Medea

This article is about the Greek mythological figure. For the play by Euripides, see Medea (play). For other uses, see Medea (disambiguation).
For the 21st-century comedy film character created by Tyler Perry, see Madea.
Medea
Princess and sorceress of Colchis
Medea on her golden chariot, by Germán Hernández Amores
Genealogy
ParentsAeëtes and Idyia
SiblingsAbsyrtus, Chalciope
ConsortJason, Aegeus
ChildrenVary according to tradition (names include Alcimenes, Thessalus, Tisander, Mermeros, Pheres, Eriopis, Medus)

In Greek mythology, Medea (/mɪˈdiːə/; Ancient Greek: Μήδεια, romanized: Mḗdeia; lit. 'planner, schemer')[1] is the daughter of King Aeëtes of Colchis. In the myth of Jason and the Argonauts, she aids Jason in his search for the Golden Fleece. She later marries him, but eventually kills their children and his other bride according to some versions of her story. Medea is known in most stories as a sorceress and is often depicted as a priestess of the goddess Hecate. She first appears in Hesiod's Theogony around 700 BCE,[2] but is best known from Euripides's tragedy Medea and Apollonius of Rhodes's epic Argonautica.

As a daughter of King Aeëtes she is a mythical granddaughter of the sun god Helios and a niece of Circe, an enchantress goddess. Her mother might have been Idyia.[3] She plays the archetypal role of helper-maiden, aiding Jason in his search for the Golden Fleece. In said quest, she uses her magic to save his life and kills her brother to allow Jason to escape. Once he finishes his quest, she abandons her native home of Colchis and flees westwards with Jason, where they eventually settle in Corinth and marry.

Euripides's 5th-century BC tragedy Medea depicts the ending of her union with Jason, when after ten years of marriage, Jason intends to abandon her to wed King Creon's daughter Creusa. Jason argues that their sons will have a better future in the city if he marries the King's daughter and his sons stay in the same city with him. He claims the sacred vows he has with Medea can be broken because she is a foreigner, which makes their marriage illegitimate. Medea is exiled from Corinth by King Creon, and is offered refuge in Athens by King Aegeus after she offers to help him get an heir with her magic.

In revenge against Jason, Medea murders her own sons and Jason's new bride, King Creon's daughter, with a poisoned crown and robes, so that Jason will be without heir and legacy for the rest of his life. What happens afterwards varies according to several accounts.

Herodotus in his Histories mentions that she ended up leaving Athens and settling in the Iranian plateau among the Aryans, who subsequently changed their name to the Medes.[4]

  1. ^ Room, Adrian (2003). Who's who in Classical Mythology. Gramercy Books. ISBN 978-0-517-22256-0.
  2. ^ Hesiod Theogony 993–1002
  3. ^ Apollonius Rhodius, Argonautica 3.241–244, 269
  4. ^ Herodotus Histories VII.62i