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Trachiniae
''Women of Trachis'' or ''The Trachiniae'' ( grc, Τραχίνιαι, ) c. 450–425 BC, is an Athenian tragedy by Sophocles. ''Women of Trachis'' is generally considered to be less developed than Sophocles' other works, and its dating has been a subject of disagreement among critics and scholars. Synopsis The story begins with Deianeira, the wife of Heracles, relating the story of her early life and her plight adjusting to married life. She is now distraught over her husband's neglect of her family. Often involved in some adventure, he rarely visits them. She sends their son Hyllus to find him, as she is concerned over prophecies about Heracles and the land he is currently in. After Hyllus sets off, a messenger arrives with word that Heracles, victorious in his recent battle, is making offerings on Cape Cenaeum and coming home soon to Trachis. Lichas, a herald of Heracles, brings in a procession of captives. He tells Deianeira a false story of why Heracles had laid siege to the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
King Eurytus Of Oechalia
In Greek mythology King Eurytus (; Ancient Greek: Εὔρυτος) of Oechalia (, ''Oikhalíā''), Thessaly, was a skillful archer who even said to have instructed Heracles in his art of using the bow. Scholaist ''on Sophocles, Trachiniae'' 268 Family Eurytus was the son of MelaneusAntoninus Liberalis4as cited in Nicander's ''Metamorphoses'' either by Stratonice, daughter of King Porthaon of Calydon and Laothoe or by the eponymous heroine Oechalia. He was the brother of Ambracias, eponym of Ambracia, a city in Epirus. Eurytus married Antiope, daughter of Pylon (son of Naubolus) and had these children: Iphitus, Clytius, Toxeus, Deioneus, Molion, Didaeon, Hippasus and a very beautiful daughter, Iole. A late legend also attributes Eurytus as the father of Dryope, by his first wife. Hesiod calls his wife Antioche and they had four sons but Creophylus says only two. Eurytus' grandfather was Apollo, the archer-god, and was also a famed archer. Eurytus has been noted by so ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heracles
Heracles ( ; grc-gre, Ἡρακλῆς, , glory/fame of Hera), born Alcaeus (, ''Alkaios'') or Alcides (, ''Alkeidēs''), was a divine hero in Greek mythology, the son of Zeus and Alcmene, and the foster son of Amphitryon.By his adoptive descent through Amphitryon, Heracles receives the epithet Alcides, as "of the line of Alcaeus", father of Amphitryon. Amphitryon's own, mortal son was Iphicles. He was a great-grandson and half-brother (as they are both sired by the god Zeus) of Perseus, and similarly a half-brother of Dionysus. He was the greatest of the Greek heroes, the ancestor of royal clans who claimed to be Heracleidae (), and a champion of the Olympian order against chthonic monsters. In Rome and the modern West, he is known as Hercules, with whom the later Roman emperors, in particular Commodus and Maximian, often identified themselves. The Romans adopted the Greek version of his life and works essentially unchanged, but added anecdotal detail of their own, so ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nessus (mythology)
In Greek mythology, Nessus ( grc, Νέσσος, Nessos) was a famous centaur who was killed by Heracles, and whose poisoned blood in turn killed Heracles. He was the son of Centauros. He fought in the battle with the Lapiths and became a ferryman on the river Euenos. Mythology Nessus is known for his role in the story of the Tunic of Nessus. After carrying Deianeira, the wife of Heracles, across the river, he attempted to have intercourse with her. Heracles saw this from across the river and shot a Hydra-poisoned arrow into Nessus's breast. As he lay dying, as a final act of malice, Nessus told Deianeira that his blood would ensure that Heracles would be true to her forever, knowing the blood to be infected with the hydra's poison. Deianeira foolishly believed him. Later, when her trust began to wane because of Iole, she spread the centaur's blood on a robe and gave it to her husband. Heracles went to a gathering of heroes, where his passion got the better of him. Meanwhile, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sophocles
Sophocles (; grc, Σοφοκλῆς, , Sophoklễs; 497/6 – winter 406/5 BC)Sommerstein (2002), p. 41. is one of three ancient Greek tragedians, at least one of whose plays has survived in full. His first plays were written later than, or contemporary with, those of Aeschylus; and earlier than, or contemporary with, those of Euripides. Sophocles wrote over 120 plays, but only seven have survived in a complete form: ''Ajax'', ''Antigone'', ''Women of Trachis'', ''Oedipus Rex'', '' Electra'', '' Philoctetes'' and ''Oedipus at Colonus''. For almost fifty years, Sophocles was the most celebrated playwright in the dramatic competitions of the city-state of Athens which took place during the religious festivals of the Lenaea and the Dionysia. He competed in thirty competitions, won twenty-four, and was never judged lower than second place. Aeschylus won thirteen competitions, and was sometimes defeated by Sophocles; Euripides won four. The most famous tragedies of Sophocles feature ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lichas
:''Lichas can also refer to Lichas the Spartan, who discovered the bones of Orestes, or a genus of trilobite'' In Greek mythology, Lichas (; el, Λίχας) was Hercules's servant, who brought the poisoned shirt from Deianira to Hercules because of Deianira's jealousy of Iole, which killed him. Mythology Lichas brought to his master the deadly garment, and as a punishment, was thrown by him into the sea, where the Lichadian islands, between Euboea and the coast of Locris, were believed to have derived their name from him. The story is recounted in Sophocles' ''Women of Trachis'' and Ovid's ''Metamorphoses''.Ovid. ''Metamorphoses, Book 9.155 & 211'' compare with Hyginus. ''Fabulae'', 36 Ovid's account Cape Lichada is said to be where Hercules flung Lichas into the sea: So, in his frenzy, as he wandered there,he chanced upon the trembling Lichas, crouchedin the close covert of a hollow rock.Then in a savage fury he cried out,"Was it you, Lichas, brought this fatal gift?Sh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Iole
In Greek mythology, Iole (; grc, Ἰόλη ) was the daughter of King Eurytus of Oechalia. According to the brief epitome in the '' Bibliotheca'', Eurytus had a beautiful young daughter named Iole who was eligible for marriage. Iole was claimed by Heracles for a bride, but Eurytus refused her hand in marriage. Iole was indirectly the cause of Heracles' death because of his wife's jealousy of her. There are different versions of the mythology of Iole from many ancient sources. The ''Bibliotheca'' gives the most complete story followed by slight variations of this from Seneca and Ovid. Other ancient sources (i.e. Diodorus Siculus, Gaius Julius Hyginus, and Pseudo-Plutarch) have similar information on Iole with additional variations. Mythology Heracles' love for Iole leads to his death Apollodorus recounted the tale in his ''Bibliotheca''. King Eurytus was an expert archer who taught his sons his knowledge of the bow and arrow. He promised his daughter Iole to whoever could bea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Centaur
A centaur ( ; grc, κένταυρος, kéntauros; ), or occasionally hippocentaur, is a creature from Greek mythology with the upper body of a human and the lower body and legs of a horse. Centaurs are thought of in many Greek myths as being as wild as untamed horses, and were said to have inhabited the region of Magnesia and Mount Pelion in Thessaly, the Foloi oak forest in Elis, and the Malean peninsula in southern Laconia. Centaurs are subsequently featured in Roman mythology, and were familiar figures in the medieval bestiary. They remain a staple of modern fantastic literature. Etymology The Greek word ''kentauros'' is generally regarded as being of obscure origin. The etymology from ''ken'' + ''tauros'', 'piercing bull', was a euhemerist suggestion in Palaephatus' rationalizing text on Greek mythology, ''On Incredible Tales'' (Περὶ ἀπίστων), which included mounted archers from a village called ''Nephele'' eliminating a herd of bulls that were the scourge ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Euboea
Evia (, ; el, Εύβοια ; grc, Εὔβοια ) or Euboia (, ) is the second-largest Greek island in area and population, after Crete. It is separated from Boeotia in mainland Greece by the narrow Euripus Strait (only at its narrowest point). In general outline it is a long and narrow island; it is about long, and varies in breadth from to . Its geographic orientation is from northwest to southeast, and it is traversed throughout its length by a mountain range, which forms part of the chain that bounds Thessaly on the east, and is continued south of Euboia in the lofty islands of Andros, Tinos and Mykonos. It forms most of the regional unit of Euboea, which also includes Skyros and a small area of the Greek mainland. Name Like most of the Greek islands, Euboea was known by other names in antiquity, such as ''Macris'' (Μάκρις) and ''Doliche'' (Δολίχη) from its elongated shape, or ''Ellopia'', ''Aonia'' and ''Abantis'' from the tribes inhabiting it. Its ancie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Agamemnon
In Greek mythology, Agamemnon (; grc-gre, Ἀγαμέμνων ''Agamémnōn'') was a king of Mycenae who commanded the Greeks during the Trojan War. He was the son, or grandson, of King Atreus and Queen Aerope, the brother of Menelaus, the husband of Clytemnestra and the father of Iphigenia, Electra, Laodice (Greek myth), Laodike (Λαοδίκη), Orestes and Chrysothemis. Legends make him the king of Mycenae or Argos, Peloponnese, Argos, thought to be different names for the same area. Agamemnon was killed upon his Returns from Troy, return from Troy, either by his wife's lover Aegisthus or by his wife herself. Etymology His name in Greek, Ἀγαμέμνων, means "very steadfast", "unbowed" or "resolute". The word comes from Linguistic reconstruction, *Ἀγαμέδμων (''*Agamédmōn'') from ἄγαν, "very much" and wikt:μέδομαι, μέδομαι, "think on". Description In the account of Dares Phrygius, Dares the Phrygian, Agamemnon was described as ". . .bl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Oresteia
The ''Oresteia'' ( grc, Ὀρέστεια) is a trilogy of Greek tragedies written by Aeschylus in the 5th century BCE, concerning the murder of Agamemnon by Clytemnestra, the murder of Clytemnestra by Orestes, the trial of Orestes, the end of the curse on the House of Atreus and the pacification of the Erinyes. The trilogy—consisting of ''Agamemnon'' (), '' The Libation Bearers'' (), and ''The Eumenides'' ()—also shows how the Greek gods interacted with the characters and influenced their decisions pertaining to events and disputes. The only extant example of an ancient Greek theatre trilogy, the ''Oresteia'' won first prize at the Dionysia festival in 458 BCE. The principal themes of the trilogy include the contrast between revenge and justice, as well as the transition from personal vendetta to organized litigation. ''Oresteia'' originally included a satyr play, ''Proteus'' (), following the tragic trilogy, but all except a single line of ''Proteus'' has been lost. ''Agame ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Oedipus Rex
''Oedipus Rex'', also known by its Greek title, ''Oedipus Tyrannus'' ( grc, Οἰδίπους Τύραννος, ), or ''Oedipus the King'', is an Athenian tragedy by Sophocles that was first performed around 429 BC. Originally, to the ancient Greeks, the title was simply ''Oedipus'' (), as it is referred to by Aristotle in the ''Poetics''. It is thought to have been renamed ''Oedipus Tyrannus'' to distinguish it from ''Oedipus at Colonus'', a later play by Sophocles. In antiquity, the term "tyrant" referred to a ruler with no legitimate claim to rule, but it did not necessarily have a negative connotation. Of Sophocles' three Theban plays that have survived, and that deal with the story of Oedipus, ''Oedipus Rex'' was the second to be written, following ''Antigone'' by about a dozen years. However, in terms of the chronology of events described by the plays, it comes first, followed by ''Oedipus at Colonus'' and then ''Antigone''. Prior to the start of ''Oedipus Rex'', Oedipus ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prometheus Bound
''Prometheus Bound'' ( grc, Προμηθεὺς Δεσμώτης, ''Promētheús Desmṓtēs'') is an Ancient Greek tragedy traditionally attributed to Aeschylus and thought to have been composed sometime between 479 BC and the terminus ante quem of 424 BC. The tragedy is based on the myth of Prometheus, a Titan who defies Zeus, and protects and gives fire to mankind, for which he is subjected to the wrath of Zeus and punished. C. J. Herington claims that Aeschylus certainly did not mean ''Prometheus Bound'' to be a "self-contained dramatic unity", and suggests that "most modern students of the subject would probably agree" that ''Prometheus Bound'' was followed by a work with the title ''Prometheus Lyomenos (Prometheus Unbound)''. Herington adds that "some very slight evidence" indicates that ''Prometheus Unbound'' "may have been followed by a third play", ''Prometheus Pyrphoros (Prometheus the Fire-Bearer)''; the latter two survive only in fragments. Some scholars ha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
