Despite his wife's desperate protests, though, Agamemnon takes Iphigenia and sacrifices her to the goddess. In a couple famous variations, like Euripides' Iphigenia at Aulis , the girl is saved at the last second by Artemis, who whisks the girl away and replaces her with a deer on the altar. Whatever the case, the sacrifice makes Artemis chill out, and she finally allows the Greeks to set sail to Troy. The horribly bloody Trojan War goes on for years and years.
For the best account of Agamemnon's shenanigans during the war check out Homer's Iliad. Clytemnestra has plenty of time to stew while Agamemnon is off fighting the war. For some weird reason, she just doesn't think that a war to get her floozy sister, Helen, back to Greece is worth the life of her precious daughter. To get Agamemnon back, Clytemnestra starts sleeping with his cousin, Aegisthus.
Oh, and she also plots to murder her husband whenever he gets home. Eventually, Agamemnon arrives home to Mycenae after totally annihilating the city of Troy. The triumphant King brings home Cassandra , a Trojan princess, who he's forced to be his own personal sex slave. Man, he's really making this easy for Clytemnestra. Cassandra is a seer who can totally see into the future, but was cursed by Apollo to never be believed. So, when she tells Agamemnon that they're both going to die in Mycenae, he's like, "Whatever.
Clytemnestra acts all nice to her husband when he gets there and even makes him a nice warm bath. Just as he starts to close his war-weary eyes she throws a purple robe over him, so he can't get up, then starts chopping on him with an ax.
Sometimes, Aegisthus is said to help with the murder as well. The play was produced a few years after his death and won first prize at the festival of Dionysia. Iphigenia at Aulis is the precursor to Iphigenia at Tauris and sets the background for the fate of Iphigenia. This play mainly focuses on Agamemnon, Iphigenia's father.
Agamemnon is faced with a very difficult decision of whether he should sacrifice his daughter to allow his troops to set sail. The Greek troops are waiting at Aulis to set sail and advance to Troy because they cannot travel without wind.
There is a lack of wind because it's being controlled by the goddess Artemis. Artemis was offended by Agamemnon and therefore decided to punish him and his army by making it impossible to set sail. In order to please Artemis and get the necessary wind, Agamemnon is told he must sacrifice his daughter. Agamemnon realizes the horror of killing his own daughter but must not dismiss the idea because his troops are getting anxious and might rebel against him.
Agamemnon decides to send a message to his wife to send their daughter to Aulis for marriage to Achilles before he leaves for battle. In the prologue, Agamemnon struggles with the idea of sacrificing his daughter. He has second thoughts and decides he cannot go through with it and sends another letter to his wife telling her to ignore the first letter.
Clytemnestra doesn't get the letter though because Menelaus intercepts it. Menelaus is outraged that Agamemnon would not go through with the sacrifice and does not want it to be stopped Episode 1.
Menelaus is especially upset with Agamemnon because one of the main reasons the Greeks are going to battle with Troy is to rescue his wife Helen. Furthermore, not sacrificing Iphigenia could lead to a mutiny and the destruction of the Greek army. Agamemnon and Menelaus debate with one another and change each other's minds.
Menelaus now believes they should not sacrifice his niece and Agamemnon believes it would be better if they did. Essay Sample Check Writing Quality. The actions of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra are not justified because they are caused by their blinding hubris and desire for power. Agamemnon makes the choice to kill his daughter just so he could lead his troops to Troy.
Clytemnestra kills her husband, not just for revenge, but for his position and power as king of Mycenae. They make selfish choices and do not believe they will be punished for them. By exposing their true motives, Aeschylus makes it clear they are not justified in their actions. Agamemnon kills his daughter, Iphigenia, for power and respect. This power is more important to him than his daughter, thus he sacrifices Iphigenia instead of stepping back and letting someone else lead the armies to battle.
He is more worried about losing respect than his own daughter. His lust after power and respect made him insensitive to fair judgement.
He tries to justify himself by saying there is no other way but to sacrifice her. Her desire for power is hidden by her claims of justification. She challenges anyone to take her power. She threatens the Chorus to a fight for power. She knows she has all the power now the king was dead and she is his queen. Clytemnestra is aware she killed him for his power, but her arrogance makes her put the deed on the curse of the House of Atreus and vengeance for.
Get Access. Powerful Essays. Deceitful Clytemnestra of Euripides' Electra. Read More. Better Essays. Comparing the Portrayal of Clytemnestra in Agamemnon and Electra.
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