Final answer:
In Euripides' 'Medea,' the protagonist challenges societal norms as a strong female protagonist, through her rational actions, and by inciting the audience to reevaluate the justice system and the roles of gods in human actions.
Step-by-step explanation:
In Euripides' play Medea, the protagonist Medea challenges societal conventions in several radical ways. First and foremost, Medea is depicted as a strong female protagonist in a period when women were largely marginalized. Her actions throughout the play directly confront and question the expectations and limitations placed on women. This includes her use of rationality and cunning to achieve her ends, which subverts the stereotype of women as solely emotional beings.
Additionally, Medea's horrific act of killing her own children is shown as the result of a series of injustices and betrayals inflicted upon her, sparking a psychological exploration of her character, rather than simple condemnation. This act forces the audience to consider the impact of unfair societal norms, in this case, the treatment of women, foreigners, and the legitimacy of their offspring.
Euripides' work often includes a critical analysis of the gods and their influence on human action, undermining the traditional notions of divine intervention in human affairs. In Medea, the character's Machiavellian strategies, including the murder of her rival through a poisoned garment, challenge the audience to reassess the nature of justice and the mundane versus the heroic, reducing ancient heroes to contemporary levels of morality, and thereby inviting the audience to critically evaluate their own beliefs and the state of the societal structure.