Horkos in the Oresteia
Horkos in the Oresteia
This chapter examines the thematic role of oaths in Aeschylus's Oresteia and how oaths were related to the Erinyes (also known as Curses, and midwives to the oath-god Horkos). It also considers how a series of flawed or failed oaths punctuates the action of the trilogy, eventually resulting in the establishment of the sworn tribunal of the Areopagus and giving rise to the sworn pledge of alliance offered by its first defendant, Orestes, to the Athenians of the future. The chapter discusses the recurrence of horkos throughout Oresteia, and also traces how the interconnection and evolution of oaths give meaning to the tragic events of the house of Atreus.
Keywords: oaths, Aeschylus, Oresteia, Erinyes, trilogy, Areopagus, alliance, Orestes, horkos, Atreus
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