Source edition
Euripides. Euripidis Fabulae, Vol. III. Murray, Gilbert, editor. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1913. (Reprinted 1920-1978)
Source data
Perseus Digital Library · CC BY-SA 4.0
Cloned and adapted by Humanitext, with ongoing edits.
Summary
This Greek tragedy depicts the harrowing fate of Orestes and his sister Electra after Orestes murders their mother to avenge their father, Agamemnon. Suffering from madness inflicted by the Furies for his matricide, Orestes faces the imminent threat of being sentenced to death by the citizens of Argos. The siblings desperately seek help from their uncle Menelaus, newly returned from Troy, but he betrays them, and the citizen assembly ultimately condemns them to death. Driven to despair, Orestes and Electra, along with their loyal friend Pylades, plot to assassinate Menelaus's wife, Helen, and take her daughter, Hermione, hostage as revenge. As the plan spirals into chaos, Orestes confronts Menelaus from the palace roof, holding a sword to Hermione's throat. Just as a bloody clash seems inevitable, the god Apollo suddenly appears to deliver a divine decree, miraculously resolving the conflicts and bringing an end to the curse of the House of Atreus.