The Medea

This is a translation of Euripides' Medea by Gilbert Murray, translated into English rhyming verse with explanatory notes. Published by Oxford University Press in 1912, this edition includes Murray's introduction contextualizing the tragedy within Greek literary tradition and examining its themes of character and revenge. The play itself concerns Jason, leader of the Argonauts, who abandons his wife Medea—a Colchian princess and enchantress who sacrificed everything to aid him—to marry Creon's daughter in Corinth. The drama unfolds through the Nurse's opening revelation of Jason's betrayal, establishing the central conflict: Medea's anguish at being cast aside by the man she served, her exile threatened by Creon, and her devastating response. Murray's introduction emphasizes the play as a study of oppression and revenge rather than romantic narrative, depicting the corrupting effects of cruelty on its victims.