Transcript Sophocles - the WALLS of ENGLISH

Sophocles
The Greek theatre or Greek drama is a
theatrical tradition that flourished in ancient
Greece between c. 550 and c. 220 BC.
Athens, the political and military power in
Greece during this period, was the center of
ancient Greek theatre. Tragedy (late 6th
century BC), comedy (~486 BC), and satyr
plays were some of the theatrical forms to
emerge in the world. Greek theatre and plays
have had a lasting impact on Western drama
and culture.
Sophocles (495 BC - 406 BC) was
the second of three great ancient
Greek tragedians. He was preceded
by Aeschylus, and was followed by
or contemporary to Euripides.
According to the Suda, he wrote
123 or more plays during the course
of his life. For almost 50 years, he
was the dominant competitor in the
dramatic competitions of ancient
Athens that took place during the
religious festivals of the Lenaea and
the Dionysia. His first victory was
in 468 BC.
Only seven of his tragedies have survived into
modern times with their text completely known.
The most famous of these are the three tragedies
concerning Oedipus and Antigone: these are often
known as the Theban plays or The Oedipus Cycle,
although they were not originally written or
performed as a single trilogy. Sophocles influenced
the development of the drama, most importantly by
adding a third character and thereby reducing the
importance of the chorus in the presentation of the
plot. He also developed his characters to a greater
extent than earlier playwrights such as Aeschylus,
and used female characters in his plays.
Sophocles died at the venerable age of ninety
in 406 or 405 BC. He was so respected by the
Athenians that two plays performed at the
Lenea soon after his death paid homage to
him, and his unfinished play Oedipus at
Colonus was completed and performed years
later. Both Iophon, one of his sons, and a
grandson, also called Sophocles, followed in
his footsteps to become playwrights
themselves.
In Sophocles' time, the Greek art of the drama
was undergoing rapid and profound change. It
had begun with little more than a chorus, but
earlier playwrights had added first one and
then two actors and thereby shifted the action
of the plays away from the chorus. Among
Sophocles' earliest innovations was the
addition of a third actor, further reducing the
role of the chorus and creating greater
oppourtunity for character development and
conflict between characters.
In addition to innovations in the structure of
drama, Sophocles' work is known for deeper
development of characters than earlier
playwrights, whose characters are more twodimensional and are therefore harder for an
audience to relate to. His reputation was such
that foreign rulers invited him to attend their
courts. Aristotle used Sophocles's Oedipus the
King as an example of perfect tragedy, which
suggests the high esteem in which his work
was held by later Greeks.
After the Great Destruction by the Persians in 480
BC, Athens was rebuilt, and theatre became
formalized and an even more major part of
Athenian culture and civic pride. This century is
normally regarded as the Golden Age of Greek
drama. The centerpiece of the annual Dionysia,
which took place once in winter and once in spring,
was a competition between three tragic playwrights
at the Theatre of Dionysus. Each submitted three
tragedies, plus a satyr play (a comic, burlesque
version of a mythological subject). Beginning in a
first competition in 486 BC, each playwright also
submitted a comedy.
Aristotle claimed that Aeschylus added the second
actor, and that Sophocles added the third actor.
Apparently the Greek playwrights never put more
than three actors on stage, except in very small roles
(such as Pylades in Electra). No women appeared
on stage, female roles were played by men.
Violence was also never shown on stage. When
somebody was about to die, they would take that
person to the back to "kill" them and bring them
back "dead." The other people near the stage were
the chorus which consisted of about 4-8 people who
would stand in the back wearing black.
Perhaps the most famous of Sophocles plays
are commonly known as the Theban plays or
The Oedipus Cycle. The cycle consists of the
plays Oedipus Rex (or Oedipus Tyrannos),
which won second prize at the Dionysia
festival in 427, Oedipus at Colonus, which
won first prize when produced by his
grandson, and Antigone. Although these three
plays are related in plot, they were not written
or performed at the same time, and so were
likely not originally intended to be a trilogy.
Taking up the theme of humans being trapped
both by fate and their own frailties, the plays
tell the story of the family of Oedipus, who in
Greek mythology killed his father and married
his mother without knowing that they were, in
fact, his parents. Antigone, a play about
Oedipus' daughter, is an example of
Sophocles' use of prominent female
characters.
Oedipus
Oedipus was a mythical king of Thebes, the
“richest city in the world.”
Oedipus was the son of Laius and Jocasta and
became king of Thebes after killing his father,
solving the riddle of the Sphinx and unknowingly
marrying his mother. After Oedipus is king, his sons
fight over the throne and kill each other.
Variations on the Oedipus legend are mentioned in
fragments by several ancient Greek poets including
Homer, Hesiod and Pindar. Most of what is known
of Oedipus comes from a set of plays by Sophocles:
Oedipus the King, Oedipus at Colonus, and
Antigone.
Laius hears a prophecy that his son will kill
him. Fearing the prophecy, Laius pierces
Oedipus' feet and leaves him out to die, but a
herdsman finds him and takes him away from
Thebes. Oedipus, not knowing he was
adopted, leaves home in fear of a phophecy
that he would kill his father and marry his
mother. Laius, meanwhile, ventures out to
find a solution to the Sphinx's riddle.
As prophesized, Oedipus crossed paths with
Laius and this leads to a fight where Oedipus
slays Laius. Oedipus then defeats the Sphinx
by solving a mysterious riddle to become
king. He marries the widow queen Jocasta not
knowing it is his mother. A plague falls on the
people of Thebes. Upon discovery of the
truth, Jocasta hangs herself. After Oedipus is
no longer king, Oedipus' sons kill each other.
Sophocles' Oedipus the King
The people of Thebes are begging the king for
help; he must discover the cause of the
plague. Oedipus swears to find the person
responsible for the pestilence and execute him
as well as anyone who aids him. He questions
everyone in the palace, including his wife,
Jocasta. Eventually, when the blind seer
Tiresias informs Oedipus that he himself is
both the source of the pollution and the
murderer, the king does not believe him.
Oedipus insists that the culprit is Creon,
Jocasta's brother, whom he believes is plotting
to take over the throne.
Oedipus then accuses Tiresias of lying and being a
false prophet. It is not until a messenger arrives
with news that King Polybus of Corinth (his
supposed father) has died of natural causes that a
horrified Oedipus finally solves the mystery of his
birth. In a moment of recognition, he realizes that
he has not only killed his own father but has also
married his own mother (with whom he has had
four children). When Jocasta learns the horrible
truth, she hangs herself in the very chamber where
she and her son have unknowingly committed
incest. Seizing the brooches from her dress,
Oedipus blinds himself.
Detective, murderer, judge, and jury,
Oedipus condemns himself to
wander in darkness throughout the
land for the rest of his life.
There was a single Sphinx in Greek
mythology, a unique demon of
destruction and bad luck
• She was represented in vase-painting and
bas-reliefs most often seated upright rather
than recumbent, as a winged lion with a
woman's head; or she was a woman with the
paws and claws of a lion, a serpent's tail and
eagle wings. Hera or Ares sent the Sphinx
from her Ethiopian homeland to Thebes
In Sophocles Oedipus Tyrannus, she asks all
passersby history's most famous riddle:
"Which creature in the morning goes on four
feet, at noon on two, and in the evening
upon three?"
She strangled anyone unable to answer.
Sophocles' Oedipus at Colonus
Oedipus becomes a wanderer, pursued
by Creon and his men. He finally finds
refuge at the holy wilderness right
outside of Athens, where it is said that
Theseus took care of him and his
daughter, Antigone. He died a peaceful
death and his grave is said to be sacred to
the gods.
Sophocles' Antigone
When Oedipus stepped down as King of
Thebes, he gave the kingdom to his two
sons, Eteocles and Polynices, who both
agreed to alternate the throne every year.
However, they showed no concern for
their father, who cursed them for their
negligence. After the first year, Eteocles
refused to step down and Polynices
attacked Thebes with his supporters
The play is also notable as one of the few plays in which
the inside of the palace setting is shown. Usually in Greek
tragedy all action took place outside of the house or palace
depicted on the skene (the backdrop of the stage); deaths
took place "inside," unseen by the audience. In this play,
however, the skene was opened to show Creon finding the
body of Eurydice.
The character of the sentry is also unusual, as he speaks
like a lower-class person, in more natural language, rather
than the stylized poetry of the other characters. Similar
characters in the works of Shakespeare have been
compared to him.
The important issue in the play is the clash of values
between Creon and Antigone. Creon advocates obedience
to man-made laws while Antigone stresses the higher laws
of duty to the gods and one's family.