Riassunto
Riassunto di Le Argonautiche
A chi è rivolto
For readers who love myth, sea voyages and the roots of the Western adventure tale, and for anyone who has met Jason or Medea in other works.
Che cos’è questo libro
The Argonautica is a Greek epic poem about the voyage of Jason and his crew to the edge of the known world to bring back the Golden Fleece. It was written by Apollonius of Rhodes in the third century BC, in the learned world of Alexandria, where he is said to have worked with the great Library. It runs to four books of hexameter verse, the same meter Homer used.
Apollonius wrote for readers who knew Homer well and who loved old stories told with fresh eyes. His hero is not Achilles or Odysseus. Jason is a young man sent on a task that looks like a trap, with no great strength or cunning of his own. Around him sail some of the best-known heroes of Greece, and above him the gods quarrel and scheme. The poem gives you a ship story, a map of the Black Sea in myth, and one of the first great love stories in Greek poetry.
In about fifteen minutes you will hear how the voyage begins, what the Argonauts meet on the way, and why the king of Colchis is so hard to deal with. You will also meet Medea, whose part in the tale becomes the center of the poem. Let us start where the story starts, with a king who wants a rival out of the way.
In questo riassunto
- 1A king sends Jason on a doomed errandFree
- 2A crew of heroes gathers and sails
- 3Lemnos, Cyzicus and the loss of Hylas
- 4Fists, Harpies and a blind prophet
- 5Through the Clashing Rocks and along the Black Sea coast
- 6The gods set Medea's heart on fire
- 7Medea's struggle between duty and desire
- 8The bulls, the dragon teeth and the stone
- 9What the poem is about and how it is told
Punto chiave 1 di 9
A king sends Jason on a doomed errand
The story begins in Iolcus, a city in Thessaly in northern Greece. The king, Pelias, has taken the throne by force, and an oracle has warned him to beware a man with one sandal. When Jason arrives in the city missing a sandal, lost while crossing a river, Pelias knows who he is.
Pelias does not kill Jason openly. Instead he sets him a task that seems impossible. He tells Jason to sail to Colchis, a land at the far eastern end of the Black Sea, and bring home the Golden Fleece. This was the fleece of a flying ram that had once carried a boy named Phrixus to safety, and it now hangs in a grove guarded by a sleepless serpent.
Jason does not refuse. He sends heralds through Greece to call for volunteers, and the goddess Hera, who has her own reasons to favor him, helps put courage into the best men of the age. Apollonius treats this call as the first sign of how the poem will work. The gods stay near the story, but the human choices are what we watch.
A ship has to be built, and the builder is Argus, working with the guidance of Athena. The vessel takes its name from him and is called the Argo. It is described as a ship with a special beam of speaking timber, a gift from the goddess, that can give advice during the voyage. The launch is a scene full of ritual, with sacrifice, prayer and the whole city on the shore.
This opening already shows what kind of poem you have in your hands. It is practical and detailed about ships, oars, omens and sacrifices. It also keeps a quiet doubt about Jason himself. He is set up to fail, and the reader wonders how he will survive.
That’s 1 of 9 key points.
The rest of the summary, written and spoken, and the whole book: free to start.
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Who’s who
- Jason
- A young prince sent by Pelias to fetch the Golden Fleece, he leads a crew of celebrated heroes.
- Medea
- Aeetes's daughter and a priestess of Hecate, she struggles between loyalty to her family and love for Jason.
- Aeetes
- The king of Colchis and Medea's father, he guards the fleece and sets Jason a dangerous trial.
- Pelias
- The king of Iolcus fears an oracle and sends Jason on a voyage intended to destroy him.
- Heracles
- The strongest hero among the Argonauts, he accepts Jason as the leader of their expedition.
- Orpheus
- A renowned Thracian singer among Jason's companions, he coordinates the rowers and calms disputes with music.
- Phineus
- A blind prophet tormented by Harpies, he offers Jason and his companions vital advice about their route.
- Hera
- The queen of the gods protects Jason and works with Athena and Aphrodite on his behalf.
About this edition
Every format is free to start, and print and large print are at cost.
- LengthAbout 62,000 words
- Reading timeAbout 4 h 10 min
- Listening time6 h 55 min
- FormatseBook, large-print eBook, audiobook, 15-minute summary
- LanguagesEnglish and 14 other languages