--- product_id: 59696178 title: "Medea and Other Plays : Medea; Hecabe; Electra; Heracles (Penguin Classics)" price: "€ 27.60" currency: EUR in_stock: true reviews_count: 13 url: https://www.desertcart.be/products/59696178-medea-and-other-plays-medea-hecabe-electra-heracles-penguin-classics store_origin: BE region: Belgium --- # 2500+ years timeless relevance 4 classic Greek tragedies same-day dispatch before noon Medea and Other Plays : Medea; Hecabe; Electra; Heracles (Penguin Classics) **Price:** € 27.60 **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Summary > 🔥 Own the timeless power of human drama — before everyone else does! ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** Medea and Other Plays : Medea; Hecabe; Electra; Heracles (Penguin Classics) - **How much does it cost?** € 27.60 with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.be](https://www.desertcart.be/products/59696178-medea-and-other-plays-medea-hecabe-electra-heracles-penguin-classics) ## Best For - Customers looking for quality international products ## Why This Product - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Key Features - • **Deep Cultural Insight:** Includes an insightful introduction to enrich your understanding after reading. - • **Fast & Secure Delivery:** Order before noon for same-day dispatch with guaranteed protective packaging. - • **Epic Greek Drama Quartet:** Four iconic plays by Euripides capturing raw human emotion and timeless conflict. - • **Collector’s Mint Condition:** Brand new, pristine edition perfect for your curated bookshelf or gifting. - • **Accessible Modern Translation:** Philip Vellacott’s clear, engaging translation makes ancient tragedy instantly relatable. ## Overview This Penguin Classics edition compiles four of Euripides’ most devastating Greek tragedies—Medea, Hecabe, Electra, and Heracles—translated by Philip Vellacott. Celebrated for pioneering human-centered storytelling, these plays explore betrayal, revenge, and moral complexity with unmatched emotional intensity. Delivered in mint condition with fast, reliable shipping, this collection is a must-have for lovers of classic literature and dramatic arts. ## Description Medea/Hecabe/Electra/Heracles Four devastating Greek tragedies showing the powerful brought down by betrayal, jealousy, guilt and hatred The first playwright to depict suffering without reference to the gods, Euripides made his characters speak in human terms and face the consequences of their actions. In Medea , a woman rejected by her lover takes hideous revenge by murdering the children they both love, and Hecabe depicts the former queen of Troy, driven mad by the prospect of her daughter's sacrifice to Achilles. Electra portrays a young woman planning to avenge the brutal death of her father at the hands of her mother, while in Heracles the hero seeks vengeance against the evil king who has caused bloodshed in his family. Translated with an Introduction by PHILIP VELLACOTT Review: Medea by Euripides - This Review is for Medea only. This was my first Greek Tragedy as I continue my journey through classic literature. I expected a play that would be hard to understand but I was pleasantly surprised. I picked the penguin edition because it has other plays in too and the translation was easy to read. The author Euripides was born in 484 BC and he was from Athens. I read a play that is 2500 years old. Wow. Medea is a scorned woman. Her lover and father of her two children Jason has married a princess and left them. Medea is furious and the play is about her revenge. It's shocking stuff. She doesn't hold back. Medea is ripped apart by Jason's betrayal and cannot let it go without punishment. It's gripping right from the beginning and the action never faltered. Those that have experienced cheating partners will understand the devastation. However a sensible person would not go to the great lengths Medea goes to for revenge. Moving forward to a happy place is far better than reeking havoc and revenge. It's a quick play. I read it in an hour and really enjoyed it. I will delve deeper into Greek Tragedy now. Review: Accessible and engaging Greek tragedy - The plays collected here differ in structure and tone, and the introduction to this work - which I recommend reading piecemeal AFTER one has read the plays concerned - is very informative. These are plays where a student of dramaturgy, or someone casually interested in the plays here (and how they have informed much cultural production in the millennia after their creation) can find much to enjoy. I suggest reading the short introductions to each play after one has read them and gathered one's own thoughts about them, so as not to be too directed by critical attentions. What is more important with plays of this sort than anything else, is for you to first engage with them as they are, as you come to them, and only then seek out what others think. This is because, these plays being as famous as they are, it is easy to be swayed by the wealth of critical opinions - and there are many very fine companion books one can find to broaden one's engagement with this. But you, dear reader, whomever you are, you also have the capacity to engage creatively with the plays here, and these words must come to you directly (through the medium of able translation) before additional illuminations from the introductions or other critical discussions come to expand and augment that which you experience first. These are plays to read aloud, to hear the prosody and the force of character. Enjoy yourself! ## Features - New - Mint Condition - Dispatch same day for order received before 12 noon - Guaranteed packaging - No quibbles returns ## Technical Specifications | Specification | Value | |---------------|-------| | Best Sellers Rank | 49,556 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) 11 in Dramas & Play Themes & Subjects (Books) 71 in Drama & Play Types (Books) 329 in Fiction Anthologies (Books) | | Customer Reviews | 4.5 out of 5 stars 403 Reviews | ## Images ![Medea and Other Plays : Medea; Hecabe; Electra; Heracles (Penguin Classics) - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81QuhwYDu0L.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Medea by Euripides *by P***S on 29 April 2020* This Review is for Medea only. This was my first Greek Tragedy as I continue my journey through classic literature. I expected a play that would be hard to understand but I was pleasantly surprised. I picked the penguin edition because it has other plays in too and the translation was easy to read. The author Euripides was born in 484 BC and he was from Athens. I read a play that is 2500 years old. Wow. Medea is a scorned woman. Her lover and father of her two children Jason has married a princess and left them. Medea is furious and the play is about her revenge. It's shocking stuff. She doesn't hold back. Medea is ripped apart by Jason's betrayal and cannot let it go without punishment. It's gripping right from the beginning and the action never faltered. Those that have experienced cheating partners will understand the devastation. However a sensible person would not go to the great lengths Medea goes to for revenge. Moving forward to a happy place is far better than reeking havoc and revenge. It's a quick play. I read it in an hour and really enjoyed it. I will delve deeper into Greek Tragedy now. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Accessible and engaging Greek tragedy *by D***E on 17 March 2023* The plays collected here differ in structure and tone, and the introduction to this work - which I recommend reading piecemeal AFTER one has read the plays concerned - is very informative. These are plays where a student of dramaturgy, or someone casually interested in the plays here (and how they have informed much cultural production in the millennia after their creation) can find much to enjoy. I suggest reading the short introductions to each play after one has read them and gathered one's own thoughts about them, so as not to be too directed by critical attentions. What is more important with plays of this sort than anything else, is for you to first engage with them as they are, as you come to them, and only then seek out what others think. This is because, these plays being as famous as they are, it is easy to be swayed by the wealth of critical opinions - and there are many very fine companion books one can find to broaden one's engagement with this. But you, dear reader, whomever you are, you also have the capacity to engage creatively with the plays here, and these words must come to you directly (through the medium of able translation) before additional illuminations from the introductions or other critical discussions come to expand and augment that which you experience first. These are plays to read aloud, to hear the prosody and the force of character. Enjoy yourself! ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Not Exactly Cheery! *by M***Y on 27 October 2007* Euripides wasn't exactly known for his light hearted approach to drama, but these are exciting plays. Short, pithy and to the point, violent, grim human dramas, the gut wrenching positions in which the characters find themselves evoke empathy even after all these centuries. Because of their humanity it saves the plays from some of the ridiculous situations and conventions that Greek drama of the day demanded, the Deus Ex Machina, the sometimes stilted chorus, the random tragic acts that just happen. It's still great drama, and that's what matters after all. ## Frequently Bought Together - Medea and Other Plays (Penguin Classics) - The Three Theban Plays: Antigone; Oedipus the King; Oedipus at Colonus - Hamlet --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.be/products/59696178-medea-and-other-plays-medea-hecabe-electra-heracles-penguin-classics](https://www.desertcart.be/products/59696178-medea-and-other-plays-medea-hecabe-electra-heracles-penguin-classics) --- *Product available on Desertcart Belgium* *Store origin: BE* *Last updated: 2026-08-18*