Medea Fifth Episode & Fifth Choral Ode Summary

• The Tutor enters with the boys and tells Medea the good news: the princess has agreed to let the boys stay in Corinth.
• Medea emits a wail of pain.
• The Tutor doesn't get what she's so sad about; he thought he was bringing good news.
• Medea tells him not to worry about it.
• She hugs the boys close to her and laments the fact that she won't see them grow up.
• Suddenly, Medea has a change of heart, telling the Chorus that she'll take the boys away with her instead of killing them.
• She changes her minds again, saying they must die.
• Medea goes back and forth a couple more times and finally decides that murdering her sons is necessary.
• She says that she knows she's doing evil, but that her passionate desire for revenge is stronger than her will.

Fifth Choral Ode

• The Chorus sings about the perils of parenthood.
• They talk about how wearying it is raising a child and how people without offspring are happier overall.
• They end by recognizing how terrible it is when a full grown child dies and question whether the joys of parenting are worth the potential for grief.