Conflicting Values between Phaedra and the Nurse in Euripides's Hippolytus

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To  what extent do the values of the Nurse conflict to with the values of Phaedra in lines 433 to 481?

To a large extent the values of the nurse conflict with those of Phaedra , however both agree that one cannot contradict the will of the gods and at different points both coincide that in the given situation it would be better to die.

At the beginning  Phaedra expresses her wish to go hunting and horse riding, suggesting that she desires to be near Hippolytus , yet by doing so she would be break the social convention that dictated women could only leave the house for religious purposes . The nurse knows this, and warns her that to challenge the norm would is madness ‘words that ride on madness’ .However once Phaedra’s secret is revealed it is the Nurse the one who advocates a departure from the social code, while Phaedra strives to uphold her reputation and society’s values. It can be argued that their values differ or alternatively that the Nurse supports the same social values, except to a lesser extent and considers that these do not apply to love.

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Yet, both women share the same values which respect to fate and the divine intervention of gods in mortal’s lives. Phaedra mentions that she was ‘’ failing to win victory over Cypris ‘’ this indicates she is aware that she cannot overcome her fate or the god’s wishes , so she settles to commit suicide. The Nurse upholding the same value but for a different purpose states ‘ No one can bear the force of Cypris ‘’ here she points put that mortals are helpless against the will of the gods and therefore Phaedra should just let things be. With ...

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