Electra · Concepts

Concepts

Ideas that structure Electra by Sophocles — linked to characters, chapters, and questions.

Vengeance and justice
Electra treats matricide not as melodrama but as a problem: when law fails, does private revenge restore order or poison the house?
Familial loyalty and betrayal
Electra and Chrysothemis embody two survival strategies — public fidelity to the dead father versus quiet accommodation with the killers.
Grief and mourning
Electra’s mourning is political — she refuses to let Agamemnon’s murder become ordinary history.
Deception and disguise
Orestes’ return depends on disguise, false news, and a trap — deception serves Apollo’s command and Electra’s delayed hope.