The play centers on the tragic hero Heracles, who, upon returning home from his labors, discovers that his wife and children are about to be executed by a tyrant who has usurped his throne. In a cruel twist of fate, Heracles is driven mad by the goddess Hera and, in his insanity, slays his own family, believing them to be his enemies. Upon regaining his sanity and realizing the horror of what he has done, Heracles is confronted with the unbearable weight of his actions and the loss of his family, leaving him to grapple with his guilt and the question of how to continue living after such a catastrophe.

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