Medea Composition

Medea Composition

Control is a theme that has been relevant in many of the plays and novels we have analyzed this year. King Lear's daughters controlled him, society controlled IM, and Othello's jealously controlled himself. Although control is perceived as a somewhat "evil" characteristic, it always shows power. Control and Manipulation go hand in hand, since once a person is manipulated the manipulator has taken control. In the play Medea, Medea is a master of manipulation. She exploits each victim's flaws and uses them to seize control of there trust. Once she has grasped her victims trust she uses them for her own interests. Medea's wit and unrelenting passion for revenge contributes to her unjustified methods of manipulation and enables her to control friend and foe with unparalleled ability.

Before the play starts she uses her power of control to help Jason and his aragonites on their heroic deeds. Medea begins here manipulation with her own father. While she is escaping with Jason and the Golden Fleece on his boat, her father pursues them to capture Jason and regain the fleece. Medea knows that her father is dedicated to family honor and would do anything to keep it. Medea comes to the conclusion that if she kills her brother and throws the pieces overboard her father will have no choice, but to stop and gather the pieces for an honorable burial. This horrible task proved important to Jason's escape and well being. Later Jason returned to his homeland with Medea and found his kingdom was taken and his father disgraced. These evil deeds were done by King Pelias and Jason was bent on seeking revenge. Medea assisted Jason with her knowledge of human greed. King Pelias was getting old and once he died the kingdom would fall apart, so she told his daughters that if they killed and boiled him it would restore his youth. The daughters did as they were told and Jason regained his kingdom. With the help of Medea's cunning and ruthless actions she and Jason lived happily until Jason betrayed her.

Once the play starts we see Medea's unrelenting control on her beloved Jason and everyone associated with him. She discovered Jason had married another woman and gained a thirst for revenge that could only be quenched by the blood of everyone who was dear to him. Medea's ability to see each characters weaknesses sealed her plan for revenge. When she was banished from Corinth, she was ordered to leave immediately. However, she needed at least one more day to set her plan up, so she started by manipulating Creon into letting her stay in Corinth. Playing on Creon's pity, Medea succeeded by mentioning her children and how they would need more time to prepare for the departure. This mistake enabled Medea to once again use her control and seek a place of refuge. When Aegeus came along Medea immediately