Children after all, do not only prove that there exists a loving and sexual relationship between a couple, but also that the dynastic line is ensured. Furthermore, children also serve as bonds that keep a marriage together, because whatever differences parents may have, such as Medea and Jason's cultural backgrounds, their children will always serve as reminders of what history they have shared together. However, despite these outward manifestations of an ideal situation, something more is at play than meets the eye; Medea and Jason both experience internal confrontations of passion and reason, which affects their decisions concerning their marriage, and equally affects the people around them. Jason for instance, while trying to assuage Medea's anger, tells her that he married Glauke "in [Medea's] best interest and the children's that [they] may live well and not be short of anything."" Though clearly grasping at straws, and trying to appeal to the greater good in order to rationalize what is essentially a broken promise, a look deeper shows that Jason is also trying to convince himself that what he is doing is perfectly reasonable and still remains an example of civilized culture. This is, however, a desire to fulfill his primal instinct of greed; even if he is telling the truth and that he merely wishes economic security for his house, he still is solely thinking about himself and his needs, and merely justifies his action with a meager attempt at rationale. Medea's equally discordant rationalism is manifested in her conflicting desires to both exact revenge on her unfaithful husband, and to keep her children safe and outside her conflict with Jason. She even argues with herself on this matter, saying, "Poor heart, let them go, have pity upon the children No! By Hell's avenging furies it shall not be."" Medea vacillates internally between what reason and civilization dictates, that is, to keep her children from harm, and what her instinctive reaction to being hurt, which is to lash out, tells her to do.
