Phillip Vellacott: Play Analysis

Phillip Vellacott translated four plays by Euripides articulately in Medea and Other Plays. Each of the plays in Medea and Other Plays, Euripides portrayed the duel sides of the greatness of Athens, in which Athenians in their actions were the opposite of their aspirations, cruel yet generosity, dishonest yet cruel truthfulness, revengeful yet honored justice. Three of the plays look to Athens for redemption while they are set in other cities: Medea in Corinth, Electra in Argos, and Heracles in Thebes.
Along with Socrates, Euripides represented new movements in moral social and political areas in Athens society which followed two of his interests, philosophy and science. Euripides used his plays to comment on Athens and the plight of man as he reinvented Greek myths while he probed nature’s dark side of man. The gods and heroes in his plays were portrayed as fallible by displaying their human sides. In Medea, Euripides created a play based on the legend in which the king of Athens made a friendly offer to Medea. As an oppressed victim, Medea searched for the sympathy of the Chorus at the beginning of the play. Unfortunately, she became angry at Jason, her husband, when he took King Creon’s daughter in marriage. Also, the king ordered Medea’s exile from Corinth. Next Euripides …show more content…
Euripides also used the concept of revenge worse that the crime in Medea. His play, Hecabe, was about cruelty and the different results it produced. Polymestor, King of Trace, was cruel to Hecabe’s son, Polydorus, by killing him and keeping the gold which was brought as a gift. Polxena was condemned to death by Agamemnon, commander of the Greek army. Hecabe was distraught after learning her son was dead and sought revenge. As a result Polymestor, was deceived by Hecabe losing his sight and life in the