medea

• why did Jason go to Colchis?

  to retrieve the golden fleece
• what was Jason promised, if he was successful in his endeavours?

  his uncle (pelias) was going to pass the crown to him
• what did king aietes do, when jason stated his reasons for being in colchis?

  set up challenges (in order to kill jason) for jason to complete before being able to "take" the golden fleece
• what was the first challenge?

  • sow the field with serpent's teeth
  • once sowed they sprouted warriors
• what was the second challenge?

  • yoke a pair of oxen to a plough
  • plough the field with them

  *the oxen breathed fire
• what was the third challenge?

  • to retrieve the golden fleece
  • it was guarded by a ferocious serpent
• what was jason known as in regards to hera?

  he was her favourite mortal, thus used her powers to help jason succeed
• how did hera help jason?

  she enchanted medea (eros shot the bow of love), to make medea fall in love with jason
• how did medea help jason?

  first - she gifted a charm to jason to make him unvulnerable, so he could complete all of his tasks

  second - she chants and drugs the serpent to sleep, so jason could steal the golden fleece

  third - she killed her brother so that she and the argonauts could flee colchis uninterrupted
• what had aietes called medea? why?

  a traitor

  she wanted to leave for greece with jason

  
  

  *she almost killed herself as she was so distraught with her actions
• how did medea distract the guards from their escape?

  she chopped her brother (apsyrtus) up and every few miles (or so) dumped his entrails in the sea
• why did medea's ploy (regarding her brother) work?

  it was tradition for nobles to have proper burials, therefore the guards were hindered by duty to retrieve the dismembered body of medea's brother (apsyrtus)
• what did Jason travel on to get to colchis?

  his ship, the argo
• who accompanied jason on his travels to colchis?

  the argonauts
• what did jason promise medea?

  to marry her when they got to greece
• how did medea go against greek values? what caused this?

  • killed her own family - was punished by furies
  • medea went from saviour to murderer, as love corrupted her
• what happened in Talos?

  the argonauts came across a metal giant, medea defeated them by summoning underworld spirits
• how did pelisd react to medea and jason's return to thessaly? why?

  he was shocked

  he didn't think that retrieving the golden fleece was possible
• what did medea show pelias' daughters?

  a "magic ritual" that reverses ageing
• what trick did medea play on pelias' daughters?

  she cut up a ram and put it in a boiling cauldron, when they weren't looking she produced a young lamb from behind her back, tricking them into thinking that the ritual reversed age
• what did pelias' daughters do? why?

  eagerly told him about the anti-ageing ritual as they wanted to perform it on him
• what happened to pelias?

  his daughters unkowingly killed him by putting him in a boiling, expecting a young man to appear like in medea's "magic ritual"
• what happened to jason and medea following pelias' death?

  angry town folk drove them out of thessaly
• where did medea and jason flee to?

  corinth
• why did medea suffer for the first time and what was she called?

  suffered negative consequences for her schemes and was called barbaric
• what happened in corinth?

  • m and j had two sons
  • j was approached by king creon for jason to marry his daughter glauce
  • j wanted to keep medea as his mistress
  • m was furious
• why does medea pretend to be remorseful for her angry behaviour?

  to avoid suspicion as she hatches a plan to kill the crown
• why does medea ask for her sons to be allowed to stay in corinth?

  so that they aren't exiled with her
• what does medea send glauce? why?

  a dress and a coronet (thin/delicate crown/tiara) for her wedding day, to show sincerity
• what had medea done to the dress? what was the result of this?

  poisoned it

  it clung to g's body and burned her flesh, creon tries to save his daughter but ends up dying in the same torturous way (as the fabric engulfs him)
• why does medea murder her sons?

  in an attempt to hurt jason
• why is jason worried/concerned?

  as he fears that his sons will be harmed by the corinthians as an attempt to seek revenge on medea
• what is the significance of medea being seen in a golden chariot?

  • it was loaned to her by her grandad, the sun god
  • she is seen flying the chariot with the bodies of her sons
  • she exclaims how she is out of j's reach
• what does jason do following the chariot incident?

  • compares m to various animals and monsters
  • blames himself for bringing a barbarian princess (m) to greece
  • realises that no greek woman would have done all that m did
• what does m do to j? why?

  • denies him the right of burying his sons as she wants to bury them herself in the sanctuary of Hera Akraia
  • she has no remorse for her actions -> the pain she feels for the loss of her sons is bearable (so long as j doesn't mock her)
• what does m fortell?

  • that j will die a miserable death
  • he will be hit on the head by a piece of the argo
• why is j's predicted death so dishonourable?

  it is an example of an unheroic death, therefore shaming j as he hopes for a noble death on the battlefield (stereotypical greek hero death)
• how are m and j displayed in a negative way? what does this show?

  • they fling insults at one another
  • they are not shown to be noble or sympathetic
• what does the play depict?

  the destructive power of m in a truly terrifying way
• krater showing the flight of medea