Resumen de “In this way lies the greatest safety”: irony, euphemism and gnomic utterance in Medea 1-203
While it is a commonplace that the Nurse’s speech in Medea contains gnomai, her ironies and euphemisms have received less attention. I will argue that the Nurse’s sensibility is ironic, that her speech is frequently euphemistic, and that close connections exist between euphemistic and gnomic speech. These connections clarify the dramatic junction of the adages in the opening monologue and reveal the Nurse’s exit lines to be integral to the scene. Furthermore, the nature and purposes of her ironies, gnomai and euphemisms suggest that Euripides’ interest in character extends far beyond servant stereotypes.
