Agamemnon was the written by Aeschylus in Ancient Greece, and recounts the events in the city of Argos after Agamemnon's return from the Trojan War.
The play begins with a watchman on the roof of the palace at Argos, waiting to hear of the fall of Troy from the Greek armies. He is notified by a beacon of the fall of Troy and goes to tell Clytemnestra. At this time, the Chorus enters and tells the story of how Paris, Prince of Troy, stole Helen, the wife of the Greek king Menelaus, thus sparking the Trojan War. The Chorus also tells of how Agamemnon, Clytemnestra's husband, sacrificed their daughter to the god Artemis to gain a favorable wind for the Greek ships to reach their destination in Troy.
Clytemnestra calls for sacrifices of thanksgiving to the gods and the Chorus questions her decision. She states that Troy has fallen and Agamemnon has returned, knowing this from the beacon, so the Chorus gives thanks and wonders if it is true until confirmed by a herald.
Agamemnon returns, bringing along with him a princess named Cassandra he has taken from Troy. Clytemnestra welcomes him and professes her love for him, asking him to enter the palace. Agamemnon does so, and Clytemnestra asks Cassandra to follow. Cassandra speaks with the chorus, telling them of a curse on Agamemnon's house before she enters. She tells of her death and the death of Agamemnon and the coming of an avenger and enters the palace. Shortly after, Clytemnestra appears with Aegisthus, her lover and Agamemnon's cousin, after killing her husband and Cassandra, and the two take over the government.
One of the issues in the play I happened to notice after reading the play and comparing it to events in the Iliad is the ability for some characters to know fates and how they accept them. This makes for a great tragedy, and the reader has a sense of helplessness and despair while following the plot.
In the Iliad, for example, Achilles and Hector both know the outcome of the war the entire time that they are battling yet continue to fight anyway.
Why does Agamemnon choose the easy way out? ... Agamemnon lacks the passion to earn his victories. ... Agamemnon is a king who feeds on his people. ... They seem to be ridiculing Agamemnon. ... This is not to say Agamemnon does not exude power, respect, and honor. ...
Firstly, Agamemnon was arrogant. ... To the interpreter, Agamemnon did not hide any of his anger. ... However, the love from god is painful for Agamemnon. ... Secondly, Agamemnon was selfish. ... Thirdly, Agamemnon was cowardly and passive. ...
In Agamemnon, the symbolic act of sacrifice becomes corrupted and equated with murder. ... The carpets that Agamemnon treads on, for example, can be seen as a trail of blood. ... Clytaemestra also confuses fertility with death in the presence of Agamemnon's sacrifice. ... Here Agamemnon drinks what he deserves: death. ... "Agamemnon" Oresteia. ...
Agamemnon does not always set his own interests aside in favor of his community. ... The consequences of Agamemnon's actions were detrimental because the gods punished Agamemnon by sending a plague to the Achaeans. ... This strategy backfires on Agamemnon as his army rushes for the ships to go home. ... Homer never really explains why Agamemnon did this, other than saying it was a test, but I propose it was a further display of narcissism on behalf of Agamemnon. ... Believing this dream, Agamemnon took actions in reliance of the dream. ...
In Agamemnon, the classic Greek drama, Aeschylus demonstrates the concept of the tragic flaw through the character of Agamemnon and how he is a common man with similar feelings and beliefs. ... Agamemnon's dedication reaches to his people and to the gods. ... Both lovers seek to destroy Agamemnon because of his actions and those of his father. ... Finally, Agamemnon falls to the lowest depths due to his tragic flaw. ... In The House of Atreus, Agamemnon demonstrates all the criteria of the tragic hero. ...
The hero of Agamemnon is actually Agamemnon himself because of the fact that a lot of the people looked up to his because of how much he did to protect them and what all he sacrificed for them even though he is not really talked about much in the story. Agamemnon chose to fight in the battle because he wanted his family and his home to be safe because if he did not go over there to fight in the battle then eventually the other side they were fight would had made their way over to his side to fight them and he did not want to take that risk because of his family and the people he had to look ou...
The first play, Agamemnon, introduces us to Clytaemnestra who murders her husband because Agamemnon sacrificed his daughter. Agamemnon murders his daughter in order to satisfy her to the gods, Clytaemnestra kills her husband to achieve, and she says, "a masterpiece of Justice". ... Orestes sees things the same way as his mother does in Agamemnon. ... This clearly shows the pain that Agamemnon has in this sacrifice, and his feeling of helplessness in front of fate. ... His mother deserves everything she gets because of her unjust murder of Agamemnon. ...
An example can be seen with the chorus, Agamemnon and his cousin Aegisthus. ... They feel she isn't doing as good a job as Agamemnon himself would do. ... Neither Agamemnon nor the Chorus expected her to take revenge on Agamemnon. ... Agamemnon, however, does not have this quality. ... This weakness proves that Clytemnestra is stronger than Agamemnon. ...
Agamemnon was the King of Mycenae; he was very similar to Achilles. ... Agamemnon is not well liked by his people, but he is respected. ... He told Agamemnon that he did not approve of his doings, and that he "brought calamity," and that Agamemnon was "from the depths of hell." ... Agamemnon stole Achilles lady because he had to return his. This is highly unfair, and everyone knew this except Agamemnon. ...