©Damen, 2021
Classical Drama and Theatre
The choral lines immediately preceding Pasiphae's defense do not fit into the typical spoken interjection separating speeches in a Euripidean agon but instead are lyric in form. This suggests that the agon of this play didn't follow the format Euripides typically employed: prosecution, short choral interjection, defense. All the same, Pasiphae's apology here has all the earmarks of other agons he wrote. Like those, her speech includes a counter-charge against claims made by the prosecution, legalistic language, an argument based on probability and an emotional plea for justice.
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