Women to be feared

• Who is Medea?

  • Mythological woman
  • Scary - refused to play by the rules of Greek society
• What made Medea powerful

  • princess
  • part divine - grandfather was sun god
  • priestess of Hecate - was a witch whp had powers
  • clever, independently minded
• Medea could not be..


  controlloed
• Where was Medea born

  • Island of colchis
  • Mythological island on the edge of the world
  • Barbarairan- far far away
• How did Jason and Medea meet eachother

  • Greek hero Jason came to colchis to get Golden Fleece
  • Medeas dad kept it in the garden guarded by a dragon - Jason had no luck
  • Hera asked eros to make Medea fall in lobe with Jason
  • Medea defied her father and helped Jason get the fleece
• What is Golden Fleece

  • skin of a divine golden ram kept in colchis
• Where did M and J go after golden fleece

  • Escaped Corinth and Medea killed her two brothers - bloodcrime
  • Jason had many obstacles but Medea helped him with magic
  • Settled in Corinth and had 2 sons
• What happened after they had 2 sons

  • Jason divorces Medea nd wanted to marry princess of Corinth, Glauke
  • Medea was angry, king of Corinth exiled her because he was scared of her revenge
• What happens after Medea was exiled?

  Medea meets an old friend - Aegeus, king of Athens

  Asked him to swear an oath that he would let her live in athens
• What did Medea do before she left to Athens

  Gave a gift to Glauke- wedding dress and crowan that were bewitched and would burts into flames

  Glauke and Creon both died
• What did Medea do to get revenge on Jason

  Killed both of her sons - blood crime

  Jason was too late, by the time he got back. she was in a flying dragon chariot that her grandfather (sun) gave her

  escaped to athens and nobody punished her
• How does Medea push against the normal behaviour of a Greek woman?

  • kills chiildren - not showing her maternal love and duty
  • kills brother - blood crime, religious pollution
• What do you think terrifies a male Greek audience about Medea?

  • Cunning = defied gender roles and used her cunning to manipulate others
  • Independence = disturbing, defies typical female submission
• How does Medea being a barbarian play a role to our understand of her

  Greek audiences would already have a negative prejudice towards her as she was Barbarian
• Prescribed source : flight of Medea Krater fact file

  Red figure vase paining - source type

  original purpose - mixing bowl for wine and water, a luxury item so acted as a status symbol

  date - 400BCE
• Describe the source: Flight of Medea Krater

  Medea in middle of sun ring + at the top = shows she has the power

  2 furies next to her, Medea is the third fury
• What is a fury

  female deities of vengeance who punish wrongdoers, like family murder or betrayal
• How is Medea connected to the furies?

  She is connected to them because her act of revenge (killing children)

  seen as a reflection of the furies destructive power
• Prescriced source: Euripides Medea fact file

  author: Euripides

  genre : tragic play

  purpose: tragedy plays for entertainment + religious purpose for Dionysus, also didactic
• Why do you think an Athenian audience would fail to enjoy Medea

  • about a woman having power over men, not being submissive and quiet
  • Showed women who had power were merciless, scared men
• Who was Cleopatra - basic facts

  • Queen of Egypt
  • at this time, Roman Empire dominated most of the Mediterranean world - Egypt was not part of this, so they viewed her as a threat
• Who was cleopatra a descendant of

  Ptolemy- Greek man who supported Alexander the Great

  Alexander died, Ptolemy went to Egypt and claimed it
• What age did Cleopatra become queen + life after?

  14 and co ruled with her father

  18 and her father died, so she co ruled with he younger brother who was just 10

  she dominated her younger brather, then listed from the palace in a coup
• What happened after she was ousted in a coup?

  younger brother displeased Rome and JC (Romes most powerful politician) said Cleoptará should rule Egypt

  they had a baby called Caesarion
• What happened after baby Caesarion?

  • cleopatra spent time in Rome and insisted people call her queen
  • JC put a statute of her in the temple of Venus
  • JC was assassinated by senators who wanted to end his dictatorship, so Cleopatra fled to Egypt with her son
• What happened after Cleopatra file back to Egypt

  She joined Marc Antony in a alliance / relationship

  they had twins and got married

  Antony gave her lots of Rome - controlled lands in a ceremony called the donations of Alexandria
• What did Octavian do?

  Antony rival claimed Cleopatra has bewitched Antony into making donations of Alexandria and claimed Antony wanted to move Rome to Alexandria

  romans were scared so declared war on Cleopatra
• What happened with war between Antony and octavium

  happen in Battle of Actium

  Octavian won, ant and Cleo fled

  Octavian took his army to Egypt, winning battle of Alexandria

  Antony killed himself and then cleopatra also died after being captured
• How was Egypt in the time of cleopatras reign?

  • client kingdom of Rome, allies, but Rome was in charge
  • Alexandria (capital)was second largest city in Mediterrenean
  • wealthy
  • used as a buffer zone
• Why was Egypt wealthy

  The Nile river would flood every year, making farmland fertile so they would never have a famine
• What did cleopatras do that was impressive 


  • commanded ármeles
  • spoke several languages
  • educated in city with world finest library
  • stabilised economy
  • no revolts in her reign
• Why was cleopatra feared

  • presented as a God - fear of Gods anger and punishments
  • fear centre will move to alexandria
  • this means romans become barbarians, will move down to barbarian status
  • romans believed it was thier destiny to conquer the world
• Virgil Aeneid : Native sistrum and barking Anubis

  sistrum - typically shaken egyptian instrument

  Barkin Anubis - jackal headed Egyptian god of underworld
• Minerva

  important roman gods

  goddess of milItaly strategy, wisdom and member of triad of gods
• What was JC referred to in art ? literature

  star
• Why are household gods imprints tot aeneid

  because aneas took all of the house hold gods to ensure they watch over his people in Italy