We've got your back. With the Tough-O-Meter, you'll know whether to bring extra layers or Swiss army knives as you summit the literary mountain. (10 = Toughest)
(5) Tree Line
Even though the language of The Eumenides still might occasionally be challenging—especially in the Chorus's songs—the stakes and the plot is super recognizable. Sure, you've got a goddess as judge and other divinities as attorneys for the defense and prosecution, but, overall, the action of the play isn't all that different from what you'd see on Law & Order or Boston Legal.
What may trip you up is are all the references to various characters and deities, many of whom you may have never heard of. This is for two reasons 1) the play is super old; it's ancient and 2) The Eumenides is the third part in a trilogy—reading it solo is like just reading The Return of the King or just seeing The Return of the Jedi. You don't get introduced to characters like Orestes; they just fall in your lap.
Our advice is threefold (like the plays in the Oresteia). 1) Read the other plays—they're awesome. 2) Do a little independent research into Greek Mythology. That stuff is fascinating, and anything but dry. 3) Rely on your good buddy Shmoop. We're like the Apollo to your Orestes—we got your back. Unlike Apollo, though, we're not going to spin any nonsense lines about moms not actually being technically related to their children.