Dramatic Suspense in Euripides' and Seneca's MedeaThis study is an investigation of suspense in two highly influential Medea plays, presents a complete re-reading of these plays, and offers a comparative study of the dramas, particularly with regard to their capacity to evoke suspense in the authors' audience. The principal focus, however, is Euripides' «Medea» in which the playwright manipulates audience reaction by his original handling of the source material - in all probability his audience would have expected the Korinthians to kill her children, or, at most, were unsure who would do it or why. |
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Acastus action Aegeus anapests anticipation antistrophe Argo Aristotle Athenian audience Athens audience's banishment bride Buttrey character chil choral Chorus concern Creon Creusa daughter death deed despite Dionysus drama dramatic suspense dramatist dren emotional enemies episode Euri Euripides exile fact father fear feel final forces foreshadowing fury give goddess gods Greek Greek tragedy hamartia hand Hecate hero heroine human husband idea Iolkos Jason and Medea kill her children king Korinth Korinthians Kreon later lines maenad Medea plays mention mind monologue moreover mother motif murder myth naive necessity Nurse Nurse's oaths Odysseus parodos passion Pausanias Pelias pides pity play poet poet's poisons portray present princess prologue question reason reference refuge reminded request reveals Roman audience scene Seneca Seneca's Medea sense slay spectator speech stage suffering sympathy theme threat tion total revenge tradition tragedy tragic vengeance victim wants wish woman words wrath