William Chiu

I found this poem to be the easiest read of all the poems we have encountered in the semester so far. It was also very convenient to have had read the other stories before concerning the details of the war in Troy. This gave me much needed insight into any parts that I found slightly confusing considering how the story actually begins with dialogue that requires prior knowledge to be aware of the happenings. The story also contains the names of many Greek beings such as the stories before. It becomes frustrating at times to try to remember all of the characters and their role and importance to the plot. Despite the appearance of so many characters, the spotlight is on Clytemnestra in a poem that is titled Agamemnon. The poem gives much needed support for women during the Greek times. Contrary to the depiction of women as weak and inferior to men in every way, Agamemnon shows us a wife who is clearly a man in all her characteristics if sex is not taken into account. This role reversal in addition to the well written translation makes the story a very enjoyable read in comparison to Ramayana.