Hippolytus And Theseus Essay

Many have tackled the original myth that these two plays follow, with the version involving Hippolytus and Phaedra being a source for many Greek tragedies. The story is all about the misdirected passions the character’s experience: Hippolytus and his passion against women and sexual love, Phaedra and her passion for her stepson, and Theseus’ eventual passion to destroy his own flesh and blood. Euripides had written two different versions, the second being meant to tone-down the raciness of the first and happens to be the only one that survived. It’s believed that Seneca decides to follow a plot line that’s similar to Euripides’ first Hippolytus, including its explicitness as Phaedra is shown propositioning Hippolytus in front of the audience’s eyes. Even with this fact, these two plays have widely different approaches when telling this story. What really makes these versions distinct from each other are the roles that the authors have Hippolytus, Phaedra, and Theseus play. Euripides has …show more content…
While he still detests women and thinks them wicked, even using Medea as the archetypal example, he is still an innocent that had gotten wrapped up in Phaedra’s sinful desires. When she reveals her love towards him, he even feels guilty for causing such emotions in his stepmother. Later, he is condemned to death at the request of his own father, brutally torn apart. Hippolytus is truly a tragic character who is a passive victim in Phaedra compared to his characterization in Hippolytus. There are still many notable differences between Phaedra and Hippolytus, beyond characterization and the presence, or lack thereof, of the goddesses Artemis and Aphrodite. The deaths of Hippolytus and Phaedra are inversed in Seneca’s play, allowing the confrontation between her and Theseus possible towards the end. Another considerable distinction is the tone the ending of the plays