Alcestis is one of the earliest surviving works of the Greek playwright Euripides. The play was probably first produced at the Dionysia in the year 438 BC, well into the author's career. It is sometimes characterized as a satyr play and sometimes as a melodrama. A statue of Euripides Euripides (Greek: Ευριπίδης) (c. ... Lycian Apollo, early Imperial Roman copy of a fourth century Greek original (Louvre Museum) In Greek and Roman mythology, Apollo (Ancient Greek , Apóllōn; or , Apellōn), the ideal of the kouros (a beardless youth), was the archer-god of medicine and healing, light, truth, archery and also a... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... A princess in Greek mythology, Alcestis (might of the home) was known for her love for her husband. ... In Greek mythology, Admetus was a king of Pherae in Thessaly, succeeding his father Pheres after whom the city was named. ... Eumelus was the name of several men in Greek mythology: A Eumelus succeeded Adrastus as the King of Pherae. ... Hercules, a Roman bronze (Louvre Museum) For other uses, see Heracles (disambiguation). ... In Greek Mythology, Pheres son of Cretheus was the founder of Pherae in Thessaly. ... Pherae was an ancient Greek city in Thessaly. ... Map showing Thessaly periphery in Greece Thessaly (Θεσσαλια; modern Greek Thessalía; see also List of traditional Greek place names) is one of the 13 peripheries of Greece, and is further sub-divided into 4 prefectures. ... Template:Unsourced A playwright, also known as a dramatist, is someone who writes dramatic literature or drama. ... A statue of Euripides Euripides (Greek: Ευριπίδης) (c. ... The Dionysia was a large religious festival in ancient Athens in honour of the god Dionysus, the central event of which was the performance of tragedies and comedies. ... Centuries: 6th century BC - 5th century BC - 4th century BC Decades: 480s BC 470s BC 460s BC 450s BC 440s BC - 430s BC - 420s BC 410s BC 400s BC 390s BC 380s BC Years: 443 BC 442 BC 441 BC 440 BC 439 BC - 438 BC - 437 BC 436 BC... Satyr plays were an ancient Greek form of comedy, similar to the modern-day burlesque style. ... Poster for The Perils of Pauline (1914). ...

The Set-Up

Long before the start of the play, King Admetus was granted by the Fates the privilege of living past the allotted time of his death. The Fates were persuaded by the god Apollo (who got them drunk). This unusual bargain was struck after Apollo was exiled from Olympus for nine years and spent the time in the service of the Thessalian king, a man renowned for his hospitality and by whom Apollo was treated well. The gift, however, comes with a price: Admetus must find someone to take his place when Death comes to claim him. In Greek mythology, the white-robed Moirae or Moerae (Greek Μοίραι – the Apportioners, often called the Fates) were the personifications of destiny (Roman equivalent: Parcae, sparing ones, or Fatae; also equivalent to the Germanic Norns). ... Lycian Apollo, early Imperial Roman copy of a fourth century Greek original (Louvre Museum) In Greek and Roman mythology, Apollo (Ancient Greek , Apóllōn; or , Apellōn), the ideal of the kouros (a beardless youth), was the archer-god of medicine and healing, light, truth, archery and also a... This article is about the mountain in Greece. ... For the Venetian Snares album of the same name, see Hospitality (album) Illustration by Arthur Rackham, Hunding and Sieglinde offering hospitality to Siegmund Hospitality refers to the relationship process between a guest and a host, and it also refers to the act or practice of being hospitable, that is, the...

The time of Admetus' death comes, and he still has not found a willing replacement. His father, Pheres, is unwilling to step in and thinks it is ludicrous that he should be asked to give up the life he enjoys so much as part of this strange deal. Finally, his devoted wife Alcestis agrees to be taken in his stead because she wishes not to leave her children fatherless or be bereft of her lover, and at the start of the play, she is close to death.

The plot

Alcestis, on her death-bed, requests that in return for her sacrifice, Admetus never again marry, nor forget her or place a resentful stepmother in charge of their children. Admetus agrees to this, and also promises to lead a life of solemnity in her honor, abstaining from the merrymaking that was an integral part of his household. Alcestis then dies. A princess in Greek mythology, Alcestis (might of the home) was known for her love for her husband. ... In Greek mythology, Admetus was a king of Pherae in Thessaly, succeeding his father Pheres after whom the city was named. ...

Just afterwards, Admetus' old friend Heracles arrives at the palace, having no idea of the sorrow that has befallen the place. Hospitality is considered a great virtue, in fact it remains the main motivation for the characters throughout the play. It would be against all manners to turn a guest away, so the king decides not to burden him with the sad news and instructs the servants to make Heracles welcome and keep their mouths shut. By doing this, Admetus breaks his former promise to Alcestis to abstain from merrymaking during the period that follows her death. Heracles gets drunk and begins irritating the servants, who loved their queen and are bitter at not being allowed to mourn her properly. Finally, one of the servants snaps at the guest and tells him what has happened. Hercules, a Roman bronze (Louvre Museum) For other uses, see Heracles (disambiguation). ...

Heracles is terribly embarrassed at his blunder and his bad behavior, and he decides to ambush and confront Death when the funerary sacrifices are made at Alcestis' tomb. When he returns, he brings with him a veiled woman whom he tells Admetus he has brought for his host as a new wife. After much discussion he finally forces Admetus to reluctantly take her by the hand, but when he lifts the veil, he finds that it appears to be, in fact, Alcestis, back from the dead. Heracles has battled Death and forced him to give her up. She cannot speak for three days after which she will be purified and fully restored to life.

Motivations

Some of the decisions by the characters in the play could raise some questions. Hospitality was considered a great virtue among the Greeks, that is why Admetos cannot send Heracles away from his house. In turn as a reward Heracles returns Alcestis to him.

CRITICS

Critical Reception Critics find the Alcestis a richly rewarding play in many areas. D. J. Conacher explores how Euripides expanded the myth of Admetus and Alcestis, adding comic and folk tale elements to suit the needs of his tragedy. Charles Rowan Beye, too, discusses legendary and fairy tale aspects of the play. Another issue in Alcestis studies is how to categorize the work; because it mingles tragic and comic elements, can it be considered a satyr-play? D. J. Conacher and others investigate this problem. The Alcestis is also a popular text for women's studies. Numerous critics point out that the story is far more about Admetus than it is about Alcestis; Charles Segal, for example, has written of the play's patriarchal dimension. The nature of sacrifice, especially in ancient times, has been variously analyzed by Nancy Sorkin Rabinowitz, Philip Vellacott, and Anne Pippin Burnett, who explain that ancient Greek morality differed considerably from that of the present day. Modern interpretations of the play have been extremely varied, so much so that critics including Ann Norris Michelini and Kiki Gounaridou find them notable for their failure to agree on much of anything. Gounaridou believes this is fitting, positing that Euripides meant for the play to be understood in many different ways. The psychologies and motivations of Admetus and Alcestis are especially disputed, with the question of Admetus's selfishness strongly contested.

Translations

• Arthur S. Way, 1912 - verse
• Richard Aldington, 1930 - prose and verse: full text
• Augustus T. Murray, 1931 - prose
• Moses Hadas and John McLean, 1936 - prose
• Richmond Lattimore, 1955 - verse
• William Arrowsmith, 1974, verse
• David Kovacs , 1994 - prose: full text

	Plays by Euripides Cyclops | Alcestis | Medea | Heracleidae | Hippolytus | Andromache | Hecuba | The Suppliants | Electra | Heracles | The Trojan Women | Iphigeneia in Tauris | Ion | Helen | Phoenician Women | Orestes | Bacchae | Iphigeneia at Aulis | Rhesus (spurious)