.
On the other hand, Fontenrose (107) is asserting that, since the family has been reduced to father and children, the taboo against the killing of one's own mother is avoided. According to Fontenrose, the imagery of the animal single parent means that the father is the head of the family and the mother is technically placed outside the family. The father takes up a nurturing role and cares deeply about the welfare of the children. There are perceptions in the snake metaphor as seen in the competition between Clytemnestra and Orestes in the Choephori. Orestes wins the competition when he defeats the snakes, Clytemnestra and Aegisthus. The establishment of the imagery is aimed at the search of vengeance and justice. Heath sees the snake as the right image for Clytemnestra's relationship to her husband and children. Therefore, the viper ends up attacking her mate, king Agamemnon, and in turn is attacked by her children Orestes and Electra. In reality, these images imply that Clytemnestra acts as an enemy and not as a member of the family. Therefore, these actions, exempts her from being protected by the ties of the family. After killing Agamemnon, Clytemnestra subjects the family to trauma since he served as the sole caregiver for the children.
The imagery of the lion displays the violations carried out by Helen, Clytemnestra, and Aegisthus as perversion of gender related norms. The lion cub represents the two women, Helen and Clytemnestra who are perceived as violent, unfeminine women and disrespectful to the king. Women are often expected to be non-aggressive, feminine, and submissive to their husbands, but they failed to respect their roles. The portrayal of Clytemnestra as a lion illustrates the unnatural power changes in the relationship she has with Aegisthus. This role also reduces Aegisthus to a coward man; he does not exhibit the traditional role of the courageous, brave, and heroic men.
Citizens were not killed or abused because of their preference to one gender over another. ... Aeschylus wrote about betrayal, murder and reconciliation in his trilogy of plays name The Oresteia. ... Euripides explored the theme of personal conflict within the polis and sounded the depths of the individual. ...
