Clytemnestra’s Deception as Depicted in the Oresteia Trilogy

Clytemnestra Deception In The Agamemnon book of the Oresteia trilogy, the Chorus in each play represents the people who feel under represented and disrespected by the society's changing values. They also fear the control of an effective woman in Clytemnestra rather than the leadership of Agamemnon. The Chorus takes direct actions, thought to ensure their prominence. Agamemnon, the king of Argos, returns home from the war at Troy. As his war prize he brings with him the prophetess-maiden Cassandra, daughter of King Priam of Troy.She was chosen by Apollo and granted the gift of prophecy, but as a result of Apollo's anger towards Cassandra, no one believes her predictions. Cassandra knows she and Agamemnon are going to die, but is powerless to prevent it. This is the main plot that unfolds in The Agamemnon. Clytemnestra kills Agamemnon and Cassandra, but her motive for these murders is much more serious than Just marital infidelity: He sacrificed his own daughter, â€Å"my beloved chil d to whom I gave birth suffering great pains, Just to control the Thracian winds with pells† (1417-18).Clytemnestra hates Agamemnon, who was ordered by the goddess Artemis to sacrifice their first-born, Iphigenia. However, â€Å"Clytemnestra is also angry with her husband because of Cassandra, and she express that both adulterers deserved punishment† (1431-47). The situation is somewhat dubious. Clytemnestra herself is having an adulterous affair with Agamemnon's worst enemy, Aegisthus, with whom she has also been plotting the murder of Agamemnon. In terms of marital infidelity, Clytemnestra cannot claim moral superiority over Agamemnon.So the son of Agamemnon, Orestes, murders his mother to avenge the murder of his father. Clytemnestra dies not Just because of her adultery but for her treachery. The crucial issue is the regicide, and the question of whether Clytemnestra's horrendous deeds can be Justified as a response to Iphigenia's sacrifice. The Homecoming-rituals s hape the dramatic structure of the play. In the first half of the play Clytemnestra deliberately perverts all the rituals involved in the homecoming of the king.This is an ntentional and important aspect of her character and a way for the queen to assert her power. She makes the elders of Argos wait for her answer at the palace, when they came to ask her about the sacrificial fires burning in every major and minor shrine in the town. â€Å"The elders are skeptical of Clytemnestra's reasons for believing that the expedition to Troy has been successful, and the conversation between the queen and the elders is reminiscent of a duel† (258-60).However, Clytemnestra masterfully uses rhetoric worthy of a man, and in the end the elders admit defeat 351-54). The queen disparages the herald who arrives to inform her of the safe return of Agamemnon. Clytemnestra cuts off his announcement by telling him that she already knows of the victory and claims that her husband will tell her every thing she needs to know (587-614). Once again, she has successfully been undermined by her ‘unfeminine' strength of mind and speech.When Agamemnon arrives, Clytemnestra assumes control of the situation by arriving late and giving a lengthy and garrulous welcoming speech to ner husband 8 Finally, in the tamous arpet-scene (914-74), the queen persuades Agamemnon to offend the gods by walking on the luxurious purple clothes and straight to his death by her actions, Clytemnestra has managed to break with all the traditional Greek customs and rituals related to the homecoming of a king.That is the theme that dominates the first half of the play. Clytemnestra's actions reveal to the audience her intentions. They also expose her growing power and the political and psychological battle between the elders†who represent the people of Argos†and the herald.