Critical Lens Persuasive Essay
Many times in life, people seek vengeance on one another because they think it’s the right thing, when it’s wrong. However revenge is too tempting there for one cannot retain it. In many situations the person seeking revenge not only hurts themselves but everyone amongst them. Mahatma Gandhi confirms this when he says “An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind”. This means, from revenge you only end up impairing everyone from the resentful wrongs you perform. Some may agree or disagree with this quote.
Euripides shows this quote being true in his play Medea. In the play Medea, the main character Medea is extreme on seeking revenge on her ex-husband, Jason. Jason has left her and their two sons Creon and Creusa for the daughter of the Cornith King. Medea is livid with this action from Jason. Since Jason and the Cornith King(Ceron) are frightened by Medea they decide that her and the children are to be banished from the kingdom. This just makes Medea even more furious towards Jason.
The nurse characterizes Medea as being in pain and anguish that she is suffering through the terrible time of Jason leaving her. She also says how Medea is so angry with Jason and his betrayal she is treacherous. This is shown to be true when she plans to kill Ceron and Creusa to punish Jason for betraying her. Heartlessly she kills them to seek revenge on him. She thought hurting Jason meant more to her than her children did even though she loved them. Her plan was to seek retribution upon Jason as she did.
Her seeking revenge hurt everyone even though she was proud that she had accomplished making Jason hurt, she had and domestic conflict killing her own children whom she loved very much. As Mahatma Gandhi said “An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind”, he showed in any situation of seeking vengeance on someone it will end up hurting everyone. In the play Medea, Euripides illustrates this to be true showing how Medea kills her children and hurts Jason and others who loved them and even her internally. Medea ended up hurting Jason and the people she was sourrounded by, by her fanatical actions.
