Examine the ways in which Medea’s case is strengthened by her duologue with Jason.

This duologue is the very first moment the audience is introduced to Jason’s character. As of right now we have only seen Medea’s devastation and absolute rage which we have somewhat of a background given for, but this is the first chance the audience has to truly form an opinion of Jason themselves. During this duologue, Jason’s true character and intentions are very indirectly highlighted through his choice of language. He uses an extremely condescending tone when conversing with Medea and insults her throughout the confrontation. He never addresses her with respect and talks to her in a cold manner.

 It is very clear that Jason is trying to blame his actions on Medea and the audience have a chance to sympathise with her when they hear all that Medea has sacrificed for Jason and the way with which he has treated her in return. Medea’s undying loyalty for Jason has been revealed and this further increases the pity that the audience feel for her situation. Jason counters this by stating how lucky the consequences she faces are. He paints Medea as a mad woman who is solely driven by rage and thinks of the place that she has come from as primitive which he believes is reflected by her behaviour. He blames Medea for the situation that she is in and claims that it is her actions driven by rashness that has brought her to this point. 

On the other hand, Jason tries to cover up his real intentions by trying to portray himself as sweet and selfless when saying “Even if you hate me I could never think badly of you.” This is quite ironic as his opinions of her are highlighted throughout this dialogue when he addresses her as ‘foolish woman’ and refuses to address her by her name and refer to his children as his own. Jason seems to be looking for a way to absolve himself of his guilt and is trying to make himself look like a noble person who is doing everything he can for the betterment of his family. This irony is clearly highlighted and the audience can understand the underlying tone and intentions behind his actions which allows for them to finally be able to find reason to justify Medea’s feelings.