The present Dissertation aims to understand the many representations of the mythic character Helen, as they have been elaborated by the tragedian Euripides. Selected as sources for this research, three tragedies shall be analysed in our work: The Trojan Women (415 AD), Orestes (408 AD) , and Helen (412 AD). Whenever it may come necessary, we will use the other tragedies as supporting documents to the subject we are attending to endorse, for which we may appeal also to the works of Homer, Hesiod and the sophist Gorgias of Leontini, as well as the plays of other great tragedians from the Classical Athens, Aeschylus and Sophocles. By the utilization of the concept representation , which have been largely discussed by most historians in the last decades of 20th century, we will be intending to make an association between representation and other common concepts used by the New Social History, such as memory and mythology. This is due to the multiple understanding we can achieve over the character Helen as a mytheme as it is presented both in narrative and interpretations in the Greek mythological system as it was known in the Classical Athens. The image of Helen was reinterpreted by Euripides tragedy, mainly because Helen s Pan-Hellenic characteristics, which were determinant for the tragedian s work as a ideal condition guaranteed by its eminent poetic/narrative style. By reinventing his Helens, Euripides has increased through the tragic mimesis a particular representation which was intertwined with the mythic traditions and the poetical and philosophical view of his contemporaries.

Héracles is a very well known character of mythological narratives, its fame hasn’t been limited by the antiquity, even with all its popularity, it isn’t possible to define the mythological origin of this mythological hero. This research was limited to the understanding of how Heracles’ representation was used during the tragedies of the classic period. In order to accomplish it, the following data and pieces of work were used: Alcestis e Héracles de Euripides, e The Trachiniae e Philoctetes de Sóphocles - one of the few tragedies that were conserved along the time, using the image of this hero. This study points out the relevance of the tragic presentation activeness, its relation with the polis, as well as with the hero (representative of the political community), accomplishes, when it comes to its divine nature, the integration of social roles in a moment of war between the polis.

The current article draws on Judith Butler’s gender performativity theory to analyse two classical text of Greek Antiquity – the Bacchae by Euripides and The Republic by Plato. The concept of gender performativity will be used to illustrate analogously even anachronically, how much the Greek imaginary, in spite of being temporally distant, can fruitfully contribute to, what we would identify as one of the most sophisticated contemporary theories in contemporary gender studies, both as this imaginary emerges from the literary discourse of the tragedy or the discourse of philosophy. This will allow us to show how the two above mentioned texts can contribute to the contemporary debate on the critical theory of gender identity, as these are fixed in performative acts that make gender conform to anatomic sex, limiting gender to the two possibilities of masculine or feminine. Considering the historical context and the question that are specific to the world of Ancient Greece, our analysis will permit us to cast light, in particular, on the strategies that Plato and Euripides drew on to disrupt the gender norms of the polis. Examining the texts allows us to argue that in antiquity, as well as in the contemporary world, albeit in different ways, discussions of gender relations are fitted primarily by the political discourse regarding these relations.

The article aims to present an analysis of the scenes of the messengers-boukoloi in Euripides’ Iphigenia in Tauris (238-339) and Bacchae (660-774), highlighting, in the respective narratives and thanks to the comparison with other literary sources, similarities that could represent peculiar traits of a supposed stock character: 1.Alongside a description of the boukolos as a naive and highly suggestible man,exists an opposite characterization, which depicts the cowherd as a cunning and deceitful individual; 2. The facts narrated appear strange and unusual from the point of view of the narrators; 3. Both narratives report the description of the attack on cattle carried out by human beings, respectively Orestes and the Theban bacchants, made insane by divine possession. In the scene of the herd massacre, particularly, Orestes and the maenads are described as leon (IT 297) and kynes (Ba. 731), two animals traditionally linked to pastoral imaginary; however, their behaviour is unusual, further emphasizing the extraordinary nature of the eventsthat the two boukoloi witnessed.

The present report aims to verify the interest and fascination in classical myths by modern playwrights and directors and to present the reasons for their influence and relevance in Portuguese literature and theatre. To achieve these goals, the practical work held during the curricular internship was limited to Euripides for pragmatic reasons and it consisted of collecting, analysing, and commenting information about that tragedian’s productions performed in Portugal between the 20th and 21st centuries as an activity that will serve as assistance to the still ongoing digital database Thespis_CECH developed by the CECH of the University of Coimbra. The paper includes an introductory chapter where it is presented in a concise manner some literary concepts related to the reception of classic myths. Then there is a brief emphasis on international digital archives that influenced the creation of Coimbra’s database and on the contribution of these methods to the preservation of multiple (re)productions of ancient Greco-Latin theatre. It is presented on the second chapter the host entity of the curricular internship – the Centro de Estudos Clássicos e Humanísticos (CECH) of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities of the University of Coimbra –, the reason why the Centre was chosen as the institution for the internship and its goals so that knowledge is disclosed both nationally and internationally through various projects that complement each other, a digital library and open access seminars and classes. Lastly the report’s third chapter focuses on the work developed during the curricular internship between November 2022 and April 2023: there is an approach of Euripides’ most represented productions in Portugal, an explanation why it led them to be so produced and adapted and the benefits of a cooperative relationship between scholars and theatre companies. The report ends with finishing notes and with comments for future work.

The first part of the paper analyses the development of the notion of autochthony in Athens and the way it can be connected to the concepts of inclusion and exclusion, taking as reference the idea of citizenship, legitimate offspring and the right of property concerning the Attic soil (enktesis). The second part examines how the legal implications of these concepts are operative in Euripides’ Ion.

O presente artigo propõe uma análise de dois textos clássicos da Antiguidade grega, As Bacantes de Eurípedes e a República de Platão, à luz da teoria contemporânea de gender performativity de Judith Butler. O conceito de gender performativity será apropriado para ilustrar analogamente, mesmo que de forma anacrônica, o quanto que o imaginário grego, apesar de temporalmente distante, pode nos apresentar – seja a partir do discurso filosófico, seja a partir do discurso literário da tragédia grega – bons exemplos para uma das teorias mais sofisticadas, diríamos, no campo dos estudos de gênero hoje. A proposta é a de mostrar de que modo o conteúdo desses dois textos nos permite compreender o debate contemporâneo da teoria crítica das identidades de gênero. Trata-se de identidades fixadas em atos performativos que conformam o gênero ao sexo anatômico, limitando-o a duas possibilidades: masculino ou feminino. Considerando o contexto histórico e as questões que são próprias do mundo grego antigo, a análise aqui proposta nos permitirá jogar luz, especialmente, nas estratégias que Platão e Eurípedes empreenderam no sentido de deslocar as normas de gênero constituídas na pólis. O exame dos textos permitiu-nos identificar que na antiguidade, mas também na contemporaneidade, mesmo que de forma diferente, as discussões das relações de gênero estão ajustadas, principalmente, pelo discurso político a respeito dessas relações.

This dissertation is a literary-historical investigation about the images and representations of assemblies in Euripidean dramas, with emphasis on the reactions of characters to the very existence of the assembly and its deliberations. Therefore, the theme of this investigation is to analyze mentions of the assembly in the dramas, highlight criticism and negative reactions, and identify the agents of such criticism. Next, what is proposed is to identify the discursive intentions of such criticisms through the Discourse Analysis of Dominique Maingueneau, which will allow recognizing a possible reception in the audience. Such reception depends on a mapping of the criticisms of the assemblies, to identify the discursive continuities and discontinuities between the criticisms found in Euripidean dramas, and the ongoing polyad debate on democracy with an emphasis on the assembly as a democratic organ. The discussion of this dissertation is made in three chapters. In the first one, democracy in general is approached, and the Athenian assemblies in particular in the period of dramatic production of Euripides. In the second chapter, the assemblies in Euripides' dramas are presented, highlighted and analyzed. In the third chapter, the meanings of criticism of assemblies in Euripides' dramas are glimpsed in their context of enunciation through tools of Discourse Analysis and Pragmatic Analysis of Utterances. The criticisms of democracy observed are diverse: in Cyclops, the criticism of the difficulty in establishing consensus in the name of common needs; in Alcestis, the criticism of the political opposition that aims to disable and discredit the speaker; in Medea, the criticism of the decision-making environment, where thoughtless decisions are common; in Children of Heracles, the criticism of disobedience to sacred laws and the unequal weight of influence of some to the detriment of others; in Hippolytus, the criticism of obstacles to a fair trial; in Andromache, the criticism of the vulnerability of the people in the face of a false accusation, and the undue refusal that just people can defend themselves against false accusations; in Hecuba, the criticism of the manipulation of decisions by influential speakers, the transgression of divine laws, the rupture with allies and the misapplication of the concept of honor; in Supplicants, the criticism of the sick, unbalanced, silent assembly; in Electra, the criticism of prejudiced judgment, the implacable character of the people and restrictions on citizenship that ignore the precariousness of family relationships, as well as the difficulty of those who live in the countryside to get involved in political affairs; in Heracles, the criticism of the intrigues sown and the volatility of public opinion; in Trojan Women, the criticism of the prevalence of the private interests of distinguished citizens; in Iphigenia in Tauris, the reproach of the bad mood of the crowd, which is bad; in Ion, the criticism of the injustice of the deliberations of the assemblies of Athens, moved by jealousy and prejudice; in Helena, the critique of democracy, assemblies, isonomy and isegoria; in Phoenicia, the criticism of the possibility that citizens are sold, and that citizens circulate in public places; in Orestes, the criticism of opportunism, revenge, mob incitement, alienation, hostility, and the fickle, passionate and influential masses that deliberate; in Bacchae, the criticism of the ineffectiveness of the male polyad government; and in Iphigenia in Aulis, the criticism of the obstinacy in unjust deliberations, which sacrifice those whose deliberation did not pass through their adhesion, without the possibility of arguing, since they are excluded from the decision-making processes.

One of the central aspects in the action of Euripides’ Alcestis resides in the mutually reciprocal principles of paidotrophia and gerotrophia, and in the ethical and legal obligations deriving from them. However, their application to the Euripidean drama forces the characters to face the need of developing a self-excusing argumentation, whose inconsistency and fragile legitimacy expose the partiality of their reasonings and the cowardice of Pheres’ and Admetus’ behaviour.