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zmb's review
5.0
The way I read Hecuba is as extremely anti-war and as a plea for the cycle of vengeance and violence to stop. Which are extremely poignant themes in an Athens that had been carrying on a Peloponnesian War of escalating brutality for years when this play was written. This is seen in small touches - the denouncement of Odysseus as a shameful, populist politician (hello, Cleon!), the general lament over the 10 long years of war (Trojan and Peloponnesian), and the commiseration of the suffering Trojan women with the suffering counterparts on the opposite side in Sparta (this doesn't even need an aside).
But it's also seen, I think, in the main action of the play. Hecuba is brutally betrayed by two people from whom she has every right to expect good behavior - Odysseus has her daughter murdered after she saved him when he was in Troy (an unlikely interpretation of the Homeric story, but they both agree it happened), and Polymestor casually murders her son for gold, violating his sacred guest right. This after her city was sacked, her husband was murdered as a supplicant on the altar of Zeus the Protector, and she was enslaved. She's left with Cassandra as her surviving progeny, and well, that's not much of a comfort.
So her woes break her and she seeks petty revenge on the one person she can damage - Polymestor, after she convinces another great enemy, Agamemnon, not to interfere. The real tragedy is that she is consumed by her grief and desire for revenge and thus continues the cycle by murdering Polymestor's children and blinding the man himself. I can hear Euripides's plea to stop the ever-escalating violence - the Spartans had destroyed Plataea, and the Athenians likewise voted to destroy Mytilene, and the war looked as though it would never end, and Cleon wanted to send a fleet to Syracuse...
Naturally, Hecuba's violence rebounds upon herself, as a blinded and bitter Polymestor informs her that even Cassandra will be horribly murdered and Hecuba herself will be transformed into a dog (?) and drown. And of course, we the audience knows what happens to Agamemnon and Odysseus. Such are the rewards of war and violence.
But it's also seen, I think, in the main action of the play. Hecuba is brutally betrayed by two people from whom she has every right to expect good behavior - Odysseus has her daughter murdered after she saved him when he was in Troy (an unlikely interpretation of the Homeric story, but they both agree it happened), and Polymestor casually murders her son for gold, violating his sacred guest right. This after her city was sacked, her husband was murdered as a supplicant on the altar of Zeus the Protector, and she was enslaved. She's left with Cassandra as her surviving progeny, and well, that's not much of a comfort.
So her woes break her and she seeks petty revenge on the one person she can damage - Polymestor, after she convinces another great enemy, Agamemnon, not to interfere. The real tragedy is that she is consumed by her grief and desire for revenge and thus continues the cycle by murdering Polymestor's children and blinding the man himself. I can hear Euripides's plea to stop the ever-escalating violence - the Spartans had destroyed Plataea, and the Athenians likewise voted to destroy Mytilene, and the war looked as though it would never end, and Cleon wanted to send a fleet to Syracuse...
Naturally, Hecuba's violence rebounds upon herself, as a blinded and bitter Polymestor informs her that even Cassandra will be horribly murdered and Hecuba herself will be transformed into a dog (?) and drown. And of course, we the audience knows what happens to Agamemnon and Odysseus. Such are the rewards of war and violence.
bjork5ever's review
5.0
ha ha take that polymestor! bet you didn't see that coming
I'll show myself out
I'll show myself out
forever_fantasy's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
tatoopette's review
dark
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
ovidusnaso's review against another edition
3.0
Veldig solid oversettelse, noget tilfredsstillende slutt, men utover den generelt opplysende funksjonen boka har når det kommer til myter og Trojakrigen er det ikke kjempemye her for å fenge et moderne publikum. Det må sies at Kanon-oversettelsene i stor grad drar nytte av solide forord og innledninger, noe jeg føler strengt tatt er nødvendig når man skal forstå 2400 år gamle tekster. Og moderne også, som "Trans-Atlantyk" viste meg.
jasonfurman's review
4.0
A really exciting opening with the ghost of Polydorus hovering over the scene and foretelling the terrible events that will happen to Hecuba (the wife of Priam): that she will both find his body (he is her son, she sent him away in order to save him, but didn’t realize the plan failed) and have to deal with the human sacrifice of one of her few remaining daughters, Polyxena (which is portrayed as Polyxena accepting her fate as better than slavery, which may not be the best way to write from the perspective of a woman who is being ritually murdered). Agamemnon comes to Hecuba’s defense over the murder of Polydorus and ends up helping her get revenge. Hecuba herself is an extraordinary heroine.
I read the William Arrowsmith translation in the beautiful hardcover four volume [b:The Complete Greek Tragedies|51812701|The Complete Greek Tragedies (4-vol. set)|Aeschylus|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1564028779l/51812701._SX50_SY75_.jpg|57046938] edited by [a:David Grene|176021|David Grene|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] and [a:Richard Lattimore|13810479|Richard Lattimore|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png].
I read the William Arrowsmith translation in the beautiful hardcover four volume [b:The Complete Greek Tragedies|51812701|The Complete Greek Tragedies (4-vol. set)|Aeschylus|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1564028779l/51812701._SX50_SY75_.jpg|57046938] edited by [a:David Grene|176021|David Grene|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png] and [a:Richard Lattimore|13810479|Richard Lattimore|https://s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_50x66-632230dc9882b4352d753eedf9396530.png].
spacestationtrustfund's review against another edition
3.0
This review is of the translation by Diane J. Rayor.
Rayor's 2013 translation is excellent, and the essay by director Karen Libman was super fascinating. Overall this is my favourite translation of Medea.
Rayor uses exact transliterations for some words, but not all; I'd be interested to know her reasoning. For example she writes "Kolchis" (Κολχίς), "Iolkos" (Ἰωλκός), "Kreon" (Κρέων), and "Korinth" (Κόρινθος), but also "Jason" (Ἰάσων) and "Medea" (Μήδεια).
Rayor's 2013 translation is excellent, and the essay by director Karen Libman was super fascinating. Overall this is my favourite translation of Medea.
Rayor uses exact transliterations for some words, but not all; I'd be interested to know her reasoning. For example she writes "Kolchis" (Κολχίς), "Iolkos" (Ἰωλκός), "Kreon" (Κρέων), and "Korinth" (Κόρινθος), but also "Jason" (Ἰάσων) and "Medea" (Μήδεια).
mollusc's review against another edition
dark
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5