Libation Bearers Religion

The Greek gods all had different, specialized functions. That isn't to say that one god couldn't play many different roles. In fact, this was usually the case. Thus, when Orestes calls upon Hermes and asks for his help, this is appropriate for many reasons. First of all, Hermes is the patron god of travelers and has perhaps been guiding Orestes on his "return from exile." Also, Hermes is the messenger god and the god who brings the souls of the dead down to the Underworld; thus, he can be counted on (if anyone can) to get a message down to his dad Agamemnon to let him know what's up. Finally, Hermes is also the god of trickery and deception. This will come into play later on, when Orestes uses deception to sneak into the palace of Argos and get his revenge.

A few lines later, Orestes calls on another god for help. This time it's Zeus, king of the gods, who watches over justice. By asking Zeus for vengeance, that's another way of Orestes making sure that his actions are justified.

In the ancient Greek world, the spirits of prominent individuals were sometimes worshipped after they died. These dead famous dudes were known as "heroes" and were usually associated with a particular location; the practice of worshipping them is known to modern scholars as "hero-cult" or, simply, "hero-worship." Here, Electra makes prayers to the spirit of her father Agamemnon as if he were a hero watching over Argos. Just as in a prayer to any other god, she asks him for help in this world.

Orestes has just been listening in on Electra's prayers, in which she asked the gods and the spirit of Agamemnon to bring him home. Now, when he makes himself known, Orestes acts as if Electra's prayers were fulfilled. Is he joking or being serious? If he's joking, is that an insult to the gods?

Now we see that mortals have some power over the gods. Here, Orestes is actually threatening Zeus, saying, "You better help us out, otherwise no more sacrifices for you." Although this sounds kind of funny to us, it isn't that different from the typical way in which the ancient Greeks related to their gods. This relationship was usually understood as being based on contracts, otherwise known as the concept of "You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours." Typically, the gods were asked to perform services for mortals; in return, mortals offered them prayers and promised them various sacrifices.

Here we see more hero-cult-type behavior in action (see our note on the third quotation from this section), this time combined with the sort of "You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours" thinking that we saw in the previous quotation. Orestes tells the spirit of his dad Agamemnon that he'll offer feasts and other goodies in his honor, if he just gets some help with his revenge project.

Have you ever heard the expression "The good Lord helps those who help themselves"? We at Shmoop think that this saying also fits pretty well with what the Chorus says here. It is also interesting to note how they use the idea of the gods to absolve the Nurse of responsibility for her role in the plot.

Once again, we get the idea of a contractual relationship between gods and mortals. The Chorus prays to Zeus to make Orestes successful; then, if Orestes is successful, he'll be even more able to offer awesome sacrifices to Zeus. Not a bad deal, huh?

Once again, specific gods are invoked to bring specific benefits. Here, the Chorus, who has used trickery to bring down Aegisthus and Clytemnestra, gives a tip of the hat to Hermes, the god of trickery. Is there anything else that could be said about these lines? What about the Chorus's observation that Hermes can be seen by night, but not by day? Does this apply just to Hermes, or to the gods in general? If it applies to the gods in general, how could this statement be connected to the idea that the gods help those who help themselves?

Orestes's final act in the play is also an act of devotion. This time, however, he is in more urgent need of divine help than ever before. Apollo (Loxias is just another one of his names) is the one who sent Orestes off on his mission; now Apollo is the only one who can take away the stain of killing his mother.