Graduation Term
Spring 2025
Degree Name
Master of Arts (MA)
Department
School of Theatre and Dance: Theatre
Committee Chair
Le'Mil Eiland
Committee Member
Derek R. Munson
Committee Member
Bruce R. Burningham
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to analyze the Medea character as a liminal figure. Taking a metaphorical approach to Victor Turner’s ideas on liminality, this study will deconstruct different binary oppositions—villain/victim, agent/object, Dionysian/Apollonian. The Medea character does not fall neatly to one side of these binary oppositions; therefore, this thesis argues that Medea instead inhabits the space between the binary oppositions in the realm of the liminal. The thesis then analyzes the same binary oppositions within a survey of theatrical and non-theatrical texts that feature characters that embody archetypes that originated within the Medea character—the she-devil, the murderous mother, and the wicked witch. This thesis is a critical deconstruction through a feminist lens. It also uses numerous historical literary sources from the classical world. This study argues that the Medea Effect is a terror response to binary oppositions that permeate Western thought, resulting in the demonization of the Medea character and similar female literary figures who fall within the liminal realm of dichotomous hierarchies.
Access Type
Thesis-Open Access
Recommended Citation
Nance, M., "The Medea Effect: The Binary Terror of Women Existing in the Liminal Space" (2025). Theses and Dissertations. 2079.
https://ir.library.illinoisstate.edu/etd/2079
Included in
Classical Literature and Philology Commons, Dramatic Literature, Criticism and Theory Commons, Fine Arts Commons
