The Libation Bearers · Character

Orestes

Exiled son of Agamemnon returns in traveler's rags to a father's grave, carrying a tress of hair and an oath sworn in Phôkis.

major

Also known as Orestes Strophe, Orestes Listen, Orestes Ho, little Orestes, Ho

First appearance: the libation bearers

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Raised in the hills of Phôkis by Strophius after being plundered and cast out in childhood, Orestes comes home a stranger to the very house he must save. He has sworn to divide his hair between the river Inachos and his murdered father's tomb, and he clings to that oath as the one thing enemies could not take. His dilemma is the play's engine: accept a blood-price and live comfortably, or, like a wild bull driven from the herd, demand a life for a life. He chooses the harder path, and the cost is written into his own mind.

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Character Web

14 connections

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Relationship types

Family
Psychological

Character groups

Protagonist
Agamemnon's family and victims
Mythological parallels of vengeance
Divine and mortal agents of fate

+9 more in the full Character Web

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Relationships

Electra
family · positive
Clytemnestra
family · negative
Agamemnon
family · positive
Zeus
psychological · positive
Apollo
professional · positive
Pylades
friendship · positive
Cassandra
psychological · ambivalent
Loxias
professional · positive
Hermês
professional · positive
Althaea
psychological · negative
Strophius
family · positive
Skylla
psychological · negative

Electra
Siblings reunited in shared grief and a plot for revenge against their mother.
Clytemnestra
Mother and son locked in a deadly conflict over the murder of Agamemnon.
Agamemnon
Dead father whose murder drives Orestes' quest for vengeance.
Zeus
Orestes appeals to Zeus for justice and support in his divine mission of revenge.
Apollo
Apollo commands Orestes to avenge his father and promises divine protection.
Pylades
Loyal companion who stands by Orestes during the murder plot.
Cassandra
Cassandra's prophetic warnings about the house of Atreus foreshadow Orestes' fate.
Loxias
Loxias (Apollo) is the god who commands and guides Orestes' revenge.
Hermês
Hermes is invoked by Orestes as a guide and helper in his mission.
Althaea
Althaea is used as a mythological parallel to Clytemnestra's maternal betrayal.
Strophius
Strophius is Orestes' uncle who sheltered him in exile.
Skylla
Skylla is referenced as a mythological example of a treacherous woman, paralleling Clytemnestra.

Relationship notes

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In the story

Orestes appears across 1 companion beat. Open any chapter in the free preview to see the notes beside the text.

Endnotes

Chapter companion notes

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See Orestes in the libation bearers