Impressive Beacons and Courtly Intrigue
Eliza Colbert
The description of the news of victory being spread by fire is captivating. On page 114, Clytaemnestra describes it in detail:
No time to waste, straining, fighting sleep,
That lookout heaved a torch glowing over
The murderous straits of Euripos to reach
Messapion’s watchmen craning for the signal,
Fire for word of fire! tense with the heather
Withered gray, they stack it, set it ablaze --
The hot fire of the beacon never flags
it springs the Plain of Asopos, rears
like a harvest moon to hit Kithairon’s crest
and drives new men to drive it on...
The language is exciting and communicates the urgency of the message the fire carries. It reminds me of a scene from The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. In this scene, a network of beacons are lit to send a message from one country to another. This doesn’t sound very exciting but the way that it is shown in the movie is very similar to the scene described by Clytaemnestra. Instead of simple words, think of sweeping shots of mountain ranges lighting up with pricks of fire backed by a magnificent soundtrack. This is the impressive scene we are supposed to envision for Clytaemnestra's message of fire.
It is a grand and legitimate way to send a message. Why then do the men doubt Clytaemnestra’s news? To her face, they praise her. But, as soon as she leaves, they voice their true feelings of doubt. This gives us a picture of what life at this palace is really like. Everyone says the right things, but they really think otherwise. The leader actually notices this about Clytaemnestra; “She speaks well, but it takes no seer to know / she only says what’s right” (126). Apparently, it takes one to know one. The leader can spot Clytaemnestra’s false words because he does the same thing. I haven’t read the whole story yet, but I have a feeling that this is going to be important.
P.S. I commented on Sophia's and AnnaKate's posts.
In case you're interested, this is the scene I was referring to. Skip to about 1 minute in if you just want to see the beacons being lit.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sIhnYFRu4ao
10/10 for Lord of the Rings references. When I read that I thought of the Beacons of Gondor, too!
ReplyDeleteClytaemnestra’s version of political correctness is surprising when you think about the fact that people in power were doing it even over 2,500 years ago. Aside from that, it just seems like business as usual. I think we can agree that most politicians when seen in public are choosing their words a thousand times more carefully than when they’re alone with their most trusted people, or maybe even expressing different opinions altogether. That’s simply what governing bodies do.
But our politicians are elected, of course, while Clytaemnestra is a monarch, so you wouldn’t think she would have to be quite as careful about political correctness. For that reason I agree, something is rotten in the state of Argos. The ten-year absence of the king (along with a significant majority of the male working class) has had its ill effects on everything, especially considering the events of his departure...