Christine DiMauro

November 15, 2006

Greek Tragedy

2^nd Document

Alcestis: A Universal across the Ages

Background Information and Plot Summary

The Alcestis was the fourth play in the tetralogy including The Cretan Woman, Alcmaeon in Psophis, and Telephus (Morwood). The Alcestis was produced in 438 B.C. This play was originally supposed to be performed as the satyr play (Morwood). Admetus, who is the king of Thessaly, has been condemned to die by Death. Through the persuasion of Apollo and Admetus, Death agrees to substitute the death of Admetus with the death of someone else as long as they volunteer to die for him. Admetus first asks his parents to die for him, but they refuse. Alcestis, the wife of Admetus volunteers to die for him. Death takes Alcestis, and Admetus is left in sorrow without his love. When Heracles arrives at Admetus’ house, he asks who Admetus is mourning for, but Admetus assures him that it was only an outsider. Heracles hears from a servant that it was none other than Queen Alcestis that died. When Heracles confronts Admetus and asks him why he did not tell him that Alcestis was dead, Admetus replies that he felt hospitality was the only thing he had left to offer. Because Heracles feels bad for Admetus he wrestles Death and brings Alcestis back to Admetus. Alcestis appears to be dead, and Admetus does not recognize her. When Admetus finally realizes the magnitude of what he did and feels true pain, he recognizes her and she comes back to life.

(This image was taken from a vase painting and depicts Death dragging Alcestis away from the altar when he is confronted by Heracles. The image on the other side of this vase is the punishment of Ixion (theoi.com).)

Aristotle’s Tragedy and Universals

“Tragedy is a representation of a serious, complete action which has magnitude, in embellished speech, with each of its elements [used] separately in the [various] parts [of the play]; [represented] by people acting and not by narration; accomplishing by means of pity and terror the catharsis of emotion” (Janko). This is the definition of tragedy according to Aristotle in Janko’s translation of Aristotle Poetics. Aristotle believed tragedy to be of a much greater magnitude than most and thought Greek tragedy should represent issues and concepts that could be applied throughout history and the future. Aristotle called these universals. “A universal is the sort of thing that a certain kind of person may well say or do in accordance with probability or necessity” (Janko). The hero, Alcestis, and Admetus are both characters that can be applied in numerous situations. Not only are the characters universal across time, but the situation of the tragedy is as well. In the introduction to the Alcestis, Arrowsmith explores a universal aspect of the tragedy.

Alcestis: A Universal

Arrowsmith stated, “By mode I mean simply the generic states and phases of human (and other) existence, as they revealed themselves to the Greek mind and imagination.” This is Arrowsmith’s representation of a hierarchy between the divine and the commonplace. “Man and god are modal words, as I pointed out before. Similarly, the real force of the Delphic command to “know oneself” is modal” (Arrowsmith). Therefore, for a man to know himself, he must know that he is mortal and will eventually die. For a god to know himself, he must know that he is immortal. “What man is not, god is: a concentration of supreme power and intensity and in this sense god imposes man’s necessity upon him (Arrowsmith). However, there is medium in between god and man, and that, according to Arrowsmith, is the hero. The hero fits into the “mode” of a man that recognizes and accepts that he is mortal. Heracles provides the perfect example of how a hero fits into the modal organization when he tells Admetus that man must die and that is a fact and that no man can cheat death or knows the secret to immortal life (Lines 968-1006). Another distinguishing characteristic of man is that he is subject to necessity (Arrowsmith). Necessity serves as a power against man that can also be referred to as reality (Segal). A hero recognizes that man is subject to necessity because he does not recognize that life is not eternal. In the Alcestis, the “modes” of Arrowsmith can be applied. By Admetus asking someone to die for him, he is denying the fact that all human life must come to an end at some point. Admetus represents man and the naïve nature of man. He does not understand that it is his time to die and that the death of one man is not meant to be replaced with the death of another. Alcestis is the hero in this tragedy because she gives up her life so that Admetus can live. Heracles is a hero because during his drunken speech he reminds Admetus that life will eventually come to an end. The characters in the play Alcestis are not only significant because they fit the modal structure of Arrowsmith, but also because these characters can be replaced with different people in any generation in history or in the future and the same universals would apply.

The Hero

“The hero, as Nietzsche knew, is the only justification of human life” (Arrowsmith). The hero is the only justification of human life because he accepts that man is not immortal. The hero recognizes that it is not about living as long as possible but how man uses his time is of the utmost importance. The hero functions as the living validation of human life by representing the true essence of what it is to be human. Man’s outlook on life is more introverted in that he believes life is what you can accomplish and what you can do, whereas the hero understands that life is about what you can do for others to make your life more meaningful to them and you. Furthermore, heroes justify human life because they are human and contain flaws just like man, however they accept human flaw and recognize that everyone must accept their fate. The hero is the universal symbol for the level that man can achieve in his lifetime, however dubious thoughts such as the fear of death and the fear of being forgotten serve as a barricade that most men never overcome. A hero recognizes that there is no way of achieving immortal life if you are mortal and in doing so immortalizes the ideals of a hero. A hero is the justification of human life because they prove that there is meaning to human life; life is not just about gaining for a hero, but about living. A hero is not preoccupied with trying to make his life last longer, but rather living his life as opposed to man, who is too preoccupied with trying to immortalize himself. A hero justifies the life of man because he shows that life is not about the trivial things that man occupies himself with. Rather, life on a larger scale will eventually end, and there is essentially not time to worry about when your life is going to end. Nietzsche’s hero that justifies human life can also be considered a universal in both Classical Greece, as explored in Alcestis, and modern times.

The Universal Hero

Alcestis was the hero in the tragedy because she died for her husband, and she sacrificed her life for the life of another. Alcestis represents the justification of human life in the tragedy because she proves that there are more important things than living and physically being alive. Alcestis dies for Admetus because she loves him so much. Also, Admetus realizes that there are more important things in life because he recognizes that life is worthless without his wife and love. In modern days, people such as firefighters and policemen are willing to die for you when you are in danger or when they see that you are going to die. However, Admetus was not dying in a fire or in a horrible accident. Heroes of today are not asked to die for someone; instead, they willingly die for them. Although Alcestis did volunteer to die for her husband, she was ultimately not saving him from suffering because he was miserable without her.

Works Cited

A.E. Haigh. The Tragic Drama of the Greeks. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1996.

• Provides a brief summary of the play and also significant analysis of the play as a whole as well as analysis of particulars about the play.

Arrowsmith, William. Euripides: Alcestis. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1974.

• Excellent translation of the tragedy. Very clear and concise including useful notes in the back of the text. The best part about this text is the introduction provided by the author which includes excellent analysis of the play and presents ideas that are helpful in understanding the deeper meaning of the play as you are reading.

Janko, Richard. Aristotle Poetics. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company, 1987.

• Translation of Aristotle Poetics. This author takes a complicated piece and makes is moderately easy to understand. The most helpful aspect of this work however is the glossary which provides definitions for both the English and Greek words used in the work.

Morwood, James. The Plays of Euripides. London: Bristol Classical Press, 2002.

• Provides minimal background information and analyzes the Alcestis as having a folkloric nature. Also, compares the Alcestis with Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale.

Segal, Charles. Euripides and the Poetics of Sorrow. Durham and London: Duke University Press, 1993.

• Provides excellent analysis on the plays of Euripides in the areas of art, gender, and commemoration. This book can also be a little challenging to navigate if you are looking for analysis on a specific play because they have broken the comparisons down by subject rather than play. Also, includes the idea of tragic pleasure which is the only book from the Works Cited that discusses this area.

Hartigan, Karelisa. Ambiguity and Self-Deception. Germany: Peter Lang, 1991.

• Provides an in depth summary of the play providing analysis of mostly characters in terms of personalities and tendencies. Also, explores the idea that the Alcestis is not a true tragedy because Heracles brought Alcestis back from the dead. The author supports this claim by saying that this play was the fourth in a series and would normally have been the satyr play and therefore a hero was allowed to come in and save man from a god.

Atsma, Aaron. http://www.theoi.com/Gallery/N12.3.html. Theoi Project. 2000-2006.

• This website included the image of Alcestis. It is an excellent website that includes images from about every subject in Classical Greece and more. Also, this site included commentary on the image in terms of background and the other image on the vase.