Medea  

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 +In [[Greek mythology]], '''Medea''' was the daughter of [[Aeetes|King Aeëtes]] of [[Colchis]], niece of [[Circe]], granddaughter of the sun god [[Helios]], and later wife to the hero [[Jason]], with whom she had two children, [[Mermeros and Pheres]]. In [[Euripides]]'s play ''[[Medea (play)|Medea]]'', Jason leaves Medea when [[Creon (king of Corinth)|Creon]], king of [[Ancient Corinth|Corinth]], offers him his daughter, [[Glauce]]. The play tells about how Medea avenges her husband's betrayal.
 +
 +The myths involving Jason have been interpreted by specialists as part of a class of myths that tell how the Hellenes of the distant heroic age, before the [[Trojan War]], faced the challenges of the pre-Greek "[[Pelasgian]]" cultures of mainland Greece, the Aegean and Anatolia. [[Jason]], [[Perseus]], [[Theseus]], and above all [[Heracles]], are all "[[liminal]]" figures, poised on the threshold between the old world of [[shaman]]s, [[chthonic]] earth deities, and the new [[Bronze Age]] Greek ways.
 +
 +Medea figures in the myth of Jason and the [[Argonauts]], a myth known best from a late literary version worked up by [[Apollonius of Rhodes]] in the 3rd century BC and called the ''[[Argonautica]].'' However, for all its self-consciousness and researched archaic vocabulary, the late epic was based on very old, scattered materials. Medea is known in most stories as an enchantress and is often depicted as being a priestess of the goddess [[Hecate]] or a witch. The myth of Jason and Medea is very old, originally written around the time [[Hesiod]] wrote the ''[[Theogony]]''. It was known to the composer of the ''[[Little Iliad]]'', part of the [[Epic Cycle]].
 +
 +==Medea in popular culture==
 +:''[[Greek mythology in popular culture]]''
 +The dramatic episodes in which Medea plays a role have ensured that she remains vividly represented in popular culture.
 +
 +====Primary sources====
 +[[Cicero]] In the court case [[Pro Caelio]], the name Medea is referenced at least five times, as a way to make fun of Clodia, sister of P. Clodius Pulcher, the man who exiled Cicero.
 +*[[Ovid]]
 +:: ''[[Heroides]] XII''
 +:: ''[[Metamorphoses (poem)|Metamorphoses]] VII, 1-450''
 +:: ''[[Tristia]]'' iii.9
 +*[[Euripides]], ''[[Medea (play)|Medea]] ''
 +*[[Hyginus]], ''Fabulae'' 21-26
 +* Pindar, Pythian Odes, IIII
 +*[[Seneca the Younger|Seneca]]: ''Medea'' (tragedy)
 +*[[Apollodorus]], ''[[Bibliotheke]]'' I, 23-28
 +*[[Apollonius Rhodius]], ''[[Argonautica]]''
 +*[[Gaius Valerius Flaccus]] ''Argonautica'' (epic)
 +*[[Herodotus]], ''Histories'' VII.62i
 +*[[Hesiod]], ''Theogony'' 1000-2
 +
 +====Translations====
 +*G.Theodoridis. Full Text. Prose: [http://bacchicstage.com/]
 +
 +====Secondary material====
 +*[[Jean Anouilh]], ''Medea''
 +*[[John Gardner (novelist)]], ''Jason and Medeia''
 +*[[Robinson Jeffers]], ''Medea''
 +*Hans Henny Jahnn, ''Medea''
 +*[[Percival Everett]], ''For Her Dark Skin''
 +*[[Maxwell Anderson]], ''The Wingless Victory''
 +*[[Geoffrey Chaucer]] ''The Legend of Good Women'' (1386)
 +*[[Michael Wood (historian)|Michael Wood]], ''In Search of Myths & Heroes: Jason and the Golden Fleece''
 +*[[Chrysanthos Mentis Bostantzoglou]] ([[Bost]]), ''Medea'' (parody of Medea of Euripides)
 +*[[Rick Riordan]], [[Sea of Monsters]], the second [[Percy Jackson & the Olympians]] novel- She is mentioned as making a very strong SPF 50,000 sunscreen that was helpful in fighting the [[Colchis Bulls]].
 +
 +====Related Literature====
 +* ''Medea'' ([[Ovid]]'s lost tragedy - two lines are extant)
 +*[[Marina Carr]], ''By the Bog of Cats''
 +*[[A. R. Gurney]], ''The Golden Fleece''
 +*[[Pierre Corneille]] ''Médée'' (tragedy, 1635)
 +*[[Heiner Muller]], ''Medeamaterial '' and ''Medeaplay''
 +*[[William Morris]] ''Life and Death of Jason'' (epic poem, 1867)
 +*[[Franz Grillparzer]], ''Das goldene Vliess'' (''The Golden Fleece'') (play, 1822)
 +*[[Pervical Everett]], ''For Her Dark Skin'' (novel, 1990)
 +*[[Christa Wolf]], ''Medea (a novel)'' (published in German 1993, translated to English 1998)
 +*[[Cherríe Moraga]], ''The Hungry Woman: A Mexican Medea'' (combines classical [[Greek mythology|Greek myth]] Medea with [[Mexico|Mexicana/o]] legend of [[La Llorona]] and [[Aztec mythology|Aztec myth]] of [[lunar deity]] [[Coyolxauhqui]])
 +*[http://www.giorgioclementi.it/medea.htm The Medea of the modern times]
 +*[[Cicero]], ''Pro Caelio'' (political speech) Cicero refers to Clodia as ''hanc Palatinam Medeam'', "this Medea of the Palatine"
 +*[[Stuart Hill]], ''Blade Of Fire'' (Character portrayed as based on Medea in this Young adult novel)
 +
 +==Cinema and television==
 +
 +*In the 1963 film ''[[Jason and the Argonauts (film)|Jason and the Argonauts]]'', Medea was portrayed by [[Nancy Kovack]].
 +*In the 2000 [[Hallmark Channel|Hallmark]] presentation ''[[Jason and the Argonauts (2000 film)|Jason and the Argonauts]]'', Medea was portrayed by [[Jolene Blalock]].
 +*In 1970, the Italian director [[Pier Paolo Pasolini]] directed a [[Medea (film)|film adaptation of ''Medea'']] featuring the opera singer [[Maria Callas]] in the title role.
 +*In 1978, the film [[A Dream of Passion]] in which [[Melina Mercouri]] as an actress portraying Medea seeks out [[Ellen Burstyn]] a mother who recently murdered her children.
 +*In 1987, director [[Lars von Trier]] filmed his pre-Dogma 95 Medea for [[Denmark|Danish]] television, using a preexisting script by film maker [[Carl Theodor Dreyer]]. Cast included [[Udo Kier]], Kirsten Olesen, Henning Jensen, Mette Munk Plum.
 +*Medea (under the name Caster) is the one of the antagonists in the [[visual novel]] and [[anime]] [[Fate/Stay Night]].
 +*In 2007, director [[Tonino De Bernardi]] filmed a modern version of the myth, set in Paris and starring [[Isabelle Huppert]] as Medea, called [[Médée Miracle]]. The character of Medea lives in Paris with [[Jason]], who leaves her.
 +==See also==
 +*[[Infanticide]]
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In Greek mythology, Medea was the daughter of King Aeëtes of Colchis, niece of Circe, granddaughter of the sun god Helios, and later wife to the hero Jason, with whom she had two children, Mermeros and Pheres. In Euripides's play Medea, Jason leaves Medea when Creon, king of Corinth, offers him his daughter, Glauce. The play tells about how Medea avenges her husband's betrayal.

The myths involving Jason have been interpreted by specialists as part of a class of myths that tell how the Hellenes of the distant heroic age, before the Trojan War, faced the challenges of the pre-Greek "Pelasgian" cultures of mainland Greece, the Aegean and Anatolia. Jason, Perseus, Theseus, and above all Heracles, are all "liminal" figures, poised on the threshold between the old world of shamans, chthonic earth deities, and the new Bronze Age Greek ways.

Medea figures in the myth of Jason and the Argonauts, a myth known best from a late literary version worked up by Apollonius of Rhodes in the 3rd century BC and called the Argonautica. However, for all its self-consciousness and researched archaic vocabulary, the late epic was based on very old, scattered materials. Medea is known in most stories as an enchantress and is often depicted as being a priestess of the goddess Hecate or a witch. The myth of Jason and Medea is very old, originally written around the time Hesiod wrote the Theogony. It was known to the composer of the Little Iliad, part of the Epic Cycle.

Contents

Medea in popular culture

Greek mythology in popular culture

The dramatic episodes in which Medea plays a role have ensured that she remains vividly represented in popular culture.

Primary sources

Cicero In the court case Pro Caelio, the name Medea is referenced at least five times, as a way to make fun of Clodia, sister of P. Clodius Pulcher, the man who exiled Cicero.

Heroides XII
Metamorphoses VII, 1-450
Tristia iii.9

Translations

  • G.Theodoridis. Full Text. Prose: [1]

Secondary material

Related Literature

Cinema and television

See also




Unless indicated otherwise, the text in this article is either based on Wikipedia article "Medea" or another language Wikipedia page thereof used under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License; or on research by Jahsonic and friends. See Art and Popular Culture's copyright notice.

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