Whether or not you think Medea is the hero of the play that bears her name, Jason certainly seems to take on the role of villain, although we might wonder if he learns his lesson in the end, albeit the hard way. Let’s explore this idea in more depth.

We might say that Jason is realistic at least as far as his selfishness goes. He exhibits the traits that human beings fall into when they think of themselves above all else. Jason has a wife and children, but he wants something else. He wants status. So he abandons his family and decides to marry a woman who can give him the status he wants. This is a villainous deed, and Jason thinks only of himself.

We might also wonder why Jason is so blind to what might happen as a result of his abandoning Medea and their children. He knows Medea’s power well. After all, she was the one who helped him complete his quest. He is being completely unrealistic when he thinks that Medea will quietly go away.

All that said, however, perhaps we cannot help feeling at least a little sorry for Jason after Medea is finished taking her revenge. His new wife and father-in-law are dead, poisoned by Medea. His children are dead, killed by their own mother. He is left to contemplate how much of these tragedies was his own fault.