FREE ESSAY ON THE ORESTEIA

THE ORESTEIA

The Oresteia trilogy consists of three closely connected plays. In Agamemnon, the great
Greek King of that name comes home after the long war; they are victorious over the
Trojans. Unbeknownst to him, his wife Clytaemnestra has been plotting his death with her
lover Aegisthus. Clytaemnestra feels this act is just because she is avenging the death
of her daughter Iphigenia, whom Agamemnon sacrificed before he left for Troy to have a
speedy journey.
The Libation Bearers is the second play of The Oresteia. At the beginning of this play
Orestes, the son of Agamemnon and Clytaemnestra, who was sent away as a child by his
mother, returns to his homeland to avenge his father's murder. He is reunited with his
sister Electra and together they ask for their father's help in murdering Clytaemnestra
and her lover who are now ruling the kingdom. Orestes kills Clytaemnestra and her lover
Aegisthus. The vengeful Furies brought on by his mother's curse then chase Orestes.
The Eumenides, the third play of The Oresteia translates to mean "The Kind Goddesses".
The play begins in Delphi at Apollo's shrine where Orestes has journeyed to escape the
wrath of the Furies. Apollo demands that the Furies leave Orestes alone, that it was he
who bid Orestes to murder Clytaemnestra and the Furies were to leave Orestes alone. They
refused, so Apollo agreed to have a trial in Athens where the Goddess Athena organizes a
jury of Athenian citizens (male). The jury votes and it is a tie and Athena breaks the
tie with her vote in favor of Orestes, therefore acquitting him of all charges. The
Furies, angry at the outcome vow to avenge this decision, but Athena persuades them to
bless Athens and take Athens as their new home.
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Aeschylus's trilogy call our attention to two concepts of theme: one is of justice as
revenge, the other that Agamemnon was destined by Zeus to die because of the curse of the
house of Atreus (his father). We see early on in the play Agamemnon that Clytaemnestra ,
his wife has been planning the demise of Agamemnon. She is bitter and angry at Agamemnon
because he sacrificed their daughter, Iphegenia, "...our child is gone, not standing by
our side, the bond of our dearest pledges, mine and yours; by all rights our child should
be here..." (136). While Agamemnon was away (for ten years) she meticulously plotted and
planned his demise with her lover Aegisthus, who also had a reason to want Agamemnon
dead. Agamemnon's father killed Aegisthus's brothers and fed them to Thyestes (his
father), who had seduced Atreus's wife. During those times, the sins of the father are
inherited by their sons: in this case, Agamemnon inherits his father's crime and is
punishable for that crime.
The Libation Bearers also brings about the theme of revenge when Orestes comes back home
several years after his father's death. He meets his sister Electra who has been praying
to the gods for someone to avenge her father. "Raise up your avengers, into the light, my
father- kill the killers in return with justice"(183). Orestes (guided by Apollo) plots
to kill Clytaemnestra. "Oh she'll pay, she'll pay, by the gods and these bare hands- just
let me take her life and die" (196). Even faced with his mother Orestes is ready to
slaughter, "I want to butcher you- right across his body! In life you thought he dwarfed
my father- Die!- go down with him forever!" (217). Orestes carries out his seething rage
just like his mother before him and again justice seems to served.
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A final example of justice as revenge is in the final play of The Oresteia. In The
Eumenides, Clytaemnestra and Aegisthus are dead. Orestes is being chased by the Furies,
"No dreams, these torments, not to me, they're clear, real- the hounds of mother's
hate"(225), whom Clytaemnestra's ghost has sent after him. Clytaemnestra warned Orestes
that if he kills her she would come back. "Watch out- the hounds of a mother's curse will
hunt you down" (218). And she carried out her curse. The Furies became her "hounds" they
followed Orestes everywhere vowing not to stop until Clytaemnestra's death was avenged
and justice served.
The second theme of The Oresteia is that Agamemnon was destined for a fatal end by Zeus
because of his father's wrong doing. "What part is played in his destruction by the curse
brought down upon his family by the monstrous action of his father, Atreus?" (Jones,
168). It seems as though Agamemnon was set up from the very beginning. "He is obviously
doomed from the start" (Kitto, 143). The crimes Atreus commited sealed Agamemnon's fate.
Zeus was determined to punish the family for the horrible crimes committed. 
The first part of the destruction of Agamemnon by Zeus was removing his reasoning. By
doing this Agamemnon could not make rational decisions. Zeus then placed Agamemnon in
situations that gave him no way out. For example, Zeus wanted Agamemnon to travel to Troy
to win the battle. Agamemnon was also told that the only way to have a safe journey was
to sacrifice his daughter. Now, Agamemnon did not want to kill his daughter, but he also
did not want to anger the gods and not win the war.
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"Let us now examine the crucial scene in which Clytaemnestra induces her husband to tread
upon the purple tapestries. Why does Agamemnon end by succumbing to his wife's
persuasion?" (Jones, 173).
"This- you treat me like a woman. Grovelling, gaping up at me- what am I, some barbarian
peacocking out of Asia? Never cross my path with robes and draw the lightning. Never-
only the gods deserve the pomps of honor and the stiff brocades of fame. To walk on
them...I am human, and it makes my pulses stir with dread. Give me the tributes of a man
and not a god, a little earth to walk on, not this gorgeous work. There is no need to
sound my reputation. I have a sense of right and wrong, what's more- heaven's proudest
gift. Call no man blest until he ends his life in peace, fulfilled. If I can live by what
I say, I have no fear." (138).
It is already clear that Clytaemnestra wants Agamemnon dead, and she will do anything to
push him further and further into more crime. And remember that Zeus has taken
Agamemnon's reason away. By treading on these tapestries, Agamemnon has sealed his fate.
He has angered the gods with this action and he has also sealed Clytemnestra's mind about
his murder. 
In my opinion, Aeschylus was a writer before his time. He has hidden so many different
things in his writing. For example, how Clytemnestra was portrayed. She was not a woman
of the ancient Greek times. She was portrayed as manly, decisive, demanding, intelligent,
and very powerful. Greek women were never to act this way in real life. He also used the
goddess Athena in this story, who was born of Zeus and no 
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Mother. Athena, therefore praised men more than women. To her the men were the strong
species. 
"No mother gave me birth. I honour the male, in all things but marriage. Yes, with all my
heart I am my Father's child. I cannot set more store by the woman's death- she killed
her husband, guardian of their house..." (264). 
Aeschylus also showed a more civilized people of Athens in the final play, by having
Athena set a trial by jury. This leads the Greeks to a more democratic and civilized
society. This also leads the way for civilizations to come. I am glad that even thousands
of years after his death we are still able to enjoy this timeless classic.