Female Deception in Hippolytus: The Ruin of Men Essay examples -- Gree

Female Deception in Hippolytus The Ruin of MenWorks Cited Missing In antique Greece, deceit was considered to be part of a womans nature and an inherent female characteristic. It was generally believed that a good woman was the result of the careful cultivation of her morals by her guardians, and if left(a) to her own devices, a woman was apt to be wicked. The deceit of wo manpower is a theme that shows up often in Ancient classic literature, and many Ancient Greek authors portray women as jealous, plotting, deceitful, and vengeful creatures capable of destroying the men affiliated with them. Hippolytus, a tragedy by Euripides, is an excellent example of the Greek notion of the semblance of women because it involves the deceit of a goddess as well as two women. In the beginning of the tragedy a very jealous Aphrodite delivers a self-serving defense of her actions as she prepares to punish the virgin Hippolytus. Aphrodites reason for wanting to castigate Hipp olytus is really quite selfish. She is extremely angry with him because he has sworn off physical have sex and he honors Artemis, the goddess of chastity rather than her, Aphrodite, the goddess of love. Scheming Aphrodite who made Phaedra, Hippolytus step-mother, Phaedra, fall in love with Hippolytus, decides to reveal Phaedras love because she knows that if Theseus, Hippolytus father, discovers Phaedras secret, all shall come out, the truth will be revealed, father shall slay son with curses, and Hippolytus will be ruined (line 43 and line44). As Aphrodite, who appears to be so hateful and cold, plots his demise she vengefully says, He Hippolytus does not know that the doors of goal are upon him, ... ...ent son. Although Theseus, unlike Hippolytus who was killed, still has his life, his life is now miserably filled with regret and guilt. The deception of women leads one man to his bitter death and another man to a life filled with remorse. Ultimately, the mens lives are ruined. In Hippolytus, three women, a goddess, a nurse, and a wife, each exemplify the Greek idea of the deceitful woman. Even though two of the women are from different social classes and positions and one of the women is an immortal goddess, they share something in common none of them foundation evade their inescapable, natural female inclination toward trickery and deception. All of these women surrender to their cunning, duplicitous sides, and the people who pay the price for their deceitful deeds are the men connected to them whose lives are completely shattered.