The storyline of Hippolytus follows the pattern of erotic intrigue and betrayal. In the passage given we could shown Phaedra's bitter resentment towards Hippolytus and Aphrodite (because Aphrodite, cursed Hippolytus by causing him the object of Phaedra's lust. Hippolytus hears of Phaedra's sense towards him through her nurse and launches into a fierce denunciation of all women.
Phaedra believes that she actually is ruined now that the truth is away and hangs herself (after making the chorus swear secrecy) as a result of shame and guilt that she seems towards her stepson Hippolytus, ( the nurse and the chorus are surprised) - but before she will so, she creates a notice condemning him and accusing him of rape. Hippolytus swore to Phaedra's nurse that whatever she advised him he'd not duplicate so when he's faced with his father (Theseus) he cannot defend himself. An furious Theseus determines to punish Hippolytus and as Poseidon to carry out this. He delivers a bull from the ocean, which scares Hippolytus' horses and so he is wiped out. All too later Theseus realizes the reality about Hippolytus and Phaedra from Artemis.
Phaedra is initially shown to us in a sympathetic light; honourably struggling against the chances to do the right thing but our regard for her is reduced with her spurn of Hippolytus 'I will verify deadly to another's life. . . then he shall learn what restraint is' (Hippolytus, 726-31).
The gods play an important role in this play/misconception and frame the action. Aphrodite shows up at the beginning and Artemis by the end. These goddesses is seen to be representing the conflicting thoughts of interest and chastity. Love and enthusiasm ultimately earn however Artemis vows to consider one of Aphrodite's favourites therefore the quarrel is not over. Humans are being used as pawns by the gods.
I think as woman sympathy can be sensed for Phaedra. She is aware that her thoughts towards Hippolytus are incorrect but she's no control over them and she feels ashamed of the feelings in particular when he rebukes her (thus taking her own life because she cannot bare the humiliation). She attempts to control her feelings but she cannot. She will try to issue self-restraint (sophrosome) but her thoughts are too strong and in the end she seeks revenge on Hippolytus and can take her own life. The lines directed at us display the anger and harm that she seems and demonstrates the lack of control that she's over these feeling - the only path Phaedra can easily see of closing the humiliation and pain is by firmly taking her own life she wants bad upon both Cypris and Hippolytus.
Phaedra exhibits many characteristics throughout the play - she converts from a young female in love and who's defeat by all the capabilities that love has over her to a woman who's bitter and resents both feelings that she's and the man to whom this affections have been set. She has lost all control and his rejection has transformed her bitter. She can see no way out and wishes him to put up with as she has and 'feel the sickness I have known' (Hippolytus, 726-31).
Whilst carrying out research I found a minimum of fifteen different versions of the Phaedra myth including Euripides: The Hippolytus; Seneca: Phaedra; Ovid- these are the three that I will be taking a look at.
Whilst looking directly at Ovid's and Euripides' retellings of the misconception of Hippolytus and Phaedra it is straightforward to see the similarities and differences that both present. I am looking directly at the type of Phaedra in my own examination of the two texts and can draw my summary from my evaluation of both Euripides' and Ovid's presentations of the Hippolytus misconception and how it 'suggests that there are no boundaries to how much traditional writers and musicians and artists could alter myth'.
Ovid's tale is told through a single notice (where time is nearly iced). Phaedra can only just wish/imagine what the future might maintain. He also reveals the myth in poem form from Phaedra's perspective instead of Euripides who explains to the myth through play-text that holds numerous voices.
Both presentations enable Phaedra's letter however Euripides' is a lot darker; describing rape where Ovid's letter is of love and 'innocence' - they are extremely different this the entire sense/atmosphere in the average person parts differs greatly and so does indeed the audience/readers perceptions.
There are extensive similarities between our Phaedra's - they both see themselves as victims of Cyrus and both only speak (of the love) when forced to: - Ovid's by 'Love' ('said to create. Though made of iron, he will surely give his hands' 1:1, 22-23). Euripides' by the nurse. Both have reputations to uphold as well as for both pity is devastating. They both experience an extreme moral have difficulties - Euripides' Phaedra battles prior to the audience on stage(whilst living out her account) and Ovid's Phaedra has already resided through hers but is deploying it to seduce Hippolytus through her letter. In a sense Phaedra is the commander in Ovid's poem and Hippolytus the sufferer. Whereas in Euripides Phaedra is the sufferer of loves passion and ungainly carry.
A similarity between the two presentations is that of the hunt: Euripides' Phaedra prays to Artemis and longs to join the hunt and 'Away to the hill take me! For the solid wood, to the pine-trees should go, where hounds pursue the prey, hard on the scent of dappled fawns' (Euripides. . . . . . ). Ovid's Phaedra explains that 'I take my pleasure in the forest generating deer to the web and urging hounds on the hills. I hurl the quivering spear and I rest my own body in the grass (Ovid 1:1 56-59).
Both types also discuss Hippolytus' hatred of all women: in Euripides Hippolytus refers to this directly whereas in Ovid it is Phaedra who acknowledges it towards the finish of her notice '. . . may the nymphs - though I listen to you despise women - reduce your thirst with flowing drinking water' (Ovid 1:1 210-11).
Ovid's Phaedra talks as if she actually is inexperienced in love and appears to ignore the simple fact that she actually is a married woman; fruit picked from the heavy branch is good, the first rose pinched with a slender nail is best' (Ovid 1:1, 41-2), she would like Hippolytus to trust the latter - she boasts to have resided in purity (like the rose) but she is happy to commit adultery. Both Phaedra's claim that their reputation is of great importance and they are focused on moral values nonetheless they are both prepared to break their matrimony pacts for adulterous erotic passion.
By the finish of Ovid's letter Phaedra abandons her typical values and identifies the marriage of Jupiter and his sister Juno 'Bottom part love is more than love simply forbidden. If Juno gave me her sibling and husband Jove I would choose Hippolytus' (Ovid 1:1 48-4).
Both Phaedra's are aware of their ancestry however Euripides' only mentions it briefly whereas, Ovid goes into depth about of the women in Phaedra's ancestral line being at the mercy of passion and this in some way it is always unsatisfied or perverse. Phaedra remains onto say that there surely is some legislation or fate managing their destinies - 'perhaps I am paying a personal debt to Venus for the favours my children loved' (Ovid, 1:1 71-2).
Phaedra does not acknowledge the actual fact that Hippolytus is the only male member of the Amazons (a tribe of a-sexual females) - and although aware that Hippolytus hates women she will not recognise that it's because of his Amazonian character and he has inherited his mother's sexuality not his fathers. Both editions foreshadow the near future and discussing Phaedra's female relationships is one way to do this.
Decoding images and putting them in framework to the right myth is more challenging than it could first seem. To begin with misconceptions are unfixed (modifying with respect to the time and the copy writer) and were often rethought.
Long before misconceptions were written down they were informed to anxious listeners and performed to audiences. Person to person, personal interpretation and elaboration all ensured that the misconception never remained the same and choice interpretations formed. Performers would have labored on an identical vein and while some may have been influenced by the written texts, many would likewise have been influenced by the world of mouth area stories and the images that these created in the designers' heads.
From the seventh century B. C. the Greeks used various types of skill to portray myths. These were used to enhance temple walls, jewellery but most commonly on pottery (before end of the fourth century B. C. ). As the Romans commenced to conquer the Greek cities they too needed on the Greek culture and started out to depict the Greek misconceptions on wall surfaces in their homes and general population buildings equally, carved on sarcophagus, intricate mosaic floor surfaces, and into glass.
The visual fine art of misconception was no easy feat and music artists needed to find ways in which to make them recognisable, so that people would know who was simply being displayed and that which was occurring. The myths could take hours to narrate however the artists had limited space/resources in which to capture it so the artist had to choose whether to focus on the climax of the misconception, suggest it's possible summary or cause, to focus on a few pivotal character types or to portray the broad contact where it was arranged.
The art much like the written/oral myth improved through time and frequently parallel one to the other and at times artists would introduce a new factor to the misconception which provided insights in to the myths and the partnership between the character types. Mythical art may be used to portray a politics meaning; historical person and happenings and contain propagandistic information - they were disguised in the realm of misconceptions.
Plate 1. 4 is a mural and portrays Phaedra and her nurse. It hung on the south wall the home of Jason, Pompeii in the first first century CE - the shades are dark and appear to emphasise the sorrow that Phaedra believed because of her feelings for Hippolytus. The emptiness of the area could also be seen to symbolize the emptiness that Phaedra seems in her heart and soul and the loneliness that an unreciprocated love fills her with. We are advised in the course reserve that Phaedra is getting ready to write her letter to Hippolytus (in this dish). Hippolytus is not within this picture and this reveals to us a different image to those that we have seen in early artwork. The emphasis is on Phaedra and her thoughts, feelings and activities. The picture was hung in an area with two other pieces of art all depicting the woman as the central figure and portraying the meaning that 'heroic love can wreck heroic homeowners' (Stop book, 51), quite simply women shouldn't push the cultural boundaries that have been placed after them - this theme is also featured in Seneca's Phaedra. The notice that has been written by Phaedra and the nurse is remenisant of this in Ovid's Heriodes where she writes right to Hippolytus about her thoughts for him. The notice is an integral instrument in the interpretation of the myth in fine art - it reminds the viewer 'of the revelation that proven so disastrous, implicitly inviting their judgement on Phaedra's behaviour (Block Publication, 53).
In conclusion it is obvious to see that while myths are ever before changing, versatile and open to new ideas and techniques the essentially stay the same. Phaedra's method of her feelings for Hippolytus may be different but the reason that she fell in love with him and the results in all types are the same. The portrayal of the myth both in skill and in narrative form can be used at differing times to portray/expose/conceal various political ideas, propaganda and numbers but the substance of the misconception continues true to its original form. We cannot expect to ever know the first telling of the story because much like fairy stories they originated form dental practices - old wives stories and fireside moral stories and every time they age advised or portrayed the new teller will have their own take on it and will emphasise different parts depending on their emotional. Sociable or political position - this is true for both the narrative and artistic forms.
