O CARÁTER HEROICO DO SACRIFÍCIO DE ALCESTE

Abstract

Among the most beautiful tragedies produced in the period of ancient Greece, we can find the plays of Euripides, an ancient Greek playwright, widely recognized for his outstanding and innovative work. His tragedies are known by the strong presence of the figure of the woman, not as a supporting role, but as the main character. One can recognize in one of his most acclaimed works, Alcestis, the existence of the remarkable dramatic figure of the woman. The book tells the story of King Admetus and his queen, Alcestis. Admetus, by desire of the gods, must die. However, his wife offers herself in sacrifice and dies in the place of her beloved husband. The aim of this study is to analyze the tragic figure of the woman in the Euripidean play and the sacrifice of Alcestis, besides exposing and explaining  how a female character is described as the heroine of the tragedy. For this, we will count on theories about the tragedy and the tragic hero, as the contributions of Kothe (1987), Touchard (1978), Bornheim (1963), Miranda (1995), Brandão (1985) and Frye (1973), besides previous publications about the act of heroism of Alcestis.