Electra

Acts

• 0
  Act 0

  The complete text of Electra. Electra waits at the palace in Mycenae for her brother Orestes to return and avenge their father Agamemnon's murder.

  34 lines
• Prologue

  Orestes returns to Argos with his tutor and friend Pylades. They hear Electra's voice lamenting from within the palace.

  121 lines
• Parodos

  Electra has lived in degradation since her father's murder, mourning endlessly. The chorus urges her to moderate her grief.

  Not yet imported
• First Episode

  Electra refuses to stop mourning. She describes her life under Clytemnestra and Aegisthus — treated as a slave in her own house.

  34 lines
• First Stasimon

  The chorus affirms that justice will come. The spirit of Agamemnon cries out from the grave for vengeance.

  Not yet imported
• Clytemnestra

  Clytemnestra defends herself: she killed Agamemnon because he sacrificed Iphigenia. Electra demolishes the argument.

  42 lines
• Second Stasimon

  The chorus prays for the fulfilment of justice and reflects on the pattern of violence in the house of Atreus.

  Not yet imported
• Chrysothemis

  Electra's sister reports that Clytemnestra dreamed of Agamemnon's sceptre sprouting into a tree that overshadowed all Mycenae.

  29 lines
• The False Report

  Orestes' tutor arrives with a fabricated account of Orestes' death in a chariot race at the Pythian games.

  Not yet imported
• Third Stasimon

  Electra is shattered. Her last hope is gone. She resolves to act alone — she will kill Aegisthus herself.

  52 lines
• The Urn

  Orestes arrives carrying an urn supposedly containing his own ashes. Electra pours out her grief. Orestes, unable to bear it, reveals himself.

  Not yet imported
• Fourth Stasimon

  The chorus exults — the avenger has returned. The moment of justice is at hand.

  60 lines
• The Killing

  Clytemnestra's death-cry is heard. Electra urges Orestes on. Aegisthus returns and is led inside to die.

  3 lines