As an outrider to my last, Alison, maybe Euripides should be looked at: I've
always had a vague foggy notion of him as the Greek who was pro-feminine,
but that notion is based upon nodding acquaintances, like a magnificent
version of Medea by Brendan Kenneally that I once saw at the Phoenix, some
radio versions, dips in Constantine Trypanis's Penguin anthology of Greek
verse, etc, but it would possibly be of interest to see if the (undoubtedly)
male author in a profoundly male society, politically that is, really does
give voice to the Furies.
Best
Dave
David Bircumshaw
Leicester, England
Home Page
A Chide's Alphabet
Painting Without Numbers
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/david.bircumshaw/index.htm
----- Original Message -----
From: "Alison Croggon" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Monday, February 25, 2002 9:59 AM
Subject: Re: Hoaxes and Heteronymity interview
>At 9:03 AM +0000 25/2/02, david.bircumshaw wrote:
>I don't think the Oresteia actually covers that ground, Chris!
If the ground you mean is the question of patriachal legitimacy, it
does indeed cover that ground - the whole bloody story of the House
of Atreus (in all its various versions) is a fable about claims to
such legitimacy. Why otherwise are Helen's "theft" by Paris or
Clytemnestra's infidelity such a cause of angst? Agamemnon's
possession of Cassandra goes without comment, for example. And
Aegisthus can be argued to be a legitimate claimant to the throne,
given what Agamemnon's father did to his fathers and brothers... etc.
And the metaphorical extension to questions of copyright not merely
fanciful, I think. The whole play is riddled with contradictions and
bizarre intricacies - but I think it is somewhat euphemistic to say
the Oresteia endorses misogyny!
Best
A
--
Alison Croggon
Home page
http://www.users.bigpond.com/acroggon/
Masthead online
http://au.geocities.com/masthead_2/
|