BASC70199 - Women of Euripides: Alcestis, Medea, Iphigenia in Aulis

Course Description

A deep dive into three of Euripides' plays featuring distinctly different monumental heroines, this class, the first of a planned ongoing series on women in Greek tragedy, will explore three plays by Euripides, including two of his best loved dramas.  We will begin with the lesser known Alcestis, the story of a woman who sacrifices herself to save her husband and is rescued from Hades by Hercules; then move to the towering Medea, betrayed by Jason and caught in vengeful fury; and finally Iphigenia in Aulis, sacrifice of Iphigeneia as told with focus on her role and experience rather than on Agamemnon and Troy. In addition to close reading and discussion of the texts, we will view and discuss (where available) the performance of the plays or theater-on film-adaptations, including the 2014 National Theater version of Medea and the classic 1977 film Iphigeneia. We will use the Grene/Lattimore series of Complete Greek Plays (here, Euripides I and Euripides V). Please read Alcestis in Euripides I for the first class.

Course Outline

Course Syllabus

Notes

Online registration closes June 8 at 5:00 pm CT.