Athenian Supremacy & Greek Tragedy: 5th Century BCE
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Athenian Rule in the 5th Century BCE
- 490 BCE: Athens defeats Persians at Marathon
- 404 BCE: Athens is defeated by Sparta in the Peloponnesian War
- Between these two events, Athens enjoys cultural and political supremacy.
Dramatic Festivals
- In honor of Dionysus, son of Zeus and Semele.
- Dionysus was reared by satyrs, killed, dismembered, and resurrected.
- In Attica, four annual festivals were held: Rural Dionysia, Lenaia, Anthesteria, and City Dionysia.
Origins of Tragedy
- Various hypotheses for the meaning of TRAGOIDIA or “goat song”.
- Aristotle’s Poetics: from improvisations by leaders of the DITHYRAMBS.
- Other hypotheses: recited stories, sung poetry, and narrative dance.
- First recorded author of tragedies: THESPIS.
- Thespis started dialogue between himself and the chorus.
Structure of Greek Tragedy
- [Prologue]: Information on previous events.
- PARODOS (plural PARODOI): Entrance of the chorus.
- EPISODES (3 to 6): Develop the main action.
- STASIMON (plural: STASIMA): Choral dance songs.
- EXODOS: Exit of the chorus.
Aeschylus (c. 523-456)
- The Persians (472): The only one based on history.
- Seven Against Thebes (467)
- The Oresteia, the only extant trilogy: Agamemnon, Libation Bearers, and Eumenides (458).
- The Suppliants
- Prometheus Bound (probably after 468)
- Major innovation: introduction of the second actor.
Sophocles (c. 496-406)
- Thought to have written more than 120 plays, but only seven have survived:
- Ajax (between 450 and 440)
- Antigone (c. 441)
- Oedipus the King (c. 430-425)
- Electra (c. 418-410)
- Trachiniae (c. 413)
- Philoctetes (409)
- Oedipus at Colonus (406)
- Credited with the introduction of the third actor.
- Fixed the size of the chorus at fifteen members.
- First use of scene painting.
- Mastery of dramatic structure: Oedipus the King is often called the most perfect of Greek tragedies.
Euripides (c. 480-406)
- Wrote about 90 plays, of which 18 have survived. Among these:
- Medea
- Heracles
- The Trojan Women
- Electra
- Iphigenia in Tauris
- The Phoenician Women
- Orestes
- The Bacchae
- Iphigenia in Aulis
- Cyclops, a satyr play.
- Famous for his outrageous themes, plots, and emphasis on spectacle.