Grillparzers Medea durch Arendts We Refugees neu gelesen. Eine literarische Chiffre des Flüchtlingsschicksals

Abstract

The present article is an attempt to understand Grillparzer’s »Medea« in the light of Hannah Arendt’s essay »We Refugees«. Written 1943 in english, Arendt’s article is of ten quoted as a paradigm for the understanding of the condition of refugees. Grillparzer’s character is considered in this regard as a literary representation of the human, social and political condition of refugees as well. The tragedy deals with the consequences of a society that refuses to recognize the identity of the stranger and to enter into a dialog with him. Medea’s departure to the temple of Delphi in the end of the drama is a symbol of the humanity and of the syncretism between greeks and barbarians showing the hope for a dialog between cultures and transforming the protagonist into a messenger of interculturality ante litteram. Title: Grillparzer’s Medea read again through Arendt’s We Refugees: a literary metaphor for the refugee