Medea

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Furthermore, Medea can also be seen as a character exhibiting rationality in everything she does. She always has justice and heroism in mind. She believes it is her right to punish the wrong doer - Jason, who succumbs to his passions and gives his betrayed wife adequate reasons to demand justice. Medea even doesn’t allow maternal emotions to give her cold feet. At first glance, we may induce that a mother who murders her children is insane. But when placed in the context of the play, the deed can be viewed at a different angle. Medea’s decision can be put under two perfectly rational considerations. One is that from the beginning of the play, the ultimate concern is the maximum penalty for Jason. The other is that Medea’s eviction makes her an enemy of the state and those who have connections with such character have no place in Ancient Greek society. By killing the children herself, she deprives Corinthians of the opportunity to take revenge on her. Medea’s second aim is to take the path towards heroism, even if it involves such horrid an act as child murder. In this sense, her promise “is not presented as the excessive desire of a fierce barbarian, but is embraced by the Corinthian women as their own.” Medea becomes the voice of those who suffer from maltreatment.

Euripides presents his stark vision of life through the fearsome drama “Medea”. The tragedy invokes deep thoughts to the extent at which morality is judged. At first glance, Medea maybe an unethical human being. However, under an analytical perspective, Ancient Greek culture is able to give this unseemly heroine the justification she deserves. “Medea” provokes a type of controversy in which her action can be regarded as beyond good and evil.