batch.motif.greek-roman-berens-myths-legends-gutenberg-l7524-l7533
---
record_id: batch.motif.greek-roman-berens-myths-legends-gutenberg-l7524-l7533
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek-roman/project-gutenberg/myths-legends-ancient-greece-rome-berens.md
passage_locator:
label: CADMUS. / PERSEUS. / THE ARGONAUTS. / STORY OF THE GOLDEN FLEECE.; lines
7524-7533
start: '7524'
end: '7533'
translation: Myths and Legends of Ancient Greece and Rome
notes: Generated from OpenAI Batch run motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority;
human review required.
canonical_text:
quote: Medea gliding through the air in a golden chariot drawn by dragons.
summary: After losing Jason's love, Medea kills her three sons. Jason discovers
his murdered children, cannot find Medea, then sees her escaping through the air
in a golden chariot drawn by dragons. In despair, Jason kills himself with his
sword at the threshold of his deserted home.
language: English
quote_policy: quoted
literal_observations:
- id: obs:1
text: Medea kills her three sons after the loss of her husband's love.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: obs:2
text: Jason leaves the chamber of his dead bride and goes to his own house seeking
Medea.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:3
text: Jason sees the bodies of his murdered children.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: obs:4
text: Medea cannot be found until Jason hears a sound above him and looks up.
category: sequence
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:5
text: Medea is seen moving through the air in a golden chariot drawn by dragons.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: obs:6
text: Jason throws himself on his own sword and dies on the threshold of his deserted
home.
category: action
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
figures:
- id: fig:1
name_or_label: Medea
description: Jason's wife, described as maddened by the loss of her husband's love;
she kills her three sons and escapes in a golden chariot drawn by dragons.
role_refs:
- role:1
- role:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:3
- id: fig:2
name_or_label: Jason
description: Medea's husband, seeking revenge after the death of his bride; he discovers
his murdered children and dies by his own sword.
role_refs:
- role:3
- role:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- ev:4
- id: fig:3
name_or_label: Medea's three sons
description: The three sons of Medea, put to death by her and later seen by Jason
as murdered children.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
- id: fig:4
name_or_label: Jason's dead bride
description: A dead bride whose chamber Jason leaves before going in search of Medea.
role_refs:
- role:5
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
roles:
- id: role:1
label: child-killer
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: The passage states that Medea put her three sons to death.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: role:2
label: aerial escapee
assigned_to:
- fig:1
basis: Medea is seen gliding through the air in a dragon-drawn golden chariot.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: role:3
label: bereaved seeker of revenge
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: Jason is described as thirsting for revenge and seeking Medea after leaving
the chamber of his dead bride.
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: role:4
label: suicide victim
assigned_to:
- fig:2
basis: Jason throws himself on his own sword and perishes.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: role:5
label: murdered victim
assigned_to:
- fig:3
- fig:4
basis: The sons are murdered children, and the bride is described as dead.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
symbols:
- id: sym:1
label: golden chariot
literal_form: A golden chariot carrying Medea through the air.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: sym:2
label: dragons
literal_form: Dragons drawing Medea's aerial chariot.
associated_figures:
- fig:1
taxonomy_refs:
- serpent
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: sym:3
label: sword
literal_form: Jason's own sword, used in his suicide.
associated_figures:
- fig:2
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
- id: sym:4
label: threshold of deserted home
literal_form: The threshold of Jason's desolate and deserted home where he dies.
associated_figures:
- fig:2
taxonomy_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
scenes:
- id: scene:1
label: Medea kills her sons
summary: Medea, enraged by the loss of Jason's love, kills her three sons.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:3
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- id: scene:2
label: Jason discovers the murdered children
summary: Jason leaves the chamber of his dead bride, goes to his house seeking Medea,
and sees the bodies of his murdered children.
figure_refs:
- fig:2
- fig:3
- fig:4
symbol_refs: []
evidence_refs:
- ev:2
- id: scene:3
label: Medea's dragon-drawn escape
summary: Jason hears a sound above him and sees Medea escaping through the air in
a golden chariot drawn by dragons.
figure_refs:
- fig:1
- fig:2
symbol_refs:
- sym:1
- sym:2
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
- id: scene:4
label: Jason's suicide
summary: Jason, overcome by despair, kills himself with his sword at the threshold
of his deserted home.
figure_refs:
- fig:2
symbol_refs:
- sym:3
- sym:4
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
candidate_motifs:
- id: motif:1
label: aerial escape in a dragon-drawn chariot
taxonomy_refs:
- serpent
- departure
basis: Medea departs through the air in a golden chariot drawn by dragons.
evidence_refs:
- ev:3
confidence: medium
cautions: The passage gives the escape image but does not explain the origin or
meaning of the chariot or dragons.
- id: motif:2
label: revenge killing of children
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Medea kills her three sons after the loss of her husband's love, and Jason
later sees the murdered children.
evidence_refs:
- ev:1
- ev:2
confidence: high
cautions: No direct taxonomy reference is available for this motif in the supplied
list.
- id: motif:3
label: suicide after catastrophic loss
taxonomy_refs: []
basis: Jason kills himself in despair after the deaths and Medea's disappearance.
evidence_refs:
- ev:4
confidence: high
cautions: No direct taxonomy reference is available for this motif in the supplied
list.
comparison_claims: []
evidence:
- id: ev:1
type: summary
locator: lines 7524-7525
quote_or_summary: Medea, maddened by the loss of her husband's love, puts her three
sons to death.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek-roman/project-gutenberg/myths-legends-ancient-greece-rome-berens.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:2
type: summary
locator: lines 7525-7528
quote_or_summary: Jason leaves the chamber of his dead bride, goes to his house
seeking Medea, and is met by the sight of his murdered children.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek-roman/project-gutenberg/myths-legends-ancient-greece-rome-berens.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
- id: ev:3
type: quote
locator: lines 7528-7531
quote_or_summary: Medea is seen "gliding through the air in a golden chariot drawn
by dragons."
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek-roman/project-gutenberg/myths-legends-ancient-greece-rome-berens.md
rights_note: Public domain source; short quotation used.
- id: ev:4
type: summary
locator: lines 7532-7533
quote_or_summary: In despair, Jason throws himself on his own sword and dies on
the threshold of his desolate, deserted home.
source_text_path: texts/public-domain/greek-roman/project-gutenberg/myths-legends-ancient-greece-rome-berens.md
rights_note: Public domain source; summarized.
confidence:
extraction: high
motif_candidates: medium
comparison_claims: uncertain
notes: Literal extraction is straightforward. Motif labeling is cautious because
the supplied taxonomy has limited direct matches for filicide and suicide; dragon
imagery supports a serpent-related reference only broadly.
reviewer_status:
status: needs_review
reviewer: ''
reviewed_at: ''
notes: Machine-generated draft from OpenAI Batch; not human-reviewed.
extracted_by: openai_batch:gpt-5.5
extracted_at: '2026-04-28'
notes: |-
Used only the supplied passage and metadata; no external comparison claims added.
batch_run_id=motif-extraction-2026-04-28-high-priority
custom_id=motif_extract:greek-roman-berens-myths-legends-gutenberg__l7524-l7533
passage_sha256=711d6c3a8ba1d0e683c239d80b9fc10f1f9546f78bed344132ce463f869085a2