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Sophocles’
Medea (331 BC):
An Introduction
• The children of King Athamas, Phrixus and Helle
were hated by their stop-mother Ino. They were
forced to flee Boetia on a golden ram, which had been
a gift of the god Hermes. Helle fell into the sea (giving
the Hellespont its name), and Phrixus made it to
Colchis, in Asia Minor.
Phrixus and Helle
• Phrixus sacrificed the ram to Zeus upon arriving in
Colchis and gave the golden fleece of the ram to
Aeetes, the king of Colchis. Aeetes hang the fleece in a
tree and set a dragon to watch over it.
The Golden Fleece
• A man named Pelias stole the throne of Ioclus away
from his brother, Aeson. Aeson’s son, Jason, was
away at the time. He returned to Ioclus to demand
the throne. Pelias agreed to give it to him if Jason
could bring him the Golden Fleece.
Ioclus
• Jason built a ship, the Argo, and gathered a crew.
This crew consisted of many of the great heroes of
Greek mythology (from the generation preceding the
heroes of the Trojan War). These included Amphio,
Hercules, Orpheus, and Peleus (Achilles’ father).
The Argo
and the Argonauts
• On the way to Colchis, the Argonauts faced many
trials, including the Harpies, the clashing rocks of the
Symplegades, the land of the Amazons, and the
brazen-clawed Stymphalian birds.
Journey to Colchis
• Upon arriving in Colchis, Jason was given two
impossible tasks by Aeetes to obtain the fleece. First,
he had to harness two fire-breathing bulls with brazen
hooves to a plow. Then, he had to use them to plow a
field with dragon teeth. Those teeth would then
sprout into skeletal warriors that Jason must defeat.
The Argonauts in Colchis
• The daughter of Aeetes, Medea, fell in love with Jason
at first sight. She used her magical powers (she was a
demigoddess) to help him complete the trials.
• With the Golden Fleece in hand, Medea and Jason,
along with the rest of the Argonauts, fled from
Colchis.
Jason and Medea
• To help Jason escape, Medea killed her brother and
cut him into pieces. She threw the pieces overboard as
Aeetes’ ship threatened to overtake the Argo. The
Argo and her crew escaped.
Medea
• Cursed by the gods for Medea’s acts of fratricide, the
Argonauts wandered for awhile. They visited Circe,
the Sea of the Sirens, Scylla and Charybdis (all also
visited by Odysseus on his wanderings), and fought
Talus, the bronze giant.
The Journey Home
• Jason and Medea returned the fleece to Pelias. In the
meantime, Pelias had killed Jason’s father.
• Jason returned the fleece to Pelias, but Pelias does not
give up the throne. Medea then tricked Pelias’
daughters into murdering, dismembering, and
cooking him in a stewpot (they thought they were
restoring his youth).
Back in Ioclus
• Pelias’ son ran Jason and Medea out of town. They
eventually settled in Corinth. By this time, they have
two sons.
• In Corinth, Jason decides to leave Medea and to
marry Creusa, the daughter of Creon, king of
Corinth. He does this purely for political reasons.
Euripides’ play Medea is the result of his choice.
From Ioclus to Corinth