What is the theme of Iphigenia?

Euripides presents several themes in his play ”Iphigenia in Aulis. ” Two of the more prevalent themes are war and family. To a lesser extent, he explores the theme of heroism. Hidden beneath these, Euripides also presents the theme of gender.

Who is the hero in Iphigenia at Aulis?

Achilles
A “hero-to-be of the Trojan War,” Achilles is a young man of immense strength and beauty. Though Achilles is a major figure in Greek myth and is the central character of Homer’s Iliad, in the context of Iphigeneia at Aulis Achilles is a relatively inexperienced young warrior who hasn’t yet come into his own.

What happens at the end of Iphigenia?

Leading the chorus in a hymn to Artemis, she goes to her death, with her mother Clytemnestra so distraught as to presage her murder of her husband and Orestes’s matricide years later. The play as it exists in the manuscripts ends with a messenger reporting that Iphigenia has been replaced on the altar by a deer.

Why is the army stranded in Aulis?

At the start of the play, Agamemnon reveals to the Old Man that his army and warships are stranded in Aulis due to a lack of sailing winds. The winds have died because Agamemnon is being punished by the goddess Artemis, whom he offended.

What is the dilemma Agamemnon faces in Iphigenia at Aulis?

Agamemnon is the play’s protagonist and its complicated moral center. As leader of the Greek armies, his central dilemma is whether or not to sacrifice his daughter Iphigeneia to the goddess Artemis so that the winds might change and allow the armies to sail onward to Troy.

Why did Agamemnon sacrifice Iphigenia?

When the Greek fleet is becalmed at Aulis, thus preventing movement of the expeditionary force against Troy, Agamemnon is told that he must sacrifice Iphigenia to appease the goddess Artemis, who has caused the unfavourable weather. Agamemnon lures his daughter to Aulis by pretending that she will marry Achilles.

Why did Artemis save Iphigenia?

Artemis punishes Agamemnon by acting upon the winds, so that Agamemnon’s fleet cannot sail to Troy. Calchas the seer tells Agamemnon that to appease Artemis, he must sacrifice his eldest daughter, Iphigenia.