About Euripides Alcestis - Essay Example

Euripides Alcestis In Euripides play Alcestis, Alcestis is perhaps the greatest human hero in the book is Alcestis due to her act of giving her life for her husband. Through her sacrifice, Alcestis shows that she is brave when she decides to give her own life without any fighting so that her husband can survive. The reason that makes Alcestis a hero is her character of humility. She is humble enough to surrender her own future desires and her children’s joy in order to ensure that his husband lives.

Considering Admetus foolish and selfish nature of clinging to his life, Alcestis emerges to be a Hero because she does not fight to keep her life. Alcestis has the character of the powerful Greek woman in the Greek Mythology. However, love makes her to be humble like any common woman. She dies for her husband because of love. She is a hero who decides that she has to sacrifice her life for his husband. Through her heroic deed, Alcestis depicts the character of women that makes them different from Men.

While men in the Greek society are shown to be selfish and even foolish, Alcestis shows that women, through simple sacrifices can make a change. In the first stasimon, the Chorus says, “Oh poor man! What a man you are! What a wife you are losing!” (25). This shows that Euripides in his writings thought of Alcestis as a hero. The chorus affirms that the lose of Alcestis was a big blow to Admetus. Alcestis says, “My death is enough--I am dying for you.” The sacrifice by Alcestis is captured in her own words.

She affirms her heroic stature among all the mortals by declaring that she is dying for her husband. In the third Stasimon, Pheres speaks of the heroic deeds of Alcestis, “And she has made life more glorious for all women by undertaking this generous deed.” This shows that Alcestis is a Hero amongst women through her act of sacrifice. Because of Alcestis heroic deed, Heracles decides to do a heroic deed by fighting death and eventually managing to restore Alcestis. The heroic deed by Alcestis of dying for his husband is appreciated by Heracles to the extent that he decides to give Heracles life back.

Selfishness helps create Alcestis heroic character. Admetus through his own selfishness, had agreed that he be given prosperity by Apollo, on the condition that he was destined to die. However, Admetus could cheat death if he managed to find someone willing to die in his place. Admetus had tried to look for a person who was willing to die for him, but everyone had refused. Alcestis through her bravery and sacrifice decided to die for his husband. Even as she prepared for her death, Alcestis shows her motherly and womanly love.

She wakes ups and prepares to meet death by praying for her children. She is concerned about the future of her children and their happiness. She prays that they have happy marriages. Before she dies, Alcestis uses the opportunity to try and change her husband. She tells him, “Admetus, you see the things I suffer; and now before I die I mean to tell you what I wish.” (24). She then asks Admetus not to bring a stepmother after she dies because she will make the children sad. Her motherly love is a show of a real hero in the women of the Greek society.

Work CitedEuripides. “Alcestis” University of Oklahoma Press, 2003