Agamemnon Essay examples - 600 Words

Agamemnon Agamemnon is the first play of Aeschylus’ trilogy, the Oresteia. Aeschylus was the first of Athens’ three great tragedians; the others: Sophocles; Euripides. The Oresteia was also the first Greek tragedy trilogy written. As Greeks of this epoch focused on humanist ideas, so did Aeschylus. He devoted his genius to serious contemplations of humanistic questions, such as the nature of justice. Other humanistic values are honor, truth, compassion, loyalty, devotion to family and gods. He credits much of his success to Homer’s epics. It is helpful to have read both the Iliad and the Odyssey to understand the Oresteia. I will relate some background information from Homer’s epics as I recount a summary of Aeschylus’†¦show more content†¦Zeus refused, and instead chose the shepherd Paris to serve as judge. Each goddess approached Paris in attempts to bribe him with special offerings. Hera offered him a rich kingdom and power; Athena offer ed him wisdom and military success; Aphrodite offered him love and the most beautiful woman in the world, Helen. Paris chose Aphrodite, thus making enemies of Hera and Athena. They both vowed to destroy Paris and the city of Troy. Upon learning that he would possess Helen, Paris went to Troy and established himself as a true prince, the legitimate son of Priam and Hecuba. He sailed to Sparta where he seduced and later abducted Helen. When King Menelaus, Helen’s husband, returned to Sparta and found that his wife was gone, he summoned a number of Greek generals and leaders, including his brother, King Agamemnon. Agamemnon was elected leader of the armies. As they sailed the Aegean Sea making their journey to Troy, the winds died. It was discovered the Agamemnon had killed a deer sacred to Artemis, goddess of the Hunt. Nothing could pacify her anger except the sacrifice of Iphegenia, Agamemnon’s daughter. After much anguish, Agamemnon sent for his daughter under the false pretense that she was to marry Achilles. Once there, however, he had her sacrificed. The play begins when Agamemnon returns after a ten-year siege at Troy. A chorus chants the story of Menelaus and his brother, butShow MoreRelatedEssay on Agamemnon959 Words   |  4 PagesAgamemnon was the son of Atreus, the brother of Menelaus and the brother-in-law of Helen; he was told to sacrifice his daughte Agamemnon was the son of Atreus, the brother of Menelaus and the brother-in-law of Helen; he was told to sacrifice his daughter Iphigenia to atone for the killing of a deer sacred to Artemis so that the Greek fleet could have wind to sail to Troy. However, Artemis snatched Iphigenia away at the last second and transported her to Tauris (now known as the Crimea)Read MoreAgamemnon-Christian Perspective1307 Words   |  6 PagesAgamemnon Justice And Vengeance. Justice delivers the just recompense or payment for wrongdoing or transgression of a law. Justice evokes the feeling of equality and fairness. Wrongs done – wrongs rewarded. In so doing we live life as law abiders and not law breakers and have a reasonable expectation of abiding in civility, and not rebellious mayhem. Vengeance, on the other hand, is the emotional response to a perceived wrong without regard for how it stands up against the rule of law. ItRead MoreMedea And Agamemnon1445 Words   |  6 PagesAncient expectations for women include always putting the responsibilities of being a mother above all else, as shown in Euripides’ Medea and Aeschylus’ Agamemnon, as well as Euripides’ Iphigenia at Aulis. Both Clytemnestra and Medea exhibit motherly love and tend to those responsibilities, but commit atrocious, unladylike acts, which jeopardize the sympathy felt for them by an audience. The respective playwrights of each story use their characte r’s motivations and how they align with their rolesRead More Agamemnon Essay1109 Words   |  5 Pagesof the chorus and introduced a second actor. Between the years of 484 and 458, he won awards at the festival in the City Dionysia. He wrote more than ninety plays, but only seven survive. The oldest of these is The Suppliant Maidens. The trilogy, Agamemnon, Choephore, and Eumendis, was not long before 458. Aeschylus acted in his own plays. nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;His family belonged to an old Athenian nobility and, as part of his duty, he fought in at least two wars where the Greeks defeatedRead MoreReview of Agamemnon by Aeschylus Essay512 Words   |  3 PagesReview of Agamemnon by Aeschylus *No Works Cited The play Agamemnon, a Greek playwright written by Aeschylus, starts out after the fall of Troy at the palace of King Agamemnon. A watchman watching for a flare in the distance spots a light in the distance, signaling that the end of the war has finally come after many years. After the King comes home, the â€Å"chorus† (high authorities I think?) talks about the war and about the fact that it was fought over a woman. Around this time, the chorus isRead MoreThe Story Of Odysseus And Agamemnon1191 Words   |  5 Pagesother until they meet. The story of Odysseus and Agamemnon has striking similarities, not meeting until one point, where the stories barely brush up against each other. But that small window of meeting shows an entire other story which has already been told, with a different set of names, places and problems. Homer created these character parallels as a way to explain things, to say things twice, to really help us understand. Odysseus and Agamemnon posses a great deal of qualities that seem almostRead MoreAgamemnon And Achilles Essay1279 Words   |  6 Pagesthe battle logs during the time of conflict between Agamemnon and Achilles, the text’s tragic protagonist. The heroic outlook on life, in Iliadic terms, is exemplified through the construction of one’s honor through hard work. Being an aspect of the heroic outlook of life, this value is demonstrated through his contribution and dedication to the Trojan War, his experience with neglect from the deities, Achilles’ overall disdain towards Agamemnon, and, lastly, his longingness towards Briseis, his dearRead MoreThe Tragedy Of Agamemnon By Sophocles Essay1800 Words   |  8 Pagesdiscussing Greek tragedies, there is a theme of anger and revenge that is somewhat underling in many texts of this tragic nature. In Agamemnon by Aeschylus the main character Agamemnon faces these constructs head on mostly as a direct result of his decisio n to sacrifice his daughter. However, this is not the only case where anger and revenge is exhibited in the tragedy of Agamemnon as in truth it runs rampant throughout the text. Another tragedy that exhibits these traits is that of Medea written by EuripidesRead More Agamemnon Essay examples713 Words   |  3 Pages Agamemnon Agamemnon is the first book in the Orestiean Trilogy written by the famous Greek tragedy writer, Aeschylus. Agamemnon is a story of justice and revenge. The story takes place in a city called Argos. It starts with Agamemnon, the king of Argos, away at the Trojan War. The city is eagerly awaiting the news of their king’s welfare and the outcome of the war. Watchmen are posted in the city, watching for the beacon that would report the capture of Troy and Agamemnon’s return. Beacons areRead MoreEssay about Agamemnon742 Words   |  3 Pages In Aeschylus’ Agamemnon there are many different opinions about what kind of king and commander Agamemnon was. Some argued that he was good, while others dispute that his motives were wrong. Clytemnestra, Agamemnon’s wife, gained a strong hatred for him, after he sacrificed his own daughter so he could go to war. Many believe that this was not necessary and could have been overcome. The chorus seems to agree with this to an extent, and feels that Agamemnon could have prayed and requested that he