Medea and Other Plays

Euripides was one of the most popular and controversial of all Greek tragedians, and his plays are marked by an independence of thought, ingenious dramatic devices, and a subtle variety of register and mood. He is also remarkable for the prominence he gave to female characters, whether heroines of virtue or vice. In the ethically shockingMedea, the first known child-killing mother in Greek myth to perform the deed in cold blood manipulates her world in order to wreak vengeance on her treacherous husband.Hippolytussees Phaedras confession of her passion for her stepson herald disaster, whileElectrasheroine helps her brother murder their mother in an act that mingles justice and sin. Lastly, lighter in tone, the satyr drama,Helen, is an exploration of the impossibility of certitude as brilliantly paradoxical as the three famous tragedies.

This new translation does full justice to Euripidess range of tone and gift for narrative. A lucid introduction provides substantial analysis of each play, complete with vital explanations of the traditions and background to Euripidess world.