A bölcs, az ördöngös, a gyilkos és a szerelmes: Médeia alakja a régi magyar költészetben

Abstract

The myth of Medea in old Hungarian poetry occurs only occasionally. Sebestyén Tinódi (1510?–1556) translated the Medieval Historia Troiana by Guido da Columna putting the prose into verse. The Medea-story was incorporated in the myth of the first and second sieges of Troy: the character of the main hero (Jason) is constructed from the panels of hypermasculine Hercules and pious Aeneas. Medea and Dido also keep in close allegorical touch. Kristóf Armbrust adds Medea’s profile to his satirical misogynist poem (1550) with special regards to the dark side of the character. István Koháry (1649–1731) uses the myth as a political allegory: the author draws a parallel between the mythological person cut into pieces by Medea promising to rejuvenate the old body and the dismemberment of the old country. István Gyöngyösi (1629–1704) depicts the myth as a story about fatal love and its ambivalent consequences.