Medea\'s Revenge the Development of Her Plans

Medea's Children: Revenge And Euthanasia

Over the course of Euripides' play Medea, the protagonist makes five truly significant speeches which seem to provide the outline for the plot. In these speeches Medea addresses the audience or the chorus of women, among whom she seeks a measure of justification and self-understanding. From the beginning her motivation and determination in destroying Jason's new family is obvious. However, her thoughts regarding the death of her own children seem to vacillate throughout the work. Over the course of these speeches, one sees the development of her revenge, the careful strategic outlay of her plans, and steady struggle between her maternal instincts, her womanly desire for revenge, and he desire to shelter her children from a harsh reality.

When we first see Medea enter the play, she is hysterical in grief. At that moment, she speaks of hating her children, saying "Children of a hateful mother, I curse you / And you father. Let the whole house crash." (112-113) Of course at the same time she speaks of killing herself as well, so one might chalk these murderous sentiments up to hyperbole. However, these words are significant for two particular reasons -- first that this mad grief belies her later philosophical resignation in speaking with the chorus, and secondly that this is the only time in the course of the play that Medea is ever shown as hating her children or failing to care about them. Here the poet seems to be suggesting that Medea's later murder is driven by hatred, but throughout the remainder of the play and in all of the significant speeches she seems to be far more concerned with the welfare of her children than one might expect.

In the first of her great speeches, Medea addresses the chorus of women -- in fear, it seems, that she will be thought of poorly for her excesses. In this speech she begs their understanding for the revenge that she plans to undertake, and makes the women of the city complicit in her crimes as she confesses her intent to them. Here she is able to win their sympathies by appealing to the common fate of women, saying "We women are the most unfortunate creatures" (231), and thus making her story into a fundamental battle in the war of the sexes. She seems here to be reflective and calm in her approach to the situation, which shows both her intelligence and her political genius. Before this speech is over, she completely wins over the sympathies and support of the women of the city, even though they later tremble at her methods they will not stop her. At this point her plans seem as yet unformed, being more emotional than intentional.

In the second great speech, Medea deals with the shame of fawning before Creon and mocks him for succumbing to her. One notices here that she begins to make her plans. She seems much more set and determined now, and he reflective intelligence is mixed with a kind of proud psychopathy. She appeals to Hecate, the dark goddess, and speaks again of the strength of womanhood. What is curious in this speech is that there is no hint of doing any harm to her children. She lists those she will harm: "I will make dead bodies / Of three of my enemies -- father, the girl, and my husband." (374-375) She does not seem to show any sign here of harming her own young, and her only debate is in regards to the method of execution she will use for those who are her enemies. Though she speaks of murder here, she still seems somewhat sane -- she considers consequences and the importance of method with as much attention as she considers her cause.

The idea of killing her children seems to spring from nowhere in the third great speech. If anything, Medea is even calmer here than in previous scenes. She has determined upon her plot, and knows what is necessary to bring it to pass. She has hit upon a plan which will enable her to destroy Jason's bride, and possibly others of her household. The reason why she determines the necessary destruction of her own children is less obvious. She first suggests that she would not "leave in a country that hates me / Children of mine to feel their enemies insults." (781-782) Almost immediately after speaking of killing her children, she goes on to say, "There is none who can give them safety... For it is not bearable to be mocked by enemies. / So it must happen." (793, 797-798) Here she seems to be speaking of the death of her children without any emotion whatsoever beyond a sad resignation which acknowledges death to be the best thing for them, and useful for revenge as well. In the heat of her plotting, few other emotions seem to come into play.

In the next speech, however, she seems to approach the death of her children in a much more human fashion. Here she suffers terribly as she considers the idea of killing her children. In fact, she renounces the plan altogether, realizing that it would hurt her twice as much as it would hurt their father, and imagines how terrible life would be without them. "Sad will be the life I'll lead and sorrowful for me." (1036) However she then considers that this might not be to complete her revenge "Do I want to let go / My enemies unhurt and be laughed at for it?" (1049-1050) Then again she decides that she will not kill them after all, "If they live with you in Athens they will cheer you" (1058) She seems to have decided that it is more important for her to be happy than to take her revenge -- but once again she changes her mind. "This shall never be, that I should suffer my children / To be the prey of my enemies' insolence." (1060-1061) Here Medea knows that the princess bride will die, and that her children will be the instrument of that destruction, and she cannot stand to let them take the punishment for that. In this scene she is torn and tragic, yet one still sees the hint of intelligence and philosophical bearing in her speeches regarding them. As well there is a sort of madness in her tones, as she speaks of sending them on a dreadful road and yet wishing them happiness in another world.