Table of Contents
What happens in the Furies Oresteia?
Apollo finds the Furies contemptible and horrific, relics of a time when vengeance was more important than justice. The Furies, meanwhile, believe that Apollo is trying to steal their power. The dialogue ends with the Furies vowing to pursue Orestes, even as Apollo promises to protect him.
What are the parts of the Oresteia?
The Oresteia consists of three plays:
- Agamemnon.
- The Libation Bearers.
- The Eumenides.
What is the plot of the tragedy Agamemnon?
Agamemnon – the first play in Aeschylus’ trilogy, Oresteia – tells the story of the bloody curse on the House of Atreus. In this tragedy, Agamemnon is just returning from victory in the Trojan War; however, Clytemnestra is still none too pleased, since he killed their daughter to secure safe passage in the first place.
What are the major themes in Agamemnon?
Themes
- Justice and Judgment.
- Fate and Free Will.
- Revenge.
- Wisdom and Knowledge.
- Family.
- Politics.
- Fear.
- Lies and Deceit.
What is the Furies argument against Orestes?
Case Description: Complainants (The Furies) accuse Defendant (Orestes) of murder in the first degree, alleging that Orestes killed his mother, Clytemnestra. Orestes countersued the Erinyes for harassment, because they pursued him relentlessly, nearly driving him mad.
How does Orestes escape the Furies?
Euripides. As Aeschylus tells it, Orestes’ punishment for matricide ended after a trial, but according to Euripides, in order to escape the persecutions of the Erinyes, Orestes was ordered by Apollo to go to Tauris, carry off the statue of Artemis that had fallen from the heavens, and bring it to Athens.
Where does the Oresteia trilogy end?
During the Trojan War, Aegisthus would become the lover to Agamemnon’s wife Clytemnestra. He helped to murder Agamemnon when the king returned, and then was killed by Agamemnon’s son Orestes. Orestes would be cleared of murder, finally ending the family curse.
What is the main theme of Agamemnon?
The main theme of Agamemnon is revenge and justice. Clytemnestra murders her husband after he returns from the Trojan War, in retaliation for his sacrifice of their daughter.
What happens to Orestes at the end of the Eumenides?
Apollo puts two of the Furies to sleep while he purifies the young man with pig’s blood. The female figure on the left is the ghost of Clytemnestra, vainly attempting to awaken the Furies. At the play’s end, Orestes is acquitted, and the Furies are changed into the Eumenides (“Kindly”).
Why did Athena acquit Orestes?
Paradoxically, in acquitting Orestes because in avenging his father king and ridding his house of a usurper he was acting on behalf of the social order, she has set a precedent—the denial of the rights of the Furies—which, if followed, will itself result in the disturbance of social stability.
What is the main idea of Agamemnon?
What do you know about the Oresteia by Aeschylus?
Learn about the Aeschylus trilogy of plays called ”The Oresteia,” a story about the Atreides blood-feud after the Trojan War in Greek history. When you’re through, take the quiz and see what you’ve learned. The Oresteia is a collection of three plays that explores the last two murders of the Atreides Curse.
What is the plot of the Oresteia?
Plot Summary The Oresteia details the breaking of the curse of the House of Atreus following the murder of King Agamemnon by his wife, Queen Clytaemnestra in Agamemnon; the murder of Clytaemnestra at the hands of their son, Orestes in The Libation Bearers; and the vindication of Orestes by trial and the pacification of the Furies in The Eumenides.
How does Orestes return to his father’s court?
Commanded by the god Apollo and accompanied by his friend Pylades, Orestes, the only son of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra, returns to his father’s court to avenge his murder. At the beginning of the play, he stops by at the tomb of Agamemnon – located just in front of the palace – and makes an offering.
Who won first place in the Dramatic Competition for the Oresteia?
Aeschylus won first place in the dramatic competition for The Oresteia. Aeschylus is credited by historians and philosophers such as Aristotle as being the father of tragedy, codifying many aspects of the genre seen in later plays by Sophocles and Euripides, the only other ancient Greek tragedians whose work remains intact.