med. 4

I liked Euripides’ Electra better than Sophocles’ Electra. In Euripides’ version, the characters are much more like real people. In Sophocles and Aeschylus, everyone seems to rely on fate to guide their choices for them, while in Euripides, they decide what to do based on logical thought and choice, even though the results seem illogical. Orestes is by far the best character. His telling Clytemnestra that he’s going to kill her and there’s nothing she can do about it is some of the best dialogue I have read in a play. I felt kind of bad for Clytemnestra because she made some good points, but Apollo decreed that she had to die, so more power to Orestes. Orestes and Electra both got their revenge, which was all well and good, but Orestes ended up getting taunted by furies. Electra, to me, seems like a much more subtly strong character. She seems to whine, but ultimately betters her situation by convincing Orestes to kill Electra.