Thoughts on Electra from her sister

As we delve deeper into Sophocles’ Electra, I have discovered things about its characters that I could never have imagined on first reading. Most of the pre-conceived ideas I had about the play have been eliminated during our rehearsal process and I have begun to understand how complex this play really is. One of the questions that has challenged me is how we can find humanity in such a difficult play.

Electra herself is fixated on murder and while this may be difficult to relate to, we can still find humanity behind it all. It is odd to think that any person could be so fixed on an ultimate goal from which they never deviate but on deeper inspection, Electra becomes easier to understand. Electra is that person who places all their hopes in a single event that will change their lives. She believes that she will be happy when Orestes comes to avenge their father’s death. The ending of the play seems final, ‘the deed is done’, but during our creative process I think we have questioned whether the deed is ever done and if Electra will ever be happy. The final image of our production, with the three royal women, really exemplifies this uncertainty in my opinion.

I hate to mention the Leaving Cert, but I think that that exam has a lot to do with my initial reaction to chorus in this play. For the Leaving Cert, I had learnt a list of the chorus’ functions in Greek tragedies (they comment on the action etc.). Therefore when I read the text, I saw them simply as a group of women who collectively express their opinion on the action of the play. Now however, after watching the chorus develop in rehearsals, I appreciate that each member of the chorus is unique and distinctive. The actors have really succeeded in creating a group of believable individuals. They are very human in their dealings with Electra, they comfort her and guide her and also criticise her at times. I can relate to them because they are friends to Electra and act as friends would.

My own character, Chrysothemis, is probably the most human of all the play’s characters. I have discovered so much about her over the course of rehearsals. I no longer see her as simply cautious and fearful; I now understand her reasoning and motivations. She has chosen to live within the palace but I believe that in her heart she agrees with Electra and just does not have the purpose of mind to follow her. Though this might make her seem weaker than Electra, it also makes her more human. It is difficult for anybody to abandon physical comforts simply on a point of principle. Perhaps Electra takes the more admirable course of action in this play, but Chrysothemis certainly takes the more human one.

Since beginning this process, I have come to understand the importance of abandoning any previous notions about plays when rehearsing them. I think we have come up with a set of really authentic and relatable characters and I cannot wait to show our work to the world.

Róisín and Oisin, brother and sister, although they never meet in the play.

Róisín Egan