Orestes (Euripides)

• Orest
• Electra
• Pilad
• Menelaus
• Elena the beautiful
• Tyndareus
• Hermione
• Apollo

The tragedy develops the material of myths about the Pelopids and is a kind of continuation of the play "Electra" , written by Euripides about five years earlier. The action takes place in Argos (Euripides sees no difference between Argos and Mycenae) a few days after Orestes killed his mother. The protagonist suffers because of the torment of conscience, and the city residents want to condemn him to death for his crime. At this time, Elena and Menelaus arrive in Argos. The latter promises support to his nephew, but at the decisive moment does not provide it because of the position of Tyndareus, who threatened him with the deprivation of rights to the Spartan throne. As a result, both Orestes and Electra are sentenced to death.

The children of Agamemnon decide to take revenge on Menelaus and try to escape, kill Elena and take her daughter Hermione hostage. At a decisive moment, Apollo intervenes, who turns Elena into a star and predicts to Orestes that he will be justified by the Athenian Areopagus and marry Hermione.

In this tragedy, Euripides departs from the mythological tradition. Orestes is not judged by the Areopagus, but by the Argos People's Assembly; swearing is interpreted as a meaningless act committed by order of an evil god. Having killed his mother, Orestes is also capable of other cruelties with equally dubious motivation: he tries to kill his aunt by declaring her guilty of unleashing the Trojan War , and threatens to kill his young cousin, thus hoping to save his life. His friend Pilad is also depicted as a rather negative character - "the silent and wary silent man" ^[1] , intoxicated with blood ^[2] .

• Euripides. Orestes. Translation from the ancient Greek Innocent Annensky // Euripides. Tragedy. M., 1980.V.2. S.299-374.