The themes of MedeaMedea, a play by the Greek playwright Euripides, explores the Greek-barbarian dichotomy through the character of Medea, a princess from the "barbarian" land, or not Greek of Colchis. Over the course of the play it becomes apparent to the reader that Medea is not a normal woman by Greek standards. At the heart of the entire plot are Medea's barbaric origins and how they are connected to her actions. In this article, I try to answer questions such as how Medea behaves as a woman, how she behaves heroically from a male point of view, why she killed her children, whether she could have achieved her goal without killing them, whether the murder he was motivated by his barbaric origins and the way he deals with the pain resulting from the killing of his children. As an introduction to the work, the status of women in Greek society should be briefly discussed. In general, women had very few rights. In the eyes of men, the main purposes of women in Greek society were to perform household chores such as cooking and cleaning and to bear children. They could not vote, own property or choose a husband and had to be represented by men in all legal proceedings. In a way, these Greek women were almost like slaves. There is a precise relationship between this subordination of women and what emerges in the show. Jason decides that he wants to divorce Medea and marry the princess of Corinth, setting Medea aside as if they had never been married. This type of activity was acceptable by Greek standards and shows the subordinate status of the woman, who had no say in matters such as this. Even though some of Medea's actions were not typical of the average Greek woman, she still had attitudes and emotions common among women. For example, Medea speaks out against the status of women in society, proclaiming that they have no choice in who they marry, and that a man can get rid of a woman to take another whenever he wants, but a woman must always "keep [her] eyes on one." (231-247) While it is unlikely that women went around openly saying things like this, it is likely that this attitude was shared by most or all Greek women. Later in the play, Medea argues with herself about whether or not to kill her children: "Poor heart, let them go, have mercy on them."