What are the themes of the Oresteia?
A. There are three main themes in the Oresteia. The first theme concerns justice. It establishes a way to resolve deadly matters; both within the family and within a city. Another theme involves politics. Aeschylus wrote the trilogy to comment both the internal and the foreign political actions of Athens. Internally, it is about the Athenian Areopagus council. In 462 BC, four years before Aeschylus wrote the Oresteia (in 458 BC), Ephialtes removed the political power that the council possessed. This created a storm of controversy and the dramatist reflected on this in the “Eumenides”. Aeschylus’ view on the Areopagus is ambiguous. Some scholars think that he favored Ephialtes’ policy, while others disagree. No one knows for sure. To a lesser extent, the Oresteia concerns the foreign policy of Athens. Aeschylus wished to comment favorably the alliance between Athens and Argos signed in 464 BC. In that period, there was a debate in Athens whether the city should ally itself with its trad
