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Reaction Paper On The Oresteia

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The Oresteia is a trilogy of Greek tragedies written by Aeschylus. This trilogy consists of Agamemnon, The Libation Bearers or The Choephoroe, and The Eumenides. The only extant example of an ancient Greek theatre trilogy, the Oresteia won first prize at the Dionysia festival in 458 BC. Many consider the Oresteia to be Aeschylus' finest work. The principal themes of the trilogy include the contrast between revenge and justice, as well as the transition from personal vendetta to organized litigation. The Oresteia is an interesting story that is special in many ways towards literature and Greek mythology history.
Aeschylus is often described as the father of tragedies. Academics' knowledge of the genre begins with his work,and understanding of earlier tragedies is largely based on inferences from his surviving plays. According to Aristotle, he expanded the number of characters in theater, allowing conflict amidst them; characters previously had interacted only with the chorus. Aeschylus was born c. 523 B.C. in Eleusis and died when he was 67 in Gela. Only seven of an estimated seventy to ninety tragedies written by Aeschylus have survived. These seven plays were consisted of Agamemnon, The Libation Bearers, The Eumenides, Seven Against Thebes, The Persians, The Suppliants, and Prometheus Bound. His first play was performed when he was …show more content…

Agamemnon was the son of King Atreus and Queen Aerope of Mycenae and was the brother of Menelaus. Clytemnestra was his wife, and with her Agamemnon had four children, Orestes, Electra, Iphigenia, and Chrysothemis. As Helen, the wife of Menelaus, was taken by Paris, commencing with the Trojan war, Agamemnon sacrificed Iphigenia to the god of the hunt and the forest, Artemis, to obtain a favorable wind for the Greek fleet. His actions caused Clytemnestra to go into mourning and they make her want to seek out revenge on

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In the trilogy The Oresteia, Aeschylus shows the never ending cycle of violence within the house of Atreus. The cycle acts as a “net” entrapping Agamemnon, Clytemnestra, Orestes, and many other characters. This net has not only encapsulated characters but it also produces actions throughout the play provoking the audience to think of several different conflicted loyalties. Specifically, the rendezvous between Clytemnestra and the chorus highlights right versus wrong, self-help justice (in the form of revenge) versus justice by trial, and honor versus dignity. The audience can understand all of the aforementioned conflicting loyalties because they are conflicts that each and every person has undergone at least once.

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ustice, fairness, and decency, abstract concepts that are innate in society and human nature. However, despite their near universal status in humanities mid, they often have different meanings for individuals. Aeschylus uses The Oresteia in order to explore these issues as characters in the play try to determine what it means to be just, what ought a just actor do, and what is the best model for achieving justice. The characters discuss ideas such as vengeance, reciprocity, balance, moderation, and finally the end result of the implied debate leads to a jury system. In this paper I will go over two of the several different interpretations of justice used in the Oresteia and compare and contrast them in order to demonstrate which is the best

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World literature has been a fundamental part of understanding our society, it has archived and developed the events and thoughts that made the world in which we live today. Literature is typically linked with philosophy and early thinkers, who questioned who we are, where do we came from and what is our purpose in life. Even though, the study of philosophy has given us the chance to understand more about this topic, I personally think that over the years, it provides more questions than answers, and the more we dig in, the more questionings will show up. Our first reading on Poetics by Aristotle, focuses mainly on Greek tragedy and epic poetry. Tragedies started as religious ceremonies performed at festivals in honor to the god Dionysus, but over time it has changed into a secular.

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From the beginning Oedipus was destined to fulfill a terrible prophecy, but through particular events that follow the steps of the Hero’s Journey, Oedipus becomes a powerful king of Thebes, only to be destroyed by the prophecy that should have ended his life as a child. The Hero’s Journey typically leads to self-confidence and power, however; the Hero’s Journey of Oedipus leads to his tragic demise. The Hero’s Journey lays out the steps of Oedipus’s future actions, which create suspense, fear, pity, and other emotions that captivates the audience. Similar to many famous stories, Oedipus the King, written by Sophocles in 430 B.C., follows the Hero’s Journey path, which is evident in Oedipus’s departure, initiation, and return.

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Orestes and Agamemnon are two more characters that have an interesting father-son bond and are both very important to the plot of The Odyssey. Agamemnon’s wife, Clytemnestra,

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The Oresteia is a trilogy written by the Greek author Aeschylus that comprises of three plays; Agamemnon, the libation bearers, and the Eumenides. The central theme of this book is “justice” which in the case of Orestes has led to exile. This book was written at a time when the star of Athens was in decline. It was a time that marked the establishment of a new socio- political order, a democracy adjudicated by the rule of law. This rule of law meant the institutionalization of justice (i.e. having a justice system), where cases are heard and verdicts are being reached based on evidence.

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The Odyssey revolves around a household without its master, Odysseus, who has been lost for 10 years. Despite that, Agamemnons’ death by his faithless wife isn’t the main focus of the Odyssey, but it is still frequently mentioned. Aegisthus can be thought of as the suitors who are seen at the beginning of the Odyssey feasting and sipping wine all day. His affair with Clytemnestra, his murder of Agamemnon and then later on, his death by Agamemnons’ son Orestes, foreshadows the inevitable death waiting to consume the suitors’ lives for their efforts to destroy Odysseus household. The stories set up is similar in a way that there are two returning heroes, Agamemnon and Odysseus, their sons, Orestes and Telemachus, and their wives, Clytemnestra and Penelope respectively.

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Thesis:In Sophocles play ‘Oedipus the king’,Oedipus is an example of a tragic hero because he changed from a hero at the beginning of the play into a tragic hero by the end by experiencing power,tragic flow,downfall and death. Oedipus changes into a person no can believe of,because in the beginning he was a hero for the city of thebes by solving a riddle to defeat the monster that was killing and taking over thebes. Claim:Before the play Oedipus defeats sphinx and becomes a powerful king,At the beginning of the play people rely on Oedipus’s power and help. Data:For example the priest says “Oedipus greatest in all men’s eyes We pray,find some strength again and rescue or city”. Warrant:From this quote readers can see that how empowered oedipus feels like and how people in thebes rely on him,Clearly this scene represents the power stage of the tragic hero.

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In ancient Greek literature, diseases and afflictions often play key roles within the story. In Sophocles 's tragedy Oedipus Rex, the presence and recurrence of afflictions are central elements to the plot. Oedipus and his city both possess conditions that determine the outcome of the play. The motif of ailments, like the plague and blindness, highlight the hubris and failures of Oedipus to demonstrate his reliance on the gods.

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His pride was wounded, and so he took Iphigenia to the temple of Artemis. In the skies, even the hunting goddess Artemis, was shocked at Agamemnon’s deed. She took one

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After Achilles’ has left Agamemnon realizes he has made a mistake which leads to him asking for Achilles’ forgiveness to return into the war, and fight for the Greeks. Agamemnon does this so that he can try to manipulate not only Achilles’ fate, but the fates of the Trojans. Agamemnon has influenced other characters’ fates. For example, Paris and Helen. Agamemnon was held responsible for influencing Paris to fight Menelaus to hold his marriage with Helen.

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First events in The Oresteia, in Agamemnon, Orestes father, Agamemnon was killed by his wife Clytemnestra and her new lover Aegisthus. The reason Agamemnon sacrificed his daughter, Iphigenia, was to help himself and troops

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