The Oresteia

The Furies, the Greek spirits of vengeance and punishment.

The Oresteia is a trilogy of plays consisting of Agamemnon, The Libation Bearers and The Eumenides.  These three plays are among the first plays in the Western tradition and are among seven of the surviving plays by Aeschylus.  It is a sequel to the Illiad, telling the story of Agamemnon's death at the hands of his wife (Clytamenestra) and her lover (Aegisthus), the death of  Clytamenestra and Aegisthus at the hands of Orestes and of Orestes's trial in Athens for his crime against his mother.  The trilogy serves as a origin story for Athens as a seat of justice and the end of an older form of justice, revenge killings.  

Clytamenestra has set up a series of signal lights so that she can be informed of the Greek victory in Troy.  With this knowledge she gets her trap ready for her husband back home.  When Agamemnon returns, he unloads his slave, Cassandra, and is greeted by the crowds which decline to inform Agamemnon of his wife's trap.  Agamemnon returns to his castle while Cassandra prophesies her upcoming death.  Cassandra enters the castle and is killed along with Agamemnon.  Clytamenestra then goes back out among the crowds and announces what she has done.  Her's and Agamemnon's son, Orestes, returns home and learns of his father's death at the hand's of Clytamenestra.  He then kills Clytamenestra and Aegisthus.  Upon spilling his mother's blood, Orestes is pursued by the Furies (Greek spirits of vengeance who seek out criminals especially those who harm their mothers).  Apollo, serving as Orestes's guardian, persuades the Furies to go to Athens and for Athena and a jury of Athenians to try Orestes for murder.  The Furies begrudgingly agree.  Orestes is found innocent (but only with a divine vote) and Athens establishes its home as a source of a new justice.  The Furies are enraged and believe that their loss in Athens will spell the end of a fear of retribution and a wave of crime.  The gods involved do not agree and save a spot for the Furies in the new order of justice.

The Oresteia is an important reminder that literature is more than just stories.  The Oresteia was written by an Athenian, performed by Athenians, for an Athenian audience.  It serves to praise Athens as the source of enlightenment.  Athens is above the traditional justice that plagues much of the rest of the world.  It alone serves as a source of new justice based on fairness, evidence, and trial by jury.  It serves to remind Athens of the clear break they have made with the past tradition.  It is a story of national egoism and patriotism.  While well written and dealing with important ethical issues, this should be remembered.