Medea

Medea is a figure in Greek mythology, a sorceress from Colchis, the daughter of King Aeëtes and granddaughter of Helios. She is best known for aiding Jason and the Argonauts in their quest for the Golden Fleece and for her formidable magical powers.

In the myths, Medea falls in love with Jason and helps him complete the tasks set by her father, such as yoking the sacred fire-breathing bulls and sowing dragon's teeth that sprout armed warriors. She uses her sorcery to secure Jason's aid and to ensure their departure from Colchis, and she later flees with him, betraying her kin.

Afterward they settle in Corinth, where Jason marries Glauce, daughter of Creon, prompting Medea to exact vengeance. In Euripides' tragedy Medea kills Glauce and Creon, and then slays her own children to wound Jason. She escapes in a chariot drawn by dragons, sent by her grandfather Helios.

As a character, Medea has been interpreted as the emblem of female power and cunning as well as a figure of revenge, complicating simple judgments about heroism and villainy. Her story has been retold and reinterpreted across ancient and modern literature, theater, and film, making her one of the enduring subjects of Greek myth.

In classical sources, she appears in Apollonius Rhodius' Argonautica and in Euripides' tragedy, with later authors such as Seneca, and many later adaptations exploring themes of loyalty, betrayal, and gender dynamics.