By way of a revival/recovery of the defining traits of Medea prior to the Euripidean codification, Christa Wolf aims at bringing to life a mythopoeic tradition based on pre-rational foundations, and transmitted solely through the oral channel. The supremacy of the vocal tale dissolves the traditional narrative orders and, on an anthropological level, it redefines the necessary conditions for the communication of its sense. By connecting the characterisation of the protagonists to the uniqueness of their voice, the novel restores the reception modalities that are proper to the epic. In this essay, the author gives an account of several forms of vocal expression that stand at the basis of the plot, from the chant to the autobiographical record and the incoherent howl.
