Brendan’s Reviews > The Oresteia: Agamemnon, The Libation Bearers, The Eumenides > Status Update
Brendan
is on page 131 of 336
“But Justice shines in sooty hovels, / loves the decent life. / From proud halls crusted with gilt by filthy hands / she turns her eyes to find the pure in spirit — / spurning the wealth stamped counterfeit with praise, / she steers all things towards their destined end.
— Sep 15, 2025 07:09PM
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Brendan’s Previous Updates
Brendan
is on page 262 of 336
Athena exhorts the Athenians:
“Neither anarchy nor tyranny, my people. / Worship the Mean, I urge you, / shore it up with reverence and never / banish terror from the gates, not outright. / Where is the righteous man who knows no fear? / The stronger your fear, your reverence for the Just, / the stronger your country’s wall and city’s safety, / stronger by far than all men else possess”
— Sep 16, 2025 08:35PM
“Neither anarchy nor tyranny, my people. / Worship the Mean, I urge you, / shore it up with reverence and never / banish terror from the gates, not outright. / Where is the righteous man who knows no fear? / The stronger your fear, your reverence for the Just, / the stronger your country’s wall and city’s safety, / stronger by far than all men else possess”
Brendan
is on page 119 of 336
Aeschylus, who personally fought in multiple wars, describes the hollowness even of victory for the survivors:
“All through Greece for those who flocked to war / they are holding back the anguish now, / you can feel it rising now in every house; / I tell you there is much to tear the heart. / They knew the men they sent, / but now in place of men / ashes and urns come back / to every hearth.”
— Sep 15, 2025 06:39PM
“All through Greece for those who flocked to war / they are holding back the anguish now, / you can feel it rising now in every house; / I tell you there is much to tear the heart. / They knew the men they sent, / but now in place of men / ashes and urns come back / to every hearth.”
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Sep 15, 2025 07:12PM
One really rewarding part of reading the great epics (Iliad, Odyssey, and Aeneid) and tragedies in quick succession is noting the shifting of ethos across time. The Iliad still retains, in part, a Bronze Age celebration of violence and retribution, whereas, by the time of Aeschylus, the focus is on *law*. It cannot be overstated how important and revolutionary that shift was — nor should it be overestimated how easy it is to maintain.
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