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On the one hand her act is a reaction towards the threat that a hostile society poses against her identity. On the other hand, he murder is a revenge against her husband's infidelity. The fact that Jason tries to lessen his own deed and make it seem but a reasonable thing that any woman 'with sense' should merely accept, points at the fact that he shamelessly pursues his own goals without considering the damage he does to the others: "Jason: Did you really think it right to kill them because of a marriage? Medea: Do you imagine that loss of love is a trivial grief for a woman? Jason: For a woman of sense, yes. But you find everything a disaster."(Euripides 1994, p. 396) Thus, it can be said that although Jason's acts are not as brutal as Medea's revenge, on a subtler level, they are traumatizing and annihilating. He does not kill anyone, but, in a way, his deeds are just as deadly.
In conclusion,...
The result of Medea's crimes is horrifying, but we have to take into consideration the great injustice done to her by her husband. In a patriarchic society, there were no further perspectives for a woman than to live her role as a wife and mother. Once this order is disrupted, Medea finds herself with no identity of her own, in spite of her strong personality. Thus, if her murders cannot be justified, her psychological reaction to her husband's desertion can be at least explained. Jason's fault, although seemingly much smaller cannot be justified except and it only discloses his egotistic and purely material pursuits.
References
Euripides. Cylcops. Alcestis. Medea (trans. By David Kovacs). New York: Loeb Classical Library, 1994.
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