Agamemnon

Section 1: From the first line to Clytaemestra's: "Of all good things to wish this is my dearest choice"

The play opens on Agamemnon's palace in Argos. The time is just minutes before the fall of Troy. It is night. A lonely watchman on the roof of the palace, under the starry sky, soliloquizes about his weariness. He has been enlisted by the queen to look out for a beacon of fire, a signal that the war has finally come to an end. The Argive soldiers have been at Troy for ten years now. The Watchman's fatigue and melancholy encapsulate the sentiments of most of Argos. Her citizens have been awaiting the return of their compatriots and progeny for far too long. Many have almost lost hope.

The Watchman sees a light flare up in the distance. He compares it to dawn. He thinks first about the queen and her joy, then about the return of the king. Overcome with eagerness to relay the good news, he leaves to find the queen.

The Chorus enters and relates some history about the war and Argos. They mention Menelaus and Agamemnon, brothers, and describe their departure from Argos. Metaphorically, the war cries of the two kings become the shrieks of eagles after the loss of their young. The ostensible cause of the war-Helen's abd

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As they discuss whether or not and how to answer the first cry, the king is dealt a second blow. " We get a sense of this in several peculiar comments by the Chorus and some by Clytaemestra herself. Soon, the Chorus dissolves into several different, though equally ineffectual, voices. The queen's talent for narration resurfaces in this passage, as she delivers a stirring oration.

For a short time, the Chorus separates into several individuals. He tells the Chorus how he had all but despaired of every seeing Argos again. In this case, the lion is said to be Helen. The Watchman speaks of it, as does Clytaemestra numerous times. She has no choice but to face the inevitable slaughter. Clytaemestra being the most obvious, there is also Helen, the "cause" of the Trojan War in the eyes of the Chorus. Thus the pattern of treacherous and unfaithful women is rather unstable. Together, the Chorus and she can handle the affair quietly and officiously.

The tone of Agamemnon's as he enters should be well noted. At other times the Chorus appears as the actual embodiment of the state, voicing its general hopes and worries. Thus "night" denotes anything from the sorrowful state of the house of Atreus, to the kingdom, to the war.

Approximate Word count = 4996
Approximate Pages = 20 (250 words per page double spaced)

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