In Euripides’ play, “Medea,” the main protagonist and tragic hero is the foreigner Medea. In the early sequences of the play we see Medea as a scorned woman who has no fight left in her, as she seeks not only for her own death but the death of her children. As the play progresses, Medea adapts and changes her character many times and overall we see the evolution of her character to an almost goddess level.
In the beginning scenes of the play, Medea’s identity as a weak woman is emphasized through her reluctant use of action to correct her misfortunes.While Medea’s husband has remarried and abandoned his family in exchange for a better life among royalty, Medea cowers in her home moaning of her loss. The nurse that begins the play says, “She wont touch food; surrendering to pain, she melts away her days in tears” (Page 787 Lines 29-31). We not only learn that she is portrayed as a weak woman but we also learn that it is of no fault of her own. As the play moves on and more characters are thrown into the mix, we see the transformation of Medea’s character into a powerful woman. The various levels of power that we see Medea at is very important because it is a unique topic that Euripides challenges in his time. In Greek culture around this time, society had a view of woman that portrayed them as weak and unable to be equal to men. Yet in this case, Euripides tackles society view of woman and in return creates a woman in this play that not only is wronged by a man but rises to the occasion and creates justice for herself. Medea in this play serves as the character that challenges society views on woman and misogyny.
Throughout the first 680 lines of Medea we get a large sense of inequality that exists within Greek society. Not only does it exist but it is acknowledged by woman themselves. Medea says, Of all living creatures with a soul and mind, we woman are the most pathetic” (Page 792 Lines 231-232). Medea takes a big leap with statement as she is left with choices to make to correct her own misfortune and overcome the hegemony set up by Greek society. This leaves us with many questions :
1.) Does Medea’s love for her children outweigh the hatred she has for her husband?
2.) How does Medea’s actions benefit the cause for woman equality or hurt it?
3.) Does Medea have just cause for her plan to murder?
I agree that Medea didn’t settle for a passive role after Jason broke his marital vows. This shows a certain strength or courage in action, despite the wickedness of her future decisions. I don’t see Medea as a strong person though. Her decision to exact revenge came from a state of weakness in my opinion. Medea wasn’t strong enough to “let it go” and was at the mercy of her own wild emotions. There’s an old metaphor about two horses pulling a wagon with a person on it. The horses represent emotion and the person has no control over them. Therefore, the horses take the person where ever they want to go. Medea didn’t have control over her emotions or thoughts. We see that when she was brooding in the house. It’s easy to get lost in negative emotion and even easier to take a path of destruction rather than growth.