Euripides' Electra reworks the story of the daughter of Agamemnon, who is married off to a poor farmer by her mother Clytemnestra and her stepfather Aegisthus after her father's murder. Electra waits for her exiled brother Orestes to return and avenge their father. When he arrives, in disguise, brother and sister recognize each other and plan the killing of Aegisthus and Clytemnestra. In Euripides' version, the matricide leaves both children troubled and exposed, and the gods appear at the end to resolve it. The play pushes the characters toward doubt rather than triumph.
It suits readers of Greek tragedy who want to compare Euripides' treatment of the myth with those of Aeschylus and Sophocles. It is compact and stageable.
Deep, contemplative, open-ended and thought-provoking; a moderate read.
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