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Medea and Other Plays (Oxford World's Classics) (Paperback)

by Euripides (Author), Edith Hall (Contributor), James Morwood (Translator) "The action takes place outside MEDEA'S house in Corinth ..." (more)

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Product details

Paperback: 272 pages
Publisher: Oxford Paperbacks; New edition edition (7 May 1998)
Language English
ISBN-10: 0192824422
ISBN-13: 978-0192824424
Product Dimensions: 19.4 x 12.8 x 1.8 cm

Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (10 customer reviews)

Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 118,169 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Popular in these categories:

#28 in	Books > Poetry, Drama & Criticism > Drama > By Period > Classical, Early & Medieval
#33 in	Books > Poetry, Drama & Criticism > History & Criticism > Literary Studies > Classical, Early & Medieval
#42 in	Books > Poetry, Drama & Criticism > Drama > Genres > Tragedies

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Product Description

`the most tragic of the poets' Aristotle 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 shocking Medea, 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. Hippolytus sees Phaedra's confession of her passion for her stepson herald disaster, while Electra's heroine 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 Euripides's 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 Euripides's world.

About the Author

James Morwood is Grocyn Lecturer at Wadham College, Oxford.

Inside This Book (Learn More)

First Sentence
The action takes place outside MEDEA'S house in Corinth. Read the first page

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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover

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Customer Reviews

10 Reviews

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25 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Tragic tales of the past intelligently related, 29 May 2001

By	mims@barclays.net (United Kingdom) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Medea and Other Plays : Medea; Hecabe; Electra; Heracles (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

Carefully translated, this informative copy allows for both first time readers and experts to enjoy Medea, Heracles and Electra. The sordid tales of tragedy are poetically woven into spoken form by Euripedes, and footnotes help the reader understand such oddities such as Medea's magical powers, or the murder of Electra's father. A highly enjoyable read, the Penguin Classics have again created a compilation useful in study and enjoyable in leisure.

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12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Accurate and insipid, 9 Dec 2000

By A Customer

This translation is best used as a crib for those struggling with the Greek. If, however, you want to read the 'Medea' in English, and experience it as a work of literature, you should under no circumstances acquire this. Its plodding, literal, painstaking rendition of Euripides' poetry (and Morwood is not a poet, not by any strech of the imagination) is enough for anyone to dismiss the 'Medea' as 'irrelevant', 'antique' and suchlike. Of course, nothing could be further from the truth, but it's the impression that you will gain from this version. Academia at its worst.

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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tales of tragedy, 22 April 2006

By	Farz_B (London, England) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Medea and Other Plays : Medea; Hecabe; Electra; Heracles (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

I had to read both Medea and Hecabe as part of background reading to some courses on Greek Mythology and Shakespeare during my degree. 'Medea' came as a surprise offshoot mythological tale to the aftermath of Jason (from the Argonauts) and Medea's union towards the end of Apollonius' 'Jason and the Golden Fleece'. The romantic, flowery love affair we see at the end of the tale turns out a sordid, tragic affair some 10 years later in Euripides' version after they're married with children. Betrayal, jealousy, self-doubt and eventual infanticide and suicide makes it one of the most horrific tales of human tragedy.

What makes Euripides so brilliant is his very human portrayal of the characters. You feel for them, you empathize with them, and you can anticipate their every emotional decision and thoughts of self-reflection. 'Hecabe', similarly deals with the immediate aftermath of the Trojan War and the death of the Trojans at the hands of the Achaens. Hecuba is the wife of Priam and mother of all the major Trojan warriors: Hector, Paris, Aeneus. She is grieving for the death of her husband and all her sons, except one and her daughter. She witness their deaths too, and her agony at the merciless hands of the Greeks (including Odysseus, whom we see here as very severe and inhumane, in contrast to his central heroic role in The Odyssey) make her suffering tragic beyond words. It was recently played in the West End by two productions in 2005.

I would suggest this book simply for the mastery of Euripides and his psychological dimension in human tragedy. Just because it is 'ancient' literature and a translation of the old Greek, does not in any way detract it from being so relevant and significant to the modern world. Raw human emotions, and you don't get that in today's literature much.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Bared to The Wire.
Although writing around 450B.C., Euripedes still holds importance for anyone interested in modern drama. Indeed, I came to Euripedes et al. Read more

Published 3 months ago by Mr. H. C. Orr

5.0 out of 5 stars medea
i was studying 'medea' for AS level classics, but if you are interested in greek tragedy and havent read any before then this would be a good place to start as medea is quite an... Read more

Published 5 months ago by betty boop

4.0 out of 5 stars Not Exactly Cheery!
Euripides wasn't exactly known for his light hearted approach to drama, but these are exciting plays. Read more

Published on 27 Oct 2007 by Mrs. K. A. Wheatley

2.0 out of 5 stars Not for me
Interesting but hard to get into and simply not for me. I had to read it for a course and was glad when I finished it. Read more

Published on 30 Jan 2007 by M. C. Batson

4.0 out of 5 stars A Master of Greek Theater
Euripides remains my favorate of classical Greek theater, his plays subtly raising contempory issues whilst still keeping the power of other tragedies. Read more

Published on 12 Feb 2004 by S. Pullen

4.0 out of 5 stars is there anyone better in greek literature than Medea?
Medea's always been my favourite woman in greek myth - its easy to dismiss her as a villain but she's just such a complex individual - one minute you feel sorry for her, then you... Read more

Published on 3 Jan 2004 by small_thing

5.0 out of 5 stars Hell Hath no Fury
I really thought that thse plays would be tough going. I read the first page of,'Medea' and was hooked!
The women in these plays really did suffer (as did Heracle). Read more

Published on 1 Jul 2002 by mica2002

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