Skip to main content

What's This? A Show of Mercy? - Hailey Morgan

Let me start off by saying that I was not at all expecting such a wholesome ending to the Eumenides. With everything that we have learned about the fierceness of Greece and it's people thus far, I was fully anticipating a never-ending blood feud to ensue. However, I was entirely incorrect. 

I was so confused by Athena's sudden change of character. In the Iliad, the goddess was just as ready for war as Ares was. But here, we see Athena displaying her wisdom and justice as she convinces the Furies to let go of their fiery need for vengeance.

I wonder if Aeschylus did this because he wanted to remind his people of Athena's 'true' nature. Since they were such a honor bound people, glory in war was a major aspect of most men's lives. Perhaps the author was tired of all the bloodshed and wanted to remind his fellow citizens that there was more to live for, that forgiveness was an option. Whatever the reason, the change in tone was disorienting.


Edit - Replied to Haley Riddle and Jacob Clabo.  

Comments

  1. Caroline TuckerSeptember 21, 2020 at 8:00 PM

    I agree! I believe that the characters’ exhaustion from war is the reason why they all have a change in tone compared to the “Iliad”. I actually like Athena in the “Eumenides”. I did not like her in the “Iliad”. My favorite line of wisdom from Athena is “Two sides are here, and only half is heard” (Aeschylus, 250). This piece of wisdom is one to keep in mind. There is always two sides of a story and sometimes you only hear one.

    ReplyDelete
  2. ClaboSeptember 21, 2020 at 8:27 PM

    I agree that the lack of violence and bloodshed was a complete change of pace. However, I didn't think that the blood feud was going to continue after this story no matter where it went. Orestes was basically the last one alive, and unless the feud was going to extend into the gods and goddesses after the furies were involved, it had to stop somewhere. I am glad that the conflict was resolved however.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Braylan StringfellowSeptember 21, 2020 at 11:01 PM

    It was nice to see more of Athena's characteristics than just war in this. To me, it was a nice change of pace; even though I love war and battle.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Micah PowersSeptember 22, 2020 at 9:02 AM

    You're quite right. Aeschylus did a stellar Job showing the more depth of the character of Athena. As a judge we see her more under the lens of a benevolent fact seeker rather than a war mongering violent god. She acted as a great balance to the almost demonic furies. I will admit it was really hard to read this and see furies and not think furries. Oerestes being chased by a bunch of half human half animal. As a visual person eventually maturity possessed my thoughts and gave me a more grotesque demon like image as the furies. Although, I probably should have looked it up.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Haley RiddleSeptember 24, 2020 at 8:05 AM

    I think it was a great twist. We were expecting his conviction, but nope! If only there was more of this behavior throughout the Iliad.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Aristotle Might Not Like Me...Or Jesus//Haylee Lynd

      Aristotle says that the man who does not get angry at the things he should be angry at "is thought unlikely to defend himself; and to endure being insulted and put up with insult to one's friends is slavish" (Aristotle 41). While he states that passivity is preferred to excessive anger, he still gives great criticism to it.  In contrast to Aristotle, the man who Christians believe to be the most just is Jesus who states in Matthew 5:39-40, "...do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other also. And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well." Essentially, arguing that one is not to respond in anger when insulted or hurt, to not defend one's self. Most individual's are unable to achieve this. Our natural instinct is to defend ourselves, especially in physical cases. However, Christians strive to be like Jesus in this way. I would also argue that it is a very admirable wa...
2 comments
Read more

Oedipus’ Children/Siblings—Lily Caswell

Ok, so Oedipus is a bit of a train wreck to say the least. I love the fact that even after Oedipus found out about his less-than-appealing relationship with his mother, he still tried to look after his children/siblings. After he gouged his eyes out, his children came to him at which point Oedipus talked about how that when they were old enough to marry, no one would want them due to them being products of incest. He said for the people not to condemn them based on what their father had done. Even after he knew what he had done and what his children were, he still wanted the best for them. I commented on Logan’s and Ian’s posts.
3 comments
Read more

Overanalyzing Everyone's Intentions Here-Rachael Gregson

 First off, I'd like to say this is going to be a two part blog post, because a lot of things happened in this reading assignment that demands to be discussed.  As with any war I've realized, it's tricky not to fall into the initial perspective I am given. I began this book skeptical of Hector because I was bias toward the movie Troy, which was told mostly through the eyes of Achilles, but neither were what I was expecting. It's actually funny that they both hold values completely opposite from one another. Hector represented everything related to city-state pride, honor, and humility whereas Achilles was everything wild, reckless, and unpredictable solitary. This isn't to say that Hector is all good and Achilles all bad. Both had instances where I rooted for the other more or less. I just thought it was interesting how their two personalities represented something that basically causes all wars: the clash between civilization and savagery.  Secondly, I'm not de...
2 comments
Read more