theseus attacks Thebes, and in a fierce battle drives Creon back into the walled city and recovers the bodies of the seven warriors. The bodies are returned to Argos where they are burned and interred in a proper manner.
Several passages in the poem caught my attention. The first was the exchange between Theseus and the messenger from Creon. The messenger ridicules Athens for being ruled by a mob and Theseus counters with the travesties of a dictatorship. This is a classic debate between the two major Greek forms of government, democracy and monarchy. In this passage we get the major arguments for and against both forms of government.
The second passage is the eulogies pronounced by Adrastus, the aged king of Argos, for the seven warriors. It is moving how he portrays the character of each of the valiant men, emphasizing their courage, humility, and integrity. It causes one to pause and reflect on what one wishes to be at his or her own funeral.
I just finished reading the Suppliants, a tragedy about the death of the seven valiant warriors of Argos who died trying to regain the Theban kingdom for Polyneices which was usurped by Creon after the death of Oedipus, Polyneices’ father. Creon refused to allow anyone to bury the dead warriors, forcing the aged king of Argos to plead for help from Thesseus, legendary king of Athens. Theseus agrees to help, moved by the Suppliants (mothers of the dead warriors) and Aethra, his wife, even though he is insulted and warned by Creon’s messenge not to interfere.
Theseus attacks Thebes, and in a fierce battle drives Creon back into the walled city and recovers the bodies of the seven warriors. The bodies are returned to Argos where they are burned and interred in a proper manner.
Several passages in the poem caught my attention. The first was the exchange between Theseus and the messenger from Creon. The messenger ridicules Athens for being ruled by a mob and Theseus counters with the travesties of a dictatorship. This is a classic debate between the two major Greek forms of government, democracy and monarchy. In this passage we get the major arguments for and against both forms of government.
The second passage is the eulogies pronounced by Adrastus, the aged king of Argos, for the seven warriors. It is moving how he portrays the character of each of the valiant men, emphasizing their courage, humility, and integrity. It causes one to pause and reflect on what one wishes to be at his or her own funeral.
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