The Power Of Clytemnestra In Antigone's Agamemne

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The era in which Agamemnon takes plaice in one where masculinity and combat are many of the most emphasized aspects of society, where women in this society are usually forced to the foreground of decision-making and power. Women are therefore committed to the role of mourners and caretakers to simply perform the emotional clean up following war, although in many ways Clytemnestra overthrows this role. Clytemnestra’s strength lies in the fact that although she is a woman and has a certain sexual way over men, she is both masculine and more like men when viewed in terms if actions alone. At the beginning of Agamemnon the sentry remarks, “She commands it, whose strength of will is such that, if she were not our queen, she would be our tyrant.”…show more content…
Although Clytemnestra uses her intellect and ambition to acquire power she does it ambiguously by hurting others. Clytemnestra’s pre- conspired plan of murdering Agamemnon was well thought out and executed plan, considering she has spent ten years thinking of killing him for killing her daughter. Clytemnestra’s killing of Cassandra was not apart of her pre-mediated plan, it wasn’t until she saw Cassandra that she became enraged and jealous of Cassandra simply because she was the woman her husband was having an affair with. It can be argued that Clytemnestra did not mean to kill to her husbands mistress but her overwhelming feeling or rage and jealousy simply blinded her judgment “Cassandra – and who knows how many others have shared his bed? They deserve to die. She sang her little swan – song and I killed her, and rather enjoyed it, too. An extra treat!” (1216-1219). This is an obvious representation of Clytemnestra’s perception of Cassandra, and her hatred and rage towards her. Clytemnestra’s unjustified reasoning for killing Cassandra supports the belief revenge is not a justifiable excuse for justice, or in this case

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