Greek tragedy is a form of
theatre
Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...
from
Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece ( el, Ἑλλάς, Hellás) was a northeastern Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of classical antiquity ( AD 600), that comprised a loose collection of cult ...
and Greek inhabited
Anatolia
Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...
. It reached its most significant form in
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
in the 5th century BC, the works of which are sometimes called Attic tragedy.
Greek tragedy is widely believed to be an extension of the ancient rites carried out in honor of
Dionysus
In ancient Greek religion and myth, Dionysus (; grc, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstasy, festivity, and theatre. The Romans ...
, and it heavily influenced the theatre of
Ancient Rome
In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 B ...
and the
Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...
. Tragic plots were most often based upon
myth
Myth is a folklore genre consisting of Narrative, narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or Origin myth, origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not Objectivity (philosophy), ...
s from the oral traditions of archaic
epics
The Experimental Physics and Industrial Control System (EPICS) is a set of software tools and applications used to develop and implement distributed control systems to operate devices such as particle accelerators, telescopes and other large sci ...
. In tragic theatre, however, these narratives were presented by actors. The most acclaimed Greek tragedians are
Aeschylus
Aeschylus (, ; grc-gre, Αἰσχύλος ; c. 525/524 – c. 456/455 BC) was an ancient Greek tragedian, and is often described as the father of tragedy. Academic knowledge of the genre begins with his work, and understanding of earlier Greek ...
,
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 co ...
, and
Euripides
Euripides (; grc, Εὐριπίδης, Eurīpídēs, ; ) was a tragedian
Tragedy (from the grc-gre, τραγῳδία, ''tragōidia'', ''tragōidia'') is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful e ...
. These tragedians often explored many themes around human nature, mainly as a way of connecting with the audience but also as way of bringing the audience into the play.
Etymology
Aristotelian hypothesis
The origin of the word ''tragedy'' has been a matter of discussion from ancient times. The primary source of knowledge on the question is the ''
Poetics
Poetics is the theory of structure, form, and discourse within literature, and, in particular, within poetry.
History
The term ''poetics'' derives from the Ancient Greek ποιητικός ''poietikos'' "pertaining to poetry"; also "creative" an ...
'' of
Aristotle
Aristotle (; grc-gre, Ἀριστοτέλης ''Aristotélēs'', ; 384–322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. Taught by Plato, he was the founder of the Peripatetic school of phil ...
. Aristotle was able to gather first-hand documentation from theater performance in
Attica
Attica ( el, Αττική, Ancient Greek ''Attikḗ'' or , or ), or the Attic Peninsula, is a historical region that encompasses the city of Athens, the capital of Greece and its countryside. It is a peninsula projecting into the Aegean Se ...
, which is inaccessible to scholars today. His work is therefore invaluable for the study of ancient tragedy, even if his testimony is open to doubt on some points.
According to Aristotle, tragedy evolved from the satyr
dithyramb
The dithyramb (; grc, διθύραμβος, ''dithyrambos'') was an ancient Greek hymn sung and danced in honor of Dionysus, the god of wine and fertility; the term was also used as an epithet of the god. Plato, in ''The Laws'', while discussing ...
, an Ancient Greek
hymn
A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn'' ...
, which was sung along with dancing in honor of Dionysus. The term , derived from "goat" and "song", means "song of the goats," referring to the chorus of
satyrs
In Greek mythology, a satyr ( grc-gre, σάτυρος, sátyros, ), also known as a silenus or ''silenos'' ( grc-gre, σειληνός ), is a male nature spirit with ears and a tail resembling those of a horse, as well as a permanent, exag ...
. Others suggest that the term came into being when the legendary
Thespis
Thespis (; grc-gre, Θέσπις; fl. 6th century BC) was an Ancient Greek poet. He was born in the ancient city of Icarius (present-day Dionysos, Greece). According to certain Ancient Greek sources and especially Aristotle, he was the first pe ...
(the root for the English word ''thespian'') competed in the first tragic competition for the prize of a goat (hence tragedy).
[
]
Alexandrian hypothesis
Alexandrian grammarians understood the term as a "song for the sacrifice of the goat" or "song for the goat", believing the animal was a prize in a race, as attested by Horace
Quintus Horatius Flaccus (; 8 December 65 – 27 November 8 BC), known in the English-speaking world as Horace (), was the leading Roman lyric poet during the time of Augustus (also known as Octavian). The rhetorician Quintilian regarded his ' ...
's '' Ars Poetica'':
Other hypotheses
There are other suggested etymologies for the word ''tragedy''. The ''Oxford English Dictionary
The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (''OED'') is the first and foundational historical dictionary of the English language, published by Oxford University Press (OUP). It traces the historical development of the English language, providing a com ...
'' adds to the standard reference to "goat song", that:As to the reason of the name, many theories have been offered, some even disputing the connection with ‘goat’.
J. Winkler proposed that "tragedy" could be derived from the rare word ''tragizein'' (), which refers to "adolescent voice-change" referring to the original singers as "representative of those undergoing social puberty".
[ D'Amico, on the other hand, suggests that ''tragoidía'' does not mean simply "song of the goats", but the characters that made up the satyr chorus of the first Dionysian rites.][
Other hypotheses have included an etymology that would define the tragedy as an ode to beer. Jane Ellen Harrison pointed out that Dionysus, god of ]wine
Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are m ...
(a drink of the wealthy classes) was actually preceded by Dionysus, god of beer
Beer is one of the oldest and the most widely consumed type of alcoholic drink in the world, and the third most popular drink overall after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches, mainly derived from ce ...
(a drink of the working classes). Athenian beer was obtained from the fermentation of barley, which is ''tragos'' in Greek. Thus, it is likely that the term was originally meant to be "odes to spelt
Spelt (''Triticum spelta''), also known as dinkel wheat or hulled wheat, is a species of wheat that has been cultivated since approximately 5000 BC.
Spelt was an important staple food in parts of Europe from the Bronze Age to medieval times. No ...
," and later on, it was extended to other meanings of the same name. She writes:
"Tragedy I believe to be not the 'goat-song', but the 'harvest-song' of the cereal
''tragos'', the form of spelt known as 'the goat'."
[
]
The evolution of tragedy
Origin of tragedy
The origin of Greek tragedy is one of the unsolved problems of classical scholarship
Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient ...
. Ruth Scodel
Ruth Scodel is an American Classics scholar, and the D.R. Shackleton-Bailey Collegiate Professor of Greek and Latin at the University of Michigan. She specialises in ancient Greek literature, with particular interests in Homer, Hesiod and Greek ...
notes that, due to lack of evidence and doubtful reliability of sources, we know nearly nothing about tragedy's origin.[ Still, R.P. Winnington-Ingram points out that we can easily trace various influences from other genres.][ The stories that tragedy deals with stem from epic and ]lyric poetry
Modern lyric poetry is a formal type of poetry which expresses personal emotions or feelings, typically spoken in the first person.
It is not equivalent to song lyrics, though song lyrics are often in the lyric mode, and it is also ''not'' equi ...
, its meter—the iambic trimeter
The Iambic trimeter is a meter of poetry consisting of three iambic units (each of two feet) per line.
In ancient Greek poetry and Latin poetry, an iambic trimeter is a quantitative meter, in which a line consists of three iambic ''metra''. Eac ...
—owed much to the political rhetoric of Solon
Solon ( grc-gre, Σόλων; BC) was an Athenian statesman, constitutional lawmaker and poet. He is remembered particularly for his efforts to legislate against political, economic and moral decline in Archaic Athens.Aristotle ''Politics'' ...
, and the choral songs' dialect, meter and vocabulary seem to originate in choral lyric. How these have come to be associated with one another remains a mystery however.
Speculating on the problem, Scodel writes that:
Three innovations must have taken place for tragedy as we know it to exist. First, somebody created a new kind of performance by combining a speaker with a chorus and putting both speaker and chorus in disguise as characters in a story from legend or history. Second, this performance was made part of the City Dionysia at Athens. Third, regulations defined how it was to be managed and paid for. It is theoretically possible that all these were simultaneous, but it is not likely.
From dithyramb to drama
Aristotle writes in the ''Poetics'' that, in the beginning, tragedy was an improvisation
Improvisation is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. Improvisation in the performing arts is a very spontaneous performance without specific or scripted preparation. The skills of impr ...
"by those who led off the dithyramb
The dithyramb (; grc, διθύραμβος, ''dithyrambos'') was an ancient Greek hymn sung and danced in honor of Dionysus, the god of wine and fertility; the term was also used as an epithet of the god. Plato, in ''The Laws'', while discussing ...
",[ which was a hymn in honor of Dionysus. This was brief and burlesque in tone because it contained elements of the ]satyr play
The satyr play is a form of Attic theatre performance related to both comedy and tragedy. It preserves theatrical elements of dialogue, actors speaking verse, a chorus that dances and sings, masks and costumes. Its relationship to tragedy is stro ...
. Gradually, the language became more serious and the meter changed from trochaic tetrameter
Trochaic tetrameter is a meter in poetry. It refers to a line of four trochaic feet. The etymology of the word Trochaic is the Greek word ''trokhaios'', from the verb ''trecho'', which means "I run". In classical metre, a trochee is a foot consis ...
to the more prosaic iambic trimeter
The Iambic trimeter is a meter of poetry consisting of three iambic units (each of two feet) per line.
In ancient Greek poetry and Latin poetry, an iambic trimeter is a quantitative meter, in which a line consists of three iambic ''metra''. Eac ...
. In Herodotus
Herodotus ( ; grc, , }; BC) was an ancient Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus, part of the Persian Empire (now Bodrum, Turkey) and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria ( Italy). He is known f ...
'' Histories''[ and later sources,][ the lyric poet Arion of Methymna is said to be the inventor of the dithyramb. The dithyramb was originally improvised, but later written down before performance. The ]Greek chorus
A Greek chorus, or simply chorus ( grc-gre, χορός, chorós), in the context of ancient Greek tragedy, comedy, satyr plays, and modern works inspired by them, is a homogeneous, non-individualised group of performers, who comment with a collect ...
of up to 50 men and boys danced and sang in a circle, probably accompanied by an aulos
An ''aulos'' ( grc, αὐλός, plural , ''auloi'') or ''tibia'' (Latin) was an ancient Greek wind instrument, depicted often in art and also attested by archaeology.
Though ''aulos'' is often translated as "flute" or "double flute", it was usu ...
, relating to some event in the life of Dionysus.[
Scholars have made a number of suggestions about the way the dithyramb changed into tragedy.
"Somebody, presumably Thespis, decided to combine spoken verse with choral song. ... As tragedy developed, the actors began to interact more with each other, and the role of the chorus became smaller.][" Scodell notes that:
]
The Greek word for “actor” is ''hypocrites'', which means “answerer” or “interpreter,” but the word cannot tell us anything about tragedy’s origins, since we do not know when it came into use.
Also, Easterling says: There is .. much to be said for the view that ''hypokrites'' means 'answerer'. He answers the questions of the chorus and so evokes their songs. He answers with a long speech about his own situation or, when he enters as messenger, with a narrative of disastrous events ... Naturally, the transformation of the leader into an actor entailed a dramatization of the
chorus.
The first tragedies
Tradition attributes Thespis
Thespis (; grc-gre, Θέσπις; fl. 6th century BC) was an Ancient Greek poet. He was born in the ancient city of Icarius (present-day Dionysos, Greece). According to certain Ancient Greek sources and especially Aristotle, he was the first pe ...
as the first person to represent a character in a play. This took place in 534 BC during the Dionysia
The Dionysia (, , ; Greek: Διονύσια) was a large festival in ancient Athens in honor of the god Dionysus, the central events of which were the theatrical performances of dramatic tragedies and, from 487 BC, comedies. It was the sec ...
established by Peisistratus
Pisistratus or Peisistratus ( grc-gre, Πεισίστρατος ; 600 – 527 BC) was a politician in ancient Athens, ruling as tyrant in the late 560s, the early 550s and from 546 BC until his death. His unification of Attica, the triangular ...
.[ Of his tragedies we know little except that the choir was still formed by ]Satyr
In Greek mythology, a satyr ( grc-gre, :wikt:σάτυρος, σάτυρος, sátyros, ), also known as a silenus or ''silenos'' ( grc-gre, :wikt:Σειληνός, σειληνός ), is a male List of nature deities, nature spirit with ears ...
s and that, according to Aristotle, he was the first to win a dramatic contest, and the first () who portrayed a character rather than speaking as himself. Moreover, Themistius
Themistius ( grc-gre, Θεμίστιος ; 317 – c. 388 AD), nicknamed Euphrades, (eloquent), was a statesman, rhetorician, and philosopher. He flourished in the reigns of Constantius II, Julian, Jovian, Valens, Gratian, and Theodosius I; and ...
, a writer of the 4th century AD, reports that Thespis invented the prologue as well as the spoken part (). Other playwrights of the time were Choerilus, author of probably one hundred and sixty tragedies (with thirteen victories), and Pratinas of Phlius, author of fifty works, of which thirty-two are satyr plays.[ We have little record of these works except their titles. At this time, satyr plays were presented alongside tragedies. Pratinas definitely competed with Aeschylus and worked from 499 BC.
Another playwright was Phrynichus.][ ]Aristophanes
Aristophanes (; grc, Ἀριστοφάνης, ; c. 446 – c. 386 BC), son of Philippus, of the deme
In Ancient Greece, a deme or ( grc, δῆμος, plural: demoi, δημοι) was a suburb or a subdivision of Athens and other city-states ...
sings his praises in his plays: for example, ''The Wasps
''The Wasps'' ( grc-x-classical, Σφῆκες, translit=Sphēkes) is the fourth in chronological order of the eleven surviving plays by Aristophanes. It was produced at the Lenaia festival in 422 BC, during Athens' short-lived respite from the ...
'' presents him as a radical democrat close to Themistocles. Besides introducing dialogues in iambic trimeter
The Iambic trimeter is a meter of poetry consisting of three iambic units (each of two feet) per line.
In ancient Greek poetry and Latin poetry, an iambic trimeter is a quantitative meter, in which a line consists of three iambic ''metra''. Eac ...
and including female characters for the first time, Phrynichus also introduced historical content to the genre of tragedy (e.g. in the '' Capture of Miletus''). His first victory in a contest
Contest may refer to:
* Competition
* Will contest
* Contesting, amateur radio contesting (radiosport)
Film and television
* ''Contest'' (2013 film), an American film
* Contest (1932 film), a German sports film
* "The Contest", a 1992 season 4 e ...
was in 510 BC. At this time, the organization of plays into trilogies
A trilogy is a set of three works of art that are connected and can be seen either as a single work or as three individual works. They are commonly found in literature, film, and video games, and are less common in other art forms. Three-part wor ...
began.
Aeschylus: the codification
Aeschylus was to establish the basic rules of tragic drama.[ He is credited with inventing the ]trilogy
A trilogy is a set of three works of art that are connected and can be seen either as a single work or as three individual works. They are commonly found in literature, film, and video games, and are less common in other art forms. Three-part wor ...
, a series of three tragedies that tell one long story, and introduced the second actor, making the dramatization of a conflict possible. Trilogies were performed in sequence over a full day, sunrise to sunset. At the end of the last play, a satyr play
The satyr play is a form of Attic theatre performance related to both comedy and tragedy. It preserves theatrical elements of dialogue, actors speaking verse, a chorus that dances and sings, masks and costumes. Its relationship to tragedy is stro ...
was staged to revive the spirits of the public, possibly depressed by the events of the tragedy.
In the work of Aeschylus, comparing the first tragedies with those of subsequent years, there is an evolution and enrichment of the proper elements of tragic drama: dialogue, contrasts, and theatrical effects.[ This is due to the competition in which the older Aeschylus was with other playwrights, especially the young ]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 co ...
, who introduced a third actor, increased plot complexity and developed more human characters, with which the audience could identify.
Aeschylus was at least partially receptive to Sophocles' innovations, but remained faithful to a very strict morality and a very intense religiosity. So, for instance, in Aeschylus, Zeus
Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label=Genitive case, genitive Aeolic Greek, Boeotian Aeolic and Doric Greek#Laconian, Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label=Genitive case, genitive el, Δίας, ''D ...
always has the role of ethical thinking and action. Musically Aeschylus remains tied to the ''nomoi'', rhythmic and melodic structures developed in the Archaic period.
The reforms of Sophocles
Plutarch
Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''P ...
, in the ''Life of Cimon'', recounts the first triumph of the young talented Sophocles against the famous and hitherto unchallenged Aeschylus.[ This competition ended in an unusual manner, without the usual draw for the referees, and caused the voluntary exile of Aeschylus to ]Sicily
(man) it, Siciliana (woman)
, population_note =
, population_blank1_title =
, population_blank1 =
, demographics_type1 = Ethnicity
, demographics1_footnotes =
, demographi ...
. Many innovations were introduced by Sophocles, and earned him at least twenty triumphs.[ He introduced a third actor, increased the number of chorus members to fifteen; he also introduced ]scenery
Theatrical scenery is that which is used as a setting for a theatrical production. Scenery may be just about anything, from a single chair to an elaborately re-created street, no matter how large or how small, whether the item was custom-made or ...
and the use of scene
Scene (from Ancient Greek, Greek σκηνή ''skēnḗ'') may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Music
*Scene (subculture), a youth subculture from the early 2000s characterized by a distinct music and style. Groups and performers
* The S ...
s.
Compared to Aeschylus, the chorus became less important in explaining the plot and there was a greater emphasis on character development and conflict. In ''Oedipus at Colonus
''Oedipus at Colonus'' (also ''Oedipus Coloneus''; grc, Οἰδίπους ἐπὶ Κολωνῷ, ''Oidipous epi Kolōnōi'') is the last of the three Theban plays of the Athenian tragedian Sophocles. It was written shortly before Sophocles's d ...
'', the chorus repeats "not to be born is best." The events that overwhelm the lives of the heroes are in no way explained or justified, and in this we see the beginning of a painful reflection on the human condition, still current in the contemporary world.
The realism of Euripides
The peculiarities that distinguish the Euripidean tragedies from those of the other two playwrights are the search for technical experimentation, and increased attention for feeling
Feelings are subjective self-contained phenomenal experiences. According to the ''APA Dictionary of Psychology'', a feeling is "a self-contained phenomenal experience"; and feelings are "subjective, evaluative, and independent of the sensations ...
s, as a mechanism to elaborate the unfolding of tragic events.[
The experimentation carried out by Euripides in his tragedies can be observed mainly in three aspects that characterize his theater: he turned the prologue into a monologue informing the spectators of the story's background, introduced the '']deus ex machina
''Deus ex machina'' ( , ; plural: ''dei ex machina''; English "god out of the machine") is a plot device whereby a seemingly unsolvable problem in a story is suddenly and abruptly resolved by an unexpected and unlikely occurrence. Its function ...
'' and gradually diminished the choir's prominence from the dramatic point of view in favor of a monody
In music, monody refers to a solo vocal style distinguished by having a single melodic line and instrumental accompaniment. Although such music is found in various cultures throughout history, the term is specifically applied to Italian song of ...
sung by the characters.
Another novelty of Euripidean drama is represented by the realism
Realism, Realistic, or Realists may refer to:
In the arts
*Realism (arts), the general attempt to depict subjects truthfully in different forms of the arts
Arts movements related to realism include:
*Classical Realism
*Literary realism, a move ...
with which the playwright portrays his characters' psychological dynamics. The hero described in his tragedies is no longer the resolute character as he appears in the works of Aeschylus and Sophocles, but often an insecure person, troubled by internal conflict.
He uses female protagonists of the plays, such as Andromache
In Greek mythology, Andromache (; grc, Ἀνδρομάχη, ) was the wife of Hector, daughter of Eetion, and sister to Podes. She was born and raised in the city of Cilician Thebe, over which her father ruled. The name means 'man battler' or ...
, Phaedra
Phaedra may refer to:
Mythology
* Phaedra (mythology), Cretan princess, daughter of Minos and Pasiphaë, wife of Theseus
Arts and entertainment
* ''Phaedra'' (Alexandre Cabanel), an 1880 painting
Film
* ''Phaedra'' (film), a 1962 film by ...
and Medea
In Greek mythology, Medea (; grc, Μήδεια, ''Mēdeia'', perhaps implying "planner / schemer") is the daughter of King Aeëtes of Colchis, a niece of Circe and the granddaughter of the sun god Helios. Medea figures in the myth of Jason an ...
, to portray the tormented sensitivity and irrational impulses that collide with the world of reason.[
]
Structure
The structure of Greek tragedy is characterized by a set of conventions. The tragedy usually begins with a prologue, (from'' pro'' and'' logos'', "preliminary speech") in which one or more characters introduce the drama and explain the background of the ensuing story. The prologue is followed by the ''parodos A parodos (also parode and parodus; grc, πάροδος, 'entrance', plural ), in the theater of ancient Greece, is a side-entrance to the stage, or the first song that is sung by the chorus at the beginning of a Greek tragedy.
Side-entrance to t ...
(entry of the characters/group)'' (πάροδος), after which the story unfolds through three or more episodes (ἐπεισόδια, epeisodia). The episodes are interspersed by stasima (στάσιμoν, stasimon), choral interludes explaining or commenting on the situation developing in the play. In the episode, there is usually interaction between characters and the chorus. The tragedy ends with the ''exodus'' (ἔξοδος), concluding the story. Some plays do not adhere to this conventional structure. Aeschylus' ''The Persians'' and ''Seven Against Thebes'', for example, have no prologue.
Language
The Greek dialects used are the Attic dialect
Attic Greek is the Greek dialect of the ancient region of Attica, including the ''polis'' of Athens. Often called classical Greek, it was the prestige dialect of the Greek world for centuries and remains the standard form of the language that is ...
for the parts spoken or recited by individual characters, and a literary Doric dialect for the chorus. For the metre
The metre (British spelling) or meter (American spelling; see spelling differences) (from the French unit , from the Greek noun , "measure"), symbol m, is the primary unit of length in the International System of Units (SI), though its pref ...
, the spoken parts mainly use the iambic (iambic trimeter
The Iambic trimeter is a meter of poetry consisting of three iambic units (each of two feet) per line.
In ancient Greek poetry and Latin poetry, an iambic trimeter is a quantitative meter, in which a line consists of three iambic ''metra''. Eac ...
), described as the most natural by Aristotle,[ while the choral parts rely on a variety of meters. Anapaests were typically used as the chorus or a character moved on or off the stage, and lyric metres were used for the choral odes. These included Dactylo-epitrites and various Aeolic metres, sometimes interspersed with iambics. Dochmiacs often appear in passages of extreme emotion.][
]
Greek tragedy in dramatic theory
Mimesis and catharsis
As already mentioned, Aristotle wrote the first critical study of the tragedy: the ''Poetics''. He uses the concepts of ''mimesis
Mimesis (; grc, μίμησις, ''mīmēsis'') is a term used in literary criticism and philosophy that carries a wide range of meanings, including ''imitatio'', imitation, nonsensuous similarity, receptivity, representation, mimicry, the act ...
'' (, "imitation"), and ''catharsis
Catharsis (from Greek , , meaning "purification" or "cleansing" or "clarification") is the purification and purgation of emotions through dramatic art, or it may be any extreme emotional state that results in renewal and restoration. In its lite ...
'' or ''katharsis'' (, "cleansing") to explain the function of tragedy. He writes: "Tragedy is, therefore, an imitation (''mimēsis'') of a noble and complete action ..which through compassion
Compassion motivates people to go out of their way to relieve the physical, mental or emotional pains of others and themselves. Compassion is often regarded as being sensitive to the emotional aspects of the suffering of others. When based on n ...
and fear produces purification of the passions."[ Whereas ''mimēsis'' implies an imitation of human affairs, ''catharsis'' means a certain emotional cleansing of the spectator. What exactly is meant by "emotional cleansing" (κάθαρσις των παθήματων) however, remains unclear throughout the work. Although many scholars have attempted to define this element vital to the understanding of Aristotle's ''Poetics'', they remain divided on the subject.][
Gregory, for instance, argues that there is "a close relationship between tragic ''katharsis'' and the transformation of pity and fear ..into essentially pleasurable emotions in the theater".
]Katharsis, on this reading, will denote the overall ethical benefit that accrues from such an intense yet fulfillingly integrated experience. Exempt from the stresses that accompany pity and fear in social life, the audience of tragedy can allow these emotions an uninhibited flow that ... is satisfyingly attuned to its contemplation of the rich human significance of a well-plotted play. A ''katharsis'' of this kind is not reducible to either ‘‘purgation’’ or ‘‘purification.’’
Lear[
promotes as "the most sophisticated view of katharsis", the idea that it "provides an education for the emotions." "Tragedy ... provides us with the appropriate objects towards which to feel pity or fear."
]
The three unities
The three Aristotelian unities
The classical unities, Aristotelian unities, or three unities represent a prescriptive theory of dramatic tragedy that was introduced in Italy in the 16th century and was influential for three centuries. The three unities are:
#''unity of action' ...
of drama are the unities of time, place and action.
#''Unity of action'': a play should have one main action that it follows, with no or few subplots.
#''Unity of place'': a play should cover a single physical space and should not attempt to compress geography, nor should the stage represent more than one place.
#''Unity of time'': the action in a play should take place over no more than 24 hours.
Aristotle
Aristotle (; grc-gre, Ἀριστοτέλης ''Aristotélēs'', ; 384–322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. Taught by Plato, he was the founder of the Peripatetic school of phil ...
asserted that a play must be complete and whole, in other words, it must have unity, i.e. a beginning, a middle and an end. The philosopher also asserted that the action of epic poetry and tragedy differ in length, "because in tragedy every effort is made for it to take place in one revolution of the sun, while the epic is unlimited in time."
These unities were considered key elements of the theatre until a few centuries ago, although they were not always observed (such as by authors like Shakespeare
William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
, Calderón de la Barca and Moliere).
Apollonian and Dionysian: the analysis of Nietzsche
Friedrich Nietzsche
Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (; or ; 15 October 1844 – 25 August 1900) was a German philosopher, prose poet, cultural critic, philologist, and composer whose work has exerted a profound influence on contemporary philosophy. He began his ...
at the end of the 19th century highlighted the contrast between the two main elements of tragedy: firstly, the Dionysian (the passion that overwhelms the character) and the Apollonian (the purely pictorial imagery of the theatrical spectacle).
Contrasted with that is ''nemesis'', the divine punishment that determines the fall or death of the character.
In ancient Greek culture, says Nietzsche, "there is a conflict between the plastic arts, namely the Apollonian, and non-plastic art of music, the Dionysian." Both drives, so different from each other, go side by side, mostly in open discord and opposition, always provoking each other to new, stronger births, in order to perpetuate in themselves the struggle of opposites which is only apparently bridged over by the common word 'art'; until, finally, by a wonderful act of Hellenic 'will,' they seem to pair up and in this pairing, at last, produce Attic Tragedy, which is as much a Dionysian as an Apollonian artwork.[''The Birth of Tragedy'', § 1]
The tragic theatre as a mass phenomenon
Greek tragedy as we understand it today, was not merely a show, but rather a collective ritual of the ''polis
''Polis'' (, ; grc-gre, πόλις, ), plural ''poleis'' (, , ), literally means "city" in Greek. In Ancient Greece, it originally referred to an administrative and religious city center, as distinct from the rest of the city. Later, it also ...
''. It took place in a sacred, consecrated space (the altar of the god stood at the center of the theatre).
A spectator of a Greek dramatic performance in the latter half of the fifth century B.C. would find himself seated in the ''theatron'', or ''koilon'',a semi-circular, curved bank of seats, resembling in some respects the closed end of a horseshoe stadium. ... Below him, in the best location in the theatre, is the throne of the priest of Dionysus who presides in a sense over the whole performance. The theatron is large-in fact, the one in Athens, in the Theatre of Dionysus, with its seats banked up on the south slope of the Acropolis, seated approximately 17,000 persons.
The spectator sees before him a level circular area called the ''orchestra'',
which means literally the "dancing place". ... In the centre of the orchestra stands an
altar. A part of the dramatic action will take place in the orchestra, as
well as the manoeuvres and dance figures performed by the Chorus as
they present their odes. To the right and left of the theatron are the
''parodoi'', which are used not only by the spectators for entering and
leaving the theatre, but also for the entrances and exits of actors and
the Chorus. Directly beyond the circular ''orchestra'' lies the ''skene'' or scene building. ... In most plays the skene represents the facade of a house, a palace, or a temple.
The skene normally had three doors which served as additional entrances and exits
for the actors. Immediately in front of the scene-building was a level
platform, in the fifth century B.C. in all probability only a single step
above the level of the orchestra. This was called the ''proskenion'' or ''logeion'' where much of the dramatic action of the plays takes place. Flanking the
proskenion were two projecting wings, the so-called ''paraskenia''. It must
be remembered that the skene, since at first it was only a wooden structure,
was flexible in its form, and was probably modified frequently.[
]
The theatre voiced ideas and problems from the democratic, political and cultural life of Athens. Tragedies can discuss or use the Greek mythical past as a metaphor for the deep problems of current Athenian society.[ In such plays, "the poet alludes directly to fifth-century events or developments, but moves them back into the mythological past. In this category an be placedAeschylus’ Persians and Oresteia."
In the case of Aeschylus' tragedy '']The Persians
''The Persians'' ( grc, Πέρσαι, ''Persai'', Latinised as ''Persae'') is an ancient Greek tragedy written during the Classical period of Ancient Greece by the Greek tragedian Aeschylus. It is the second and only surviving part of a now other ...
'', it was performed in 472 BC in Athens, eight years after the battle of Salamis, when the war with Persia was still in progress. It tells the story of the Persian fleet's defeat at Salamis and how the ghost of former Persian King Darius accuses his son Xerxes of ''hubris
Hubris (; ), or less frequently hybris (), describes a personality quality of extreme or excessive pride or dangerous overconfidence, often in combination with (or synonymous with) arrogance. The term ''arrogance'' comes from the Latin ', mean ...
'' against the Greeks for waging war on them.
"The possibility that a reflection of Athens is to be seen in Aeschylus’ Persian mirror could explain why the poet asks his audience to look at Salamis through Persian eyes and elicits great sympathy for the Persians, including Xerxes."
Other tragedies avoid references or allusions to 5th century BC events, but "also draw the mythological past into the present." The bulk of the plays in this category are by Euripides. Strains of fifth-century Athenian rhetoric, sketches of political types, and reflections of Athens’ institutions and society lend plays of this category a distinctly fifth-century Athenian flavor. The emphasis in Euripides’ Orestes on political factions, for example, is directly relevant to the Athens of 408 BCE.
The performances of the tragedies took place in Athens on the occasion of the Great Dionysia, feasts in honor of Dionysus celebrated in the month of Elaphebolion
The Attic calendar or Athenian calendar is the lunisolar calendar beginning in midsummer with the lunar month of Hekatombaion, in use in ancient Attica, the ancestral territory of the Athenian polis. It is sometimes called the Greek calendar beca ...
, towards the end of March. It was organized by the State and the eponymous archon
In ancient Greece the chief magistrate in various Greek city states was called eponymous archon (ἐπώνυμος ἄρχων, ''epōnymos archōn''). "Archon" (ἄρχων, pl. ἄρχοντες, ''archontes'') means "ruler" or "lord", frequently ...
, who picked three of the richest citizens to pay for the drama's expenses. In the Athenian democracy wealthy citizens were required to fund public services, a practice known as ''liturgy''.
During the Dionysia a contest
Contest may refer to:
* Competition
* Will contest
* Contesting, amateur radio contesting (radiosport)
Film and television
* ''Contest'' (2013 film), an American film
* Contest (1932 film), a German sports film
* "The Contest", a 1992 season 4 e ...
took place between three plays, chosen by the ''archon eponymous''. This procedure might have been based on a provisional script, each of which had to submit a tetralogy
A tetralogy (from Greek τετρα- ''tetra-'', "four" and -λογία ''-logia'', "discourse") is a compound work that is made up of four distinct works. The name comes from the Attic theater, in which a tetralogy was a group of three tragedies ...
consisting of three tragedies and a satyr play
The satyr play is a form of Attic theatre performance related to both comedy and tragedy. It preserves theatrical elements of dialogue, actors speaking verse, a chorus that dances and sings, masks and costumes. Its relationship to tragedy is stro ...
. Each tetralogy was recited in one day, so that the recitation of tragedies lasted three days. The fourth day was dedicated to the staging of five comedies. At the end of these three days a jury of ten people chosen by lot from the body of citizens chose the best choir, best actor and best author. At the end of the performances, the judges placed a tablet inscribed with the name of their choice inside an urn, after which five tablets were randomly selected. The person who received the highest number of votes won. The winning author, actor and choir were thus selected not purely by lot, but chance did play a part.
The passion of the Greeks for the tragedy was overwhelming: Athens, said the critics, spent more on theatre than on the fleet. When the cost for the shows became a sensitive subject, an admission fee was instated, alongside the so-called '' theorikon'', a special fund to pay for festival's expenses.[
]
The surviving tragedies
Of the many tragedies known to have been written, just 32 full-length texts by only three authors, Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides, survive.
Aeschylus
Seventy-nine titles of Aeschylus
Aeschylus (, ; grc-gre, Αἰσχύλος ; c. 525/524 – c. 456/455 BC) was an ancient Greek tragedian, and is often described as the father of tragedy. Academic knowledge of the genre begins with his work, and understanding of earlier Greek ...
' works are known (out of about ninety works),[ both tragedies and satyr plays. Seven of these have survived, including the only complete trilogy which has come down from antiquity, the '']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 th ...
'', and some papyrus fragments:
* '' The Persians
''The Persians'' ( grc, Πέρσαι, ''Persai'', Latinised as ''Persae'') is an ancient Greek tragedy written during the Classical period of Ancient Greece by the Greek tragedian Aeschylus. It is the second and only surviving part of a now other ...
'' ( / ), 472 BC;
* '' Seven Against Thebes
The Seven against Thebes were seven champions in Greek mythology who made war on Thebes. They were chosen by Adrastus, the king of Argos, to be the captains of an Argive army whose purpose was to restore Oedipus' son Polynices to the Theban th ...
'' ( / ), 467 BC;
* '' Suppliants'' ( / ), probably 463 BC;
* The trilogy'' 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 th ...
'' ( / ), 458 BC, consisting of:
** ''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 husb ...
'' ( / );
** ''Choephoroi
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 th ...
'' ( / );
** ''Furies
The Erinyes ( ; sing. Erinys ; grc, Ἐρινύες, pl. of ), also known as the Furies, and the Eumenides, were female chthonic deities of vengeance in ancient Greek religion and mythology. A formulaic oath in the ''Iliad
The ''Il ...
'' ( / );
* ''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 ...
'' ( / ) of uncertain date and considered spurious by some scholars.
Sophocles
According to Aristophanes of Byzantium
__NOTOC__
Aristophanes of Byzantium ( grc-gre, Ἀριστοφάνης ὁ Βυζάντιος ; BC) was a Hellenistic Greek scholar, critic and grammarian, particularly renowned for his work in Homeric scholarship, but also for work on other ...
, 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 co ...
wrote 130 plays, 17 of which are spurious; the Suda
The ''Suda'' or ''Souda'' (; grc-x-medieval, Σοῦδα, Soûda; la, Suidae Lexicon) is a large 10th-century Byzantine encyclopedia of the ancient Mediterranean world, formerly attributed to an author called Soudas (Σούδας) or Souidas ...
lexicon counted 123.[ Of all Sophocles's tragedies, only seven remain intact:
* '']Ajax
Ajax may refer to:
Greek mythology and tragedy
* Ajax the Great, a Greek mythological hero, son of King Telamon and Periboea
* Ajax the Lesser, a Greek mythological hero, son of Oileus, the king of Locris
* ''Ajax'' (play), by the ancient Greek ...
'' ( / ) around 445 BC;
* ''Antigone
In Greek mythology, Antigone ( ; Ancient Greek: Ἀντιγόνη) is the daughter of Oedipus and either his mother Jocasta or, in another variation of the myth, Euryganeia. She is a sister of Polynices, Eteocles, and Ismene.Roman, L., & Roma ...
'' ( / ), 442 BC;
* ''Women of Trachis
''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 ...
'' ( / ), date unknown;
* ''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 Gr ...
'' ( / ) around 430 BC;
* ''Electra
Electra (; grc, Ήλέκτρα) is one of the most popular mythological characters in tragedies.Evans (1970), p. 79 She is the main character in two Greek tragedies, '' Electra'' by Sophocles and '' Electra'' by Euripides. She is also the centra ...
'' ( / ), date unknown;
* ''Philoctetes
Philoctetes ( grc, Φιλοκτήτης ''Philoktētēs''; English pronunciation: , stress (linguistics), stressed on the third syllable, ''-tet-''), or Philocthetes, according to Greek mythology, was the son of Poeas, king of Meliboea (Magnes ...
'' ( / ), 409 BC;
* ''Oedipus at Colonus
''Oedipus at Colonus'' (also ''Oedipus Coloneus''; grc, Οἰδίπους ἐπὶ Κολωνῷ, ''Oidipous epi Kolōnōi'') is the last of the three Theban plays of the Athenian tragedian Sophocles. It was written shortly before Sophocles's d ...
'' ( / ), 406 BC.
Apart from the plays that have survived in their entirety, we also possess a large part of the satyr play or '' Trackers'', which was found at the beginning of the 20th century on a papyrus containing three-quarters of this work.[
]
Euripides
According to the Suda, Euripides
Euripides (; grc, Εὐριπίδης, Eurīpídēs, ; ) was a tragedian
Tragedy (from the grc-gre, τραγῳδία, ''tragōidia'', ''tragōidia'') is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful e ...
wrote either 75 or 92 plays, of which survive eighteen tragedies and the only complete surviving satyr play
The satyr play is a form of Attic theatre performance related to both comedy and tragedy. It preserves theatrical elements of dialogue, actors speaking verse, a chorus that dances and sings, masks and costumes. Its relationship to tragedy is stro ...
, the ''Cyclops''.[
His extant works are:
* '']Alcestis
Alcestis (; Ancient Greek: Ἄλκηστις, ') or Alceste, was a princess in Greek mythology, known for her love of her husband. Her life story was told by pseudo-Apollodorus in his '' Bibliotheca'', and a version of her death and return from ...
'' ( / ), 438 BC;
* ''Medea
In Greek mythology, Medea (; grc, Μήδεια, ''Mēdeia'', perhaps implying "planner / schemer") is the daughter of King Aeëtes of Colchis, a niece of Circe and the granddaughter of the sun god Helios. Medea figures in the myth of Jason an ...
'' ( / ), 431 BC;
* ''Heracleidae
The Heracleidae (; grc, Ἡρακλεῖδαι) or Heraclids were the numerous descendants of Heracles (Hercules), especially applied in a narrower sense to the descendants of Hyllus, the eldest of his four sons by Deianira (Hyllus was also ...
'' ( / ), c. 430 BC;
* '' Hippolytus'' ( / ), 428 BC;
* ''The Trojan Women
''The Trojan Women'' ( grc, Τρῳάδες, translit=Trōiades), also translated as ''The Women of Troy'', and also known by its transliterated Greek title ''Troades'', is a tragedy by the Greek playwright Euripides. Produced in 415 BC during ...
'' ( / ), 415 BC;
* ''Andromache
In Greek mythology, Andromache (; grc, Ἀνδρομάχη, ) was the wife of Hector, daughter of Eetion, and sister to Podes. She was born and raised in the city of Cilician Thebe, over which her father ruled. The name means 'man battler' or ...
'' ( /), date unknown;
* ''Hecuba
Hecuba (; also Hecabe; grc, Ἑκάβη, Hekábē, ) was a queen in Greek mythology, the wife of King Priam of Troy during the Trojan War.
Description
Hecuba was described by the chronicler Malalas in his account of the ''Chronography'' as "da ...
'' ( / ), 423 BC;
* '' Suppliants'' ( / ), 414 BC;
* ''Ion
An ion () is an atom or molecule with a net electrical charge.
The charge of an electron is considered to be negative by convention and this charge is equal and opposite to the charge of a proton, which is considered to be positive by conven ...
'' ( / );
* ''Iphigenia in Tauris
''Iphigenia in Tauris'' ( grc, Ἰφιγένεια ἐν Ταύροις, ''Iphigeneia en Taurois'') is a drama by the playwright Euripides, written between 414 BC and 412 BC. It has much in common with another of Euripides's plays, ''Helen'', as w ...
'' ( / );
* ''Electra
Electra (; grc, Ήλέκτρα) is one of the most popular mythological characters in tragedies.Evans (1970), p. 79 She is the main character in two Greek tragedies, '' Electra'' by Sophocles and '' Electra'' by Euripides. She is also the centra ...
'' ( / );
* ''Helen
Helen may refer to:
People
* Helen of Troy, in Greek mythology, the most beautiful woman in the world
* Helen (actress) (born 1938), Indian actress
* Helen (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name)
Places
* Helen, ...
'' ( / ), 412 BC;
* ''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 ...
'' ( / );
* ''The Phoenician Women
''The Phoenician Women'' ( grc, Φοίνισσαι, ''Phoinissai'') is a tragedy by Euripides, based on the same story as Aeschylus' play ''Seven Against Thebes''. It was presented along with the tragedies ''Hypsipyle'' and '' Antiope.'' With this ...
'' ( / ) circa 408 BC;
* ''Orestes
In Greek mythology, Orestes or Orestis (; grc-gre, Ὀρέστης ) was the son of Clytemnestra and Agamemnon, and the brother of Electra. He is the subject of several Ancient Greek plays and of various myths connected with his madness and ...
'' ( /), 408 BC;
* ''Iphigenia in Aulis
''Iphigenia in Aulis'' or ''Iphigenia at Aulis'' ( grc, Ἰφιγένεια ἐν Αὐλίδι, Īphigéneia en Aulídi; variously translated, including the Latin ''Iphigenia in Aulide'') is the last of the extant works by the playwright Euripide ...
'' ( / ), 410 BC;
* ''The Bacchae
''The Bacchae'' (; grc-gre, Βάκχαι, ''Bakchai''; also known as ''The Bacchantes'' ) is an ancient Greek tragedy, written by the Athenian playwright Euripides during his final years in Macedonia, at the court of Archelaus I of Macedon. ...
'' ( / ), 406 BC;
* ''Cyclops
In Greek mythology and later Roman mythology, the Cyclopes ( ; el, Κύκλωπες, ''Kýklōpes'', "Circle-eyes" or "Round-eyes"; singular Cyclops ; , ''Kýklōps'') are giant one-eyed creatures. Three groups of Cyclopes can be distinguish ...
'' ( / ) (satyr);
* '' Rhesus'' ( / ) (possibly spurious).
Demos: An Exploration of People and Democracy in Greek Tragedy
The role of the audience in a Greek Tragedy is to become part of that theatrical illusion, to partake in the act as if they were part of it. "The Demos in Greek Tragedy", frequently addresses the works of Euripides
Euripides (; grc, Εὐριπίδης, Eurīpídēs, ; ) was a tragedian
Tragedy (from the grc-gre, τραγῳδία, ''tragōidia'', ''tragōidia'') is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful e ...
. The way he addresses the audience through his plays is usually implied and never made obvious, as that would not only break the narrative that is being constructed, it would also fail to subject the disbelief of the audience. The article notes how often the audience is incorporated as being representative of the expected demos, usually by having silent actors, or individuals who are part of the Tragedy, be seated with the audience, to ensure that the actor is engaging with the audience.
Through further exploration into the role of the chorus, the author looks at what impact that may have had from the perspective of the demos. The author notes that it was often the case for tragic choruses to be of one type of social position (in both age, gender, nationality, and class). With regard to gender distinctions, the author finds that despite the fact that females choruses existed within Greek plays in general, they, like other enslaved and foreign individuals lacked the same kind of status as male Greeks. Those not considered citizens were not representative of the demos. The author gives an example of how a female chorus in Aeschylus
Aeschylus (, ; grc-gre, Αἰσχύλος ; c. 525/524 – c. 456/455 BC) was an ancient Greek tragedian, and is often described as the father of tragedy. Academic knowledge of the genre begins with his work, and understanding of earlier Greek ...
' ''Seven against Thebes'', is criticized for being bad for citizen morale.
The author further notes how male based choruses were designated by name based on their "factions within the citizenry" (p. 66). For example, if the chorus were composed of boys from Argive
Argos (; el, Άργος ; grc, label=Ancient and Katharevousa, Ἄργος ) is a city in Argolis, Peloponnese, Greece and is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, and the oldest in Europe. It is the largest city in Arg ...
, then one would refer to them as "Argive boys" (p. 66). However, a much clearer distinction is made with adult males, such as "jury-service-loving old men (Wasps)" (p. 66), which indicates that the chorus is composed entirely of older men who are part of a jury service, further indicating their role within the citizenry. The citizen chorus was not only distinguished by status but was also seen as a subset of the demos.
Greek Tragedy: A Performance
Greek Tragedy can often become confusing when trying to assess it as a drama, a detailed event, a performance, or even as something conveying an underlying theme. An article by Mario Frendo, looks at the latter as a phenomenon of performance, a separation in the meaning of the play from what it is actually being conveyed, and not an attempt to approach Greek tragedy through context (e.g., conventions of performance, historical facts, etc.). Approaching antiquity from a contemporary outlook, especially with regard to the construction and form of the plays, hinders any understanding of classical Greek society.
The origins of Greek tragedy were mostly based on song or speech rather than written script. In this way, Frendo states that Tragedy by its nature, was performative. Frendo furthers his argument by drawing on previous research into Greek Tragedy. He elaborates on the musical, often sing-song nature of the plays, and looks at oral tradition as the backdrop to the construction of these plays (e.g., oral tradition may play a role in the processes that lead to the creation of Greek Tragedy). Frendo draws on the notion that the experience of tragedy requires a theatrical performance and is in that sense, a separation of tragedy from literature. Further stating that it is essential to look at tragedy as pre-drama, that it does not fit with a more contemporary envisioning of "drama" as we would've seen under the Renaissance.
After dialogue based interactions were eventually brought into development, the percentage of scripts read by the chorus tended to decrease in regards to their involvement in the play. Therefore, the author concludes that this not only demonstrates the performative nature of Greek tragedy but also brings forth the possibility that dialogic based strategies may have been employed.
Deus Ex Machina: An Intervention Technique
An article by Thomas Duncan discusses the impact of dramatic technique on the influence of Tragic plays and conveying important or essential outcomes, particularly through the use of ''Deus Ex Machina
''Deus ex machina'' ( , ; plural: ''dei ex machina''; English "god out of the machine") is a plot device whereby a seemingly unsolvable problem in a story is suddenly and abruptly resolved by an unexpected and unlikely occurrence. Its function ...
''. This is a technique in which an action is halted by the appearance of an unforeseen character or through the intervention of a god, that essentially brings about a conclusion to a play. One such example can be seen with Euripides' play, '' Hippolytus''. In the play, Hippolytus is cursed with an untimely death by his father, Theseus
Theseus (, ; grc-gre, Θησεύς ) was the mythical king and founder-hero of Athens. The myths surrounding Theseus his journeys, exploits, and friends have provided material for fiction throughout the ages.
Theseus is sometimes describe ...
, for the supposed rape and subsequent suicide of Queen Phaedra, his step-mother. However, Queen Phaedra commits suicide due to unwanted desire for Hippolytus (instigated by the goddess, Aphrodite
Aphrodite ( ; grc-gre, Ἀφροδίτη, Aphrodítē; , , ) is an ancient Greek goddess associated with love, lust, beauty, pleasure, passion, and procreation. She was syncretized with the Roman goddess . Aphrodite's major symbols include ...
) and thus, blames her death on Hippolytus.
Hippolytus' demise is brought forth by a god, Aphrodite, whose hatred of Hippolytus' and his unending devotion to Artemis
In ancient Greek mythology and religion, Artemis (; grc-gre, Ἄρτεμις) is the goddess of the hunt, the wilderness, wild animals, nature, vegetation, childbirth, care of children, and chastity. She was heavily identified wit ...
stems from his subsequent disparagement or denial of Aphrodite. In other words, because Hippolytus chooses to devote himself to the goddess, Artemis, whose themai, or divine domain, is chastity, for some reason, he decides to then deny the existence of another goddesses divine domain, Aphrodite's' themai, lust, the polar opposite to chastity. The play demonstrates how divine intervention sets in motion the main theme of the play, revenge, and how that leads to the downfall of a royal family. However, it is not until the end of the play, when Artemis intervenes to tell King Theseus that he has killed his son by cursing him, that he has fallen prey to the workings of Aphrodite.
Without this kind of divine intervention, Theseus would not have realized his mistakes and Hippolytus would not have been cursed. Without divine intervention, the events that transpired would not have been as effective in revealing certain truths to the audience if they were to have come from a fellow human. In this way, such a technique is essential to the mechanisms of Greek Tragedy and the capabilities of the tragedian in conveying their play as more than just a story or detailed event.
Aeschylus: Human Identification through Character Representation
Character identification can be seen in many of Aeschylus' plays, such as ''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 ...
''. In this play, Prometheus
In Greek mythology, Prometheus (; , , possibly meaning "forethought")Smith"Prometheus". is a Titan god of fire. Prometheus is best known for defying the gods by stealing fire from them and giving it to humanity in the form of technology, know ...
, the Titan god of forethought and the inventing fire, stole the inventing flame from Hephaestus and gave it to humanity. Thereby, bestowing upon humanity knowledge of the arts, angering the gods. The idea behind this Greek tragedy is that Prometheus is punished by Zeus
Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label=Genitive case, genitive Aeolic Greek, Boeotian Aeolic and Doric Greek#Laconian, Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label=Genitive case, genitive el, Δίας, ''D ...
not only for the crime of giving humanity divine knowledge, but also for believing that by doing so, humanity would, in some way, praise Prometheus as a champion for justice and see Zeus as nothing more than a tyrant. Through this the author notes how Aeschylus' play relates to this notion of character identification, as it depicts a being who is not necessarily acting out of selfish intention but in many ways was willing to be punished for the betterment of Humanity.
Notes
References
Bibliography
* Albini, U. (1999) ''Nel nome di Dioniso. Il grande teatro classico rivisitato con occhio contemporaneo'' (Milan: Garzanti) .
* Beye, C.R. ''La tragedia greca: Guida storica e critica'' (Rome: Laterza) .
* Brunet, P. (1997) ''Break of de la littérature dans la Grèce ancienne'' (Paris: Le Livre de Poche).
* Easterling e.a. (eds.) (1989) ''The Cambridge History of Classical Literature Vol. 1 Pt. 2: Greek Drama'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press).
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* Griffith, M. (2002
‘Slaves of Dionysos: satyrs, audience, and the ends of the Oresteia'
in: ''Classical Antiquity'' 21: 195–258.
* Harvey, A. E. (1955) "The Classification of Greek Lyric Poetry" in: ''Classical Quarterly'' 5.
* Lear, J. (1992) 'Katharsis' in: A.O. Rorty (ed.) ''Essays on Aristotle's Poetics'' (Princeton: Princeton University Press).
* Ley, G. (2015) 'Acting Greek Tragedy' (Exeter: University of Exeter Press).
* Nietzsche, F. (1962) 'La nascita della tragedia' in: ''Opere scelte'' L. Scalero (trans.) (Milan: Longanesi).
* Privitera, G.A & Pretagostini, R. (1997) ''Storia e forme della letteratura greca. Età arcaica ed età classica'' (Einaudi Scuola: Milan) .
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* Sinisi, S. & Innamorati, I. (2003)
Storia del teatro: lo spazio scenico dai greci alle avanguardie storiche
' (Bruno Mondadori: Milan).
Further reading
* Further reading section includes extensive references to commentaries and interpretations for all extant ancient Greek tragedies.
{{Authority control
Ancient Greek theatre
Tragedies (dramas)