Eurydice (;

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic p ...

: Εὐρυδίκη 'wide justice') was a character in

Greek mythology A major branch of classical mythology, Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the ancient Greeks, and a genre of Ancient Greek folklore. These stories concern the origin and nature of the world, the lives and activities ...

and the Auloniad wife of

Orpheus Orpheus (; Ancient Greek: Ὀρφεύς, classical pronunciation: ; french: Orphée) is a Thracian bard, legendary musician and prophet in ancient Greek religion. He was also a renowned poet and, according to the legend, travelled with J ...

, who tried to bring her back from the dead with his enchanting music.

Etymology

Several meanings for the name ''Eurydice'' have been proposed such as "true judgement" or "profound judgement" from the

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

: ''eur dike''. Fulgentius, a mythographer of the late 5th to early 6th century AD, gave the latter etymological meaning. Adriana Cavarero, in the book ''Relating Narratives: Storytelling and Selfhood'', wrote that "the etymology of Eurydice seems rather to indicate, in the term ''eurus'', a vastness of space or power, which, joining to ''dike'' nd thus ''deiknumi'', to show designates her as 'the one who judges with breadth' or, perhaps, 'she who shows herself amply'". In some accounts, she was instead called Agriope, which means "savage face".

Mythology

Marriage to Orpheus, death and afterlife

Eurydice was the Auloniad wife of musician

, who loved her dearly; on their wedding day, he played joyful songs as his bride danced through the meadow. One day,

Aristaeus A minor god in Greek mythology, attested mainly by Athenian writers, Aristaeus (; ''Aristaios'' (Aristaîos); lit. “Most Excellent, Most Useful”), was the culture hero credited with the discovery of many useful arts, including bee-keepin ...

saw and pursued Eurydice, who stepped on a viper, was bitten, and died instantly. Distraught, Orpheus played and sang so mournfully that all the nymphs and deities wept and told him to travel to the

Underworld The underworld, also known as the netherworld or hell, is the supernatural world of the dead in various religious traditions and myths, located below the world of the living. Chthonic is the technical adjective for things of the underwor ...

to retrieve her, which he gladly did. After his music softened the hearts of Hades and

Persephone In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Persephone ( ; gr, Περσεφόνη, Persephónē), also called Kore or Cora ( ; gr, Κόρη, Kórē, the maiden), is the daughter of Zeus and Demeter. She became the queen of the underworld after ...

, his singing so sweet that even the Erinyes wept, he was allowed to take her back to the world of the living. In another version, Orpheus played his lyre to put

Cerberus In Greek mythology, Cerberus (; grc-gre, Κέρβερος ''Kérberos'' ), often referred to as the hound of Hades, is a multi-headed dog that guards the gates of the Underworld to prevent the dead from leaving. He was the offspring of the ...

, the guardian of Hades, to sleep, after which Eurydice was allowed to return with Orpheus to the world of the living. Either way, the condition was attached that he must walk in front of her and not look back until both had reached the upper world. Soon he began to doubt that she was there, suspecting that Hades had deceived him. Just as he reached the portals of Hades and daylight, he turned around to gaze on her face, and because Eurydice had not yet crossed the threshold, she vanished back into the Underworld. When Orpheus was later killed by the Maenads at the orders of

Dionysus In ancient Greek religion and myth, Dionysus (; grc, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstasy, festivity, and theatre. The Roma ...

, his soul ended up in the Underworld where he was reunited with Eurydice. The story in this form belongs to the time of

Virgil Publius Vergilius Maro (; traditional dates 15 October 7021 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He composed three of the most famous poems in Latin literature: th ...

, who first introduces the name of

and the

tragic Tragedy (from the grc-gre, τραγῳδία, ''tragōidia'', ''tragōidia'') is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful events that befall a main character. Traditionally, the intention of tragedy i ...

outcome. Other ancient sources, however, speak of Orpheus's visit to the underworld in a more negative light; according to Phaedrus in

Plato Plato ( ; grc-gre, Πλάτων ; 428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC) was a Greek philosopher born in Athens during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. He founded the Platonist school of thought and the Academy, the first institution ...

's '' Symposium'',''Symposium'' 179d-e
the infernal deities only "presented an apparition" of Eurydice to him. Plato's representation of Orpheus is that of a coward; instead of choosing to die in order to be with the one he loved, he mocked the deities by trying to go to Hades to get her back alive. Since his love was not "true"—meaning he was not willing to die for it—he was punished by the deities, first by giving him only the apparition of his former wife in the underworld and then by being killed by women. The story of Eurydice may be a late addition to the Orpheus myths. In particular, the name ''Eurudike'' ('she whose justice extends widely') recalls cult-titles attached to

. The myth may have been derived from another Orpheus legend in which he travels to

Tartarus In Greek mythology, Tartarus (; grc, , }) is the deep abyss that is used as a dungeon of torment and suffering for the wicked and as the prison for the Titans. Tartarus is the place where, according to Plato's ''Gorgias'' (), souls are judg ...

and charms the goddess Hecate. The story of Eurydice has a number of strong universal cultural parallels, from the Japanese myth of Izanagi and

Izanami , formally known as , is the creator deity A creator deity or creator god (often called the Creator) is a deity responsible for the creation of the Earth, world, and universe in human religion and mythology. In monotheism, the single God ...

, the Mayan myth of

Itzamna Itzamna () is, in Maya mythology, an upper god and creator deity thought to reside in the sky. Itzamna is one of the most important gods in the Classic and Postclassic Maya pantheon. Although little is known about him, scattered references are ...

and

Ixchel Ixchel or Ix Chel () is the 16th-century name of the aged jaguar Goddess of midwifery and medicine in ancient Maya culture. In a similar parallel, she corresponds, to Toci Yoalticitl "Our Grandmother the Nocturnal Physician", an Aztec earth God ...

, the

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

n myth of Savitri and Satyavan, to the Akkadian/ Sumerian myth of Inanna's descent to the underworld. The biblical story of

Lot's wife In the Bible, Lot's wife is a figure first mentioned in . The Book of Genesis describes how she became a pillar of salt after she looked back at Sodom. She is not named in the Bible but is called "Ado" or "Edith" in some Jewish traditions. She ...

, who was turned into a pillar of salt because she looked back at the town she was fleeing, is "often compared to the story of Orpheus and his wife Eurydice."

Cultural depictions

The story of Orpheus and Eurydice has been depicted in a number of works by artists, including

Titian Tiziano Vecelli or Vecellio (; 27 August 1576), known in English as Titian ( ), was an Italian (Venetian) painter of the Renaissance, considered the most important member of the 16th-century Venetian school. He was born in Pieve di Cadore, nea ...

Peter Paul Rubens Sir Peter Paul Rubens (; ; 28 June 1577 – 30 May 1640) was a Flemish artist and diplomat from the Duchy of Brabant in the Southern Netherlands (modern-day Belgium). He is considered the most influential artist of the Flemish Baroque tradi ...

, Nicolas Poussin, and

Corot CoRoT (French: ; English: Convection, Rotation and planetary Transits) was a space telescope mission which operated from 2006 to 2013. The mission's two objectives were to search for extrasolar planets with short orbital periods, particularly th ...

. More recently, the story has been depicted by Bracha Ettinger, whose series, ''Eurydice'', was exhibited in the

Pompidou Centre The Centre Pompidou (), more fully the Centre national d'art et de culture Georges-Pompidou ( en, National Georges Pompidou Centre of Art and Culture), also known as the Pompidou Centre in English, is a complex building in the Beaubourg area of ...

(''Face à l'Histoire'', 1996); the Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam (''Kabinet'', 1997), and The Royal Museum of Fine Arts, Antwerp (''Gorge(l)'', 2007). The story has inspired ample writings in the fields of ethics, aesthetics, art, and

feminist theory Feminist theory is the extension of feminism into theoretical, fictional, or philosophical discourse. It aims to understand the nature of gender inequality. It examines women's and men's social roles, experiences, interests, chores, and femin ...

. In the game Hades (2020), the aftermath of the tale of Orpheus and Eurydice is told throughout a playthrough of the game.

Film and literature

* ''

Sir Orfeo ''Sir Orfeo'' is an anonymous Middle English Breton lai dating from the late 13th or early 14th century. It retells the story of Orpheus as a king who rescues his wife from the fairy king. The folk song ''Orfeo'' ( Roud 136, Child 19) is based ...

'', a Middle English Romance poem from the late 13th or early 14th century, inspired by the Orpheus and Eurydice tale * "Orpheus. Eurydice. Hermes." (1904), a poem retelling the journey from the underworld by Rainer Maria Rilke * '' Orphée'' (1950), directed by

Jean Cocteau Jean Maurice Eugène Clément Cocteau (, , ; 5 July 1889 – 11 October 1963) was a French poet, playwright, novelist, designer, filmmaker, visual artist and critic. He was one of the foremost creatives of the s ...

* '' Orfeu Negro'' (1959), an adaptation of the classic myth filmed in

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

Marcel Camus Marcel may refer to: People * Marcel (given name), people with the given name Marcel * Marcel (footballer, born August 1981), Marcel Silva Andrade, Brazilian midfielder * Marcel (footballer, born November 1981), Marcel Augusto Ortolan, Brazilian ...

* '' Evrydiki BA 2O37'' (1975), directed by

Nikos Nikolaidis Nikos Georgiou Nikolaidis ( el, Νίκος Γεωργίου Νικολαΐδης; 25 October 1939 – 5 September 2007) was a Greek film director, screenwriter, film producer, writer, theatre director, assistant director, record producer, televi ...

. * "Eurydice" (1999), a poem that retells the traditional myth through a feminist lens by British poet

Carol Ann Duffy Dame Carol Ann Duffy (born 23 December 1955) is a Scottish poet and playwright. She is a professor of contemporary poetry at Manchester Metropolitan University, and was appointed Poet Laureate in May 2009, resigning in 2019. She was the first ...

in her book ''

The World's Wife ''The World's Wife'' is a collection of poetry by Carol Ann Duffy, originally published in the UK in 1999 by both Picador (imprint), Picador and Anvil Press Poetry and later published in the United States by Faber and Faber in 2000. Duffy's poem ...

'' * ‘’ Portrait of a Lady on Fire‘’ (2019) written and directed by

Céline Sciamma Céline Sciamma (; born 12 November 1978) is a French screenwriter and film director. She is especially known for her films ''Girlhood'' (2014), '' My Life as a Courgette'' (2016), and '' Portrait of a Lady on Fire'' (2019), winning many nomina ...

uses the myth of Orpheus and Eurydice as an allegory for the relationship depicted in the film, and proposes an alternate explanation for why Orpheus turned to look.

Operas and stage productions

The myth has been retold in

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libr ...

s by

Jacopo Peri Jacopo Peri (20 August 156112 August 1633), known under the pseudonym Il Zazzerino, was an Italian composer and singer of the transitional period between the Renaissance and Baroque styles, and is often called the inventor of opera. He wrote th ...

Monteverdi Claudio Giovanni Antonio Monteverdi (baptized 15 May 1567 – 29 November 1643) was an Italian composer, choirmaster and string player. A composer of both secular and sacred music, and a pioneer in the development of opera, he is consider ...

, Charpentier,

Gluck Christoph Willibald (Ritter von) Gluck (; 2 July 1714 – 15 November 1787) was a composer of Italian and French opera in the early classical period. Born in the Upper Palatinate and raised in Bohemia, both part of the Holy Roman Empire, he g ...

, Yevstigney Fomin,

Harrison Birtwistle Sir Harrison Birtwistle (15 July 1934 – 18 April 2022) was an English composer of contemporary classical music best known for his operas, often based on mythological subjects. Among his many compositions, his better known works include '' T ...

, and

Matthew Aucoin Matthew Aucoin (born April 4, 1990) is an American composer, conductor, pianist, and writer best known for his operas. Aucoin has received commissions from the Metropolitan Opera, Carnegie Hall, Lyric Opera of Chicago, the American Repertory Thea ...

. *'' Euridice'' (1600), an opera by

, the first genuine opera whose music survives to this day *'' Orfeo ed Euridice'', an opera by Christoph Willibald Gluck *''

L'Orfeo ''L'Orfeo'' ( SV 318) (), sometimes called ''La favola d'Orfeo'' , is a late Renaissance/early Baroque ''favola in musica'', or opera, by Claudio Monteverdi, with a libretto by Alessandro Striggio. It is based on the Greek legend of Orpheus, and ...

'' (1607), by Claudio Monteverdi, widely regarded as the first operatic masterwork *'' La Descente d'Orphée aux enfers'' H.488 (1686), opera by

Marc-Antoine Charpentier Marc-Antoine Charpentier (; 1643 – 24 February 1704) was a French Baroque composer during the reign of Louis XIV. One of his most famous works is the main theme from the prelude of his ''Te Deum'', ''Marche en rondeau''. This theme is still us ...

*'' Orphée descendant aux enfers'' H.471 (1683), cantata by Marc-Antoine Charpentier * '' Orphée'' (1926), a play written by

*''

Eurydice Eurydice (; Ancient Greek: Εὐρυδίκη 'wide justice') was a character in Greek mythology and the Auloniad wife of Orpheus, who tried to bring her back from the dead with his enchanting music. Etymology Several meanings for the name ...

'' (1941), a play by

Jean Anouilh Jean Marie Lucien Pierre Anouilh (; 23 June 1910 – 3 October 1987) was a French dramatist whose career spanned five decades. Though his work ranged from high drama to absurdist farce, Anouilh is best known for his 1944 play ''Antigone'', an a ...

*''

Orpheus Descending ''Orpheus Descending'' is a three-act play by Tennessee Williams. It was first presented on Broadway on March 17, 1957 but had only a brief run (68 performances) and modest success. It was revived on Broadway in 1989, directed by Peter Hall an ...

'' (1957), by American playwright

Tennessee Williams Thomas Lanier Williams III (March 26, 1911 – February 25, 1983), known by his pen name Tennessee Williams, was an American playwright and screenwriter. Along with contemporaries Eugene O'Neill and Arthur Miller, he is considered among the thr ...

. *'' Orfeo ed Euridice'' (1996), a new production of Gluck's opera by choreographer Mark Morris and the

Handel and Haydn Society The Handel and Haydn Society is an American chorus and period instrument orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts. Known colloquially as 'H+H', the organization has been in continual performance since its founding in 1815, the longest-serving suc ...

conducted by Christopher Hogwood. * ''Eurydice'' (2003), a play by

Sarah Ruhl Sarah Ruhl (born January 24, 1974) is an American playwright, professor, and essayist. Among her most popular plays are ''Eurydice'' (2003), ''The Clean House'' (2004), and ''In the Next Room (or the Vibrator Play)'' (2009). She has been the reci ...

, later made into an opera by

in 2020. *''Orpheus and Eurydice: A Myth Underground'' (2011), a theatre production written by Molly Davies with music by James Johnston, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds for the National Youth Theatre at the

Old Vic Old or OLD may refer to: Places *Old, Baranya, Hungary *Old, Northamptonshire, England * Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Ma ...

Tunnels, directed by

James Dacre James Charles Dacre (born May 1984) is a British theatre director. He has been artistic director of Royal & Derngate Theatres in Northampton since 2013. Early years James Dacre was born in 1984, the son of Paul Dacre, former editor of the '' ...

*''

Hadestown ''Hadestown'' is a musical with music, lyrics, and book by Anaïs Mitchell. It tells a version of the ancient Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice. Eurydice, a young girl looking for something to eat, goes to work in a hellish industrial underworl ...

'' (2010), an ensemble album by

Anaïs Mitchell Anaïs Mitchell (; born March 26, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and playwright. Mitchell has released eight studio albums, including '' Hadestown'' (2010), ''Young Man in America'' (2012),

, featuring Mitchell as Eurydice,

Justin Vernon Justin DeYarmond Edison Vernon (born April 30, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist. He is best known as the primary songwriter and frontman of indie folk band Bon Iver. Known for his distinct falsetto voic ...

and Ani DiFranco among others, retelling the myth as a 'folk opera' in a post-apocalyptic Depression era America. Also, a Broadway musical of the same name that opened in 2019, with Eurydice's role played by Eva Noblezada. Bridget Read, in her review for ''Vogue'', wrote: "Hades in the musical is a suit-wearing boss, a slick con man who promises wealth but suckers in the hungry, poor Eurydice to a life of toil in his factory pit. ..Orpheus and Eurydice’s tragedy then becomes, in the hands of Mitchell, an argument for collective bargaining. ..Orpheus and Eurydice’s romance is a rallying cry against the relentless slog of work, production, and pillaging of the world’s natural resources that capitalism demands".

Science and geography

Eurydice Peninsula Eurydice Peninsula ( bg, полуостров Евридика, poluostrov Evridika, ) is the predominantly ice-covered 8 km wide peninsula projecting from Danco Coast, Antarctic Peninsula 7.4 km northwestwards into Charlotte Bay south of ...

Antarctica Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest cont ...

is named after Eurydice. *A species of Australian lizard, '' Ctenotus eurydice'', is named after Eurydice. *An asteroid 75 Eurydike is named after Eurydice.

Video games

* ''Hades'' is an

indie Indie is a short form of "independence" or "independent"; it may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Gaming *Independent video game development, video games created without financial backing from large companies *Indie game, any game (board ...

rogue-like game developed by

Supergiant Games Supergiant Games, LLC is an American independent video game developer and publisher based in San Francisco. It was founded in 2009 by Amir Rao and Gavin Simon, and is known for the critically acclaimed games ''Bastion'', '' Transistor'', '' Py ...

, where Eurydice is a character who resides in Asphodel and is voiced by Francesca Hogan. The player,

Zagreus In ancient Greek religion and mythology, Zagreus ( grc-gre, Ζαγρεύς) was sometimes identified with a god worshipped by the followers of Orphism, the "first Dionysus", a son of Zeus and Persephone, who was dismembered by the Titans and reb ...

, is given the option of reuniting Eurydice and Orpheus after meeting them. Just Lunning, for ''Inverse'', commented that "''Hades'' will immediately grab your eye with its stunning character designs, which are consistently unique and unconventional ways. ..Every character is consciously trying their best to be beautiful. ..Even mythical, inhuman characters like ..Eurydice (an oak nymph) embody this vision of beauty. ..Eurydice has an afro composed of tree branches".

References

Additional sources

Primary sources

Ovid Pūblius Ovidius Nāsō (; 20 March 43 BC – 17/18 AD), known in English as Ovid ( ), was a Roman poet who lived during the reign of Augustus. He was a contemporary of the older Virgil and Horace, with whom he is often ranked as one of the th ...

, ''

Metamorphoses The ''Metamorphoses'' ( la, Metamorphōsēs, from grc, μεταμορφώσεις: "Transformations") is a Latin narrative poem from 8 CE by the Roman poet Ovid. It is considered his ''magnum opus''. The poem chronicles the history of the ...

'' 10 *'' The Library'' 1.3.2 *

Pausanias Pausanias ( el, Παυσανίας) may refer to: *Pausanias of Athens, lover of the poet Agathon and a character in Plato's ''Symposium'' *Pausanias the Regent, Spartan general and regent of the 5th century BC * Pausanias of Sicily, physician of t ...

, ''Description of Greece'' 9.30 *

, ''

Georgics The ''Georgics'' ( ; ) is a poem by Latin poet Virgil, likely published in 29 BCE. As the name suggests (from the Greek word , ''geōrgika'', i.e. "agricultural (things)") the subject of the poem is agriculture; but far from being an example ...

'' 4.453 *

, '' Symposium''

Secondary sources

* Buci-Glucksmann, Christine. 2000. "Eurydice and her Doubles: Painting after Auschwitz." In ''Artworking 1985-1999''. Amsterdam: Ludion. . * Butler, Judith. 0012004. "Bracha's Eurydice." '' Theory, Culture & Society'' 21(1). ** Originally in de Zegher, Catherine, and B. Massumi, eds. 2001. ''Bracha Lichtenberg Ettinger: Eurydice Series'', Drawing Papers 24. NY: Drawing Center. * Duffy, Carol Ann. 1999. "Eurydice." In ''

''. . * Ettinger, Bracha L., and Emmanuel Levinas. 9972006. "Qui Dirait Eurydice? What Would Eurydice say?: Brache Lichtenberg Ettinger in Conversation with Emmanuel Levinas." '' Philosophical Studies'' 2. * Glowaka, Dorota. 2007. "Lyotard and Eurydice." In ''Gender after Lyotard'', edited by M. Grebowicz. NY: Suny Press. * Graves, Robert, ''The Greek Myths'', Harmondsworth, London, England, Penguin Books, 1960. *Graves, Robert, ''The Greek Myths: The Complete and Definitive Edition.'' Penguin Books Limited. 2017. * Pollock, Griselda. 2009. "Orphée et Eurydice: le temps/l'éspace/le regard traumatique." In ''Guerre et paix des sexes'', edited by J. Kristeva, et al. Hachette. * —— "Abandoned at the Mouth of Hell." In ''Looking Back to the Future''. G&B Arts. . *

Rosand, Ellen Ellen Rosand is an American musicologist, historian, and opera critic who specializes in Italian music and poetry of the 16th through 18th centuries. Her work has been particularly focused on the music and culture of Venice and Italian opera of the ...

. "Opera: III. Early opera, 1600–90." '' Grove Music Online'', edited by L. Macy. * Whenham, John. 1986
''Claudio Monteverdi, Orfeo''
Cambridge University Press.

External links

Warburg Institute Iconographic Database (ca 130 images of Eurydice)
{{Authority control Dryads Nymphs Children of Apollo Metamorphoses characters Characters in Greek mythology *