Last Act in Corinth: The Burial of Medea's Children (E. Med. 1378-83)

Abstract:Religious and historical aspects of Euripides' innovative aetiology for the cult of Medea's children (Med. 1378-83) have been much discussed; less attention has been paid to Medea's fear that an enemy might abuse her children's corpses and tomb if she does not bury them in Hera Acraea's precinct. An analysis of Medea's enemies in the play, of the practice of tomb- and corpse-violation in Greek culture, and of how beliefs about the spirits of biaiothanatoi and aôroi play out in tragedy elucidates this fear and sets it in its cultural context.