Medea Rhetorical Analysis

Upon first reading this play, emotions of anger, disappointment, and relief swirled to the surface. The fact that Medea was to escape without any consequences angered me so much, but as I thought about it more, my emotions began to shift. It wasn’t as if Medea murdering her children was something she wanted to do. She had to have gone through so much to push her to that point. How can I better justify her actions and relate it to a 21st century audience? Medea husband’s leaves her for another woman. Medea is particularly hurt by this since she betrayed her own family to be with him. King Creon banishes her and her two sons even after she begs for mercy. She meets Aegeus who promises her and her children a place to stay and then begins to enact her revenge. She uses her children to deliver poisonous objects to the king and Jason’s new wife, killing them. Then to spite Jason even more, she kills her own two sons and escapes on a dragon sent by Helios. Within this linear piece the protagonist is none other

She never lets Jason even have the slightest glimpse of his murdered sons. This image is maddening to me. Jason may never be able to confirm whether his sons are dead or not. I do want the audience to feel some sympathy for Jason because he did lose his children, but the audience should know first and foremost that his actions started this whole affair and that Medea was justified in her actions. I would want there to be a theme of justice. I want Medea to be justified in her actions, but I want this to be something that could happen to anyone. I don’t want her actions to be considered ‘what women do.’ There is also this theme of feminism and standing up for women in general. She criticizes men while using her wit to maneuver the situation properly. Medea is a cunning woman confined to this world dominated by men. The greatest asset in this play is