Medea is a princess of Colchis, granddaughter of the sun god Helios, and a powerful practitioner of magic in Greek myth. She enables Jason to win the Golden Fleece, leaves her homeland, and later becomes the protagonist of Euripides’ Medea. Ancient authors disagree about several of her deeds, so the play’s plot is not the only surviving version.
Helping Jason
In Apollonius of Rhodes, the gods cause Medea to fall in love with Jason. She supplies drugs and instructions that let him yoke fire-breathing bulls, sow dragon’s teeth, and overcome the fleece’s guardian. Her knowledge, not Jason’s strength alone, makes the quest succeed.
Corinth in Euripides
After Jason abandons Medea to marry the daughter of Corinth’s king, Medea secures refuge and takes revenge. She kills the new bride and Creon with poisoned gifts, then kills her own sons before escaping in a chariot from Helios. The play makes her reasoning and pain central without excusing the murders.
Versions beyond the tragedy
Earlier and later accounts assign the children’s deaths differently, and Medea’s later story includes Athens and a return to Colchis. Modern summaries often label her only a jealous witch. That loses her status as exile, royal woman, healer, strategist, and dangerous agent within a tale about broken oaths and unequal power.