Transcript Greek Theater PPT

Greek Theatre and the
Nature of Tragedy
Early History
First “tragedies” were myths
 Danced and Sung by a “chorus” at festivals
 In honor of Dionysius
 Chorus were made up of men
 Later, myths developed a more serious form
 Tried to illustrate some lesson in life
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More History

534 B.C. Thespis invented an actor who
conversed with the leader of the chorus
 A second actor was provided by playwright
Aeschylus
 A third actor was provided by Sophocles
 Now drama could show and develop a
human situation in all its aspects
Greek Theatre

Open-air theatre
 Use of dramatic irony
 Plays acted during the daytime—why?
 All actors were male
 Wore masks, wigs, high boots
 Plays written in poetic verse
 Plays observed the “three unities”
Unity of Time
All
the action of the play took
place within 24 hours; dialogue
provided background
information
Unity of Place
Action
was limited to one
setting; one unchanged
scene was used.
Unity of Subject
The
focus was on the
main character. There
were no sub-plots.
Messengers

Used to tell the
audience about what
happened offstage
 Religious intent and
dignified style, no
violence was shown
on stage

Messenger ran on
stage and spoke to the
audience of any death
or killings.
 These messages were
sometimes quite
graphic.
The Chorus

Made up of 15-20 men who represented the
citizens
 Always on stage, and frequently sang and
danced
 Always had a leader (called the Choragus)
who carried on a dialogue with the main
characters or with the rest of the chorus
Function of the Chorus






Set the tone
Give background info
Recall events of the
past
Interpret and
summarize events
Ask questions
At times, give
opinions

Give advice, if asked
 Stay objective, in the
sense that it did not
disagree with the
leading character
 Act like a jury of
elders or wise men
Requirements of a Tragic
Hero

Tragic flaw leading to downfall
 Evokes pity from the audience
 Someone learns a lesson from the hero’s
suffering
The Tragic Hero

Possesses a tragic flaw (hamartia) that leads
to his/her downfall (peripeteia).
 The tragic flaw is often a character trait that
does not seem negative, but is under these
particular circumstances.
 The tragic hero learns a lesson from his/her
meaningful suffering, and the tragic hero
and the audience feel a sense of release at
the end (catharsis).
Social and Political Athens—5th
century B.C.

497 B.C.—Sophocles born in Athens
 Most well-known of ancient Greek
dramatists
 Athens was a time of great achievements in
all forms of art
 People had a strong sense of patriotism
Athenian government

Government was a democracy run by
elected officials in the form of an open
assembly
 Participation in this democracy was limited
to only about 10% of the population
– Women, slaves, and other “non-citizens” were
excluded