Aeschylus’ Agamemnon introduces the audience to Clytemnestra early on, eagerly plotting the murder of her husband Agamemnon. Clytemnestra’s motivations are more closely tied to expected qualities of a woman, as she acts in revenge of her daughter Ipathegeneia’s sacrifice but that does not make this desire feminine. Seeking revenge itself is characterized as being bloodthirsty and vengeful, which are two traits a woman is not supposed to possess but here Clytemnestra does. The male dominance is presented right at the start with Cassandra being introduced as Agamemnon’s spoil of war and that she is to simply be accepted as a member of their household. Even in the face of something Clytemnestra takes to be an insult she is meant to graciously accept that this is happening and not react. Clytemnestra is to be a good wife, even as Agamemnon essentially takes a second one in front of his first with no moral qualms about doing so. This ends up being the deciding factor to her response and marks the beginning of Clytemnestra’s revenge. Under the guise of offering a welcome to her husband after his return from the Trojan War, she sets in motion the end of her husband’s fate seemingly by tempting him into a prideful act, and while Agamemnon fears retribution from the Gods he does not seem to expect that anything will come from his wife. The idea of baiting the Gods is a farce however, when Clytaemnestra goes on to derive pleasure from the murder (Kun). The level of bloodthirstiness is confirmed when Clytaemnestra goes on to include Cassandra in her revenge slaying even though Cassandra has had no part in any of Agamemnon’s actions. Beyond Agamemnon’s expectations, even with Cassandra’s prophesies and hearing noises from the palace after Agamemnon is brought inside, the wise men of Argos seem to refuse to believe that something has happened
Aeschylus’ Agamemnon introduces the audience to Clytemnestra early on, eagerly plotting the murder of her husband Agamemnon. Clytemnestra’s motivations are more closely tied to expected qualities of a woman, as she acts in revenge of her daughter Ipathegeneia’s sacrifice but that does not make this desire feminine. Seeking revenge itself is characterized as being bloodthirsty and vengeful, which are two traits a woman is not supposed to possess but here Clytemnestra does. The male dominance is presented right at the start with Cassandra being introduced as Agamemnon’s spoil of war and that she is to simply be accepted as a member of their household. Even in the face of something Clytemnestra takes to be an insult she is meant to graciously accept that this is happening and not react. Clytemnestra is to be a good wife, even as Agamemnon essentially takes a second one in front of his first with no moral qualms about doing so. This ends up being the deciding factor to her response and marks the beginning of Clytemnestra’s revenge. Under the guise of offering a welcome to her husband after his return from the Trojan War, she sets in motion the end of her husband’s fate seemingly by tempting him into a prideful act, and while Agamemnon fears retribution from the Gods he does not seem to expect that anything will come from his wife. The idea of baiting the Gods is a farce however, when Clytaemnestra goes on to derive pleasure from the murder (Kun). The level of bloodthirstiness is confirmed when Clytaemnestra goes on to include Cassandra in her revenge slaying even though Cassandra has had no part in any of Agamemnon’s actions. Beyond Agamemnon’s expectations, even with Cassandra’s prophesies and hearing noises from the palace after Agamemnon is brought inside, the wise men of Argos seem to refuse to believe that something has happened