1 Dramatic Literature
Study Guide #1 -­‐ Spring 2015 Text: The Bedford Introduction to Drama, 6th Ed. Assigned Reading and Discussion: I. II. III. IV. V. I.
Introduction: Thinking About Drama (pp. 1-­‐22) EXTRA CREDIT OPTION (+10 pts.) – Response to Lady Gregory’s The Rising of the Moon (pp. 23-­‐29) Due _________ Greek Drama & Timeline (30-­‐40) Instructor Notes on Aristotle’s The Poetics (See Commentaries: The Poetics, and The Oedipus Complex pp. 67-­‐76) Plot Chart– Sophocles’ Oedipus The King Dionysus, Greek Playwrights, Satyr Play Homework Assignment: Review Questions -­‐ Oedipus the King (pp. 41-­‐66) Due ___________ INTRODUCTION: THINKING ABOUT DRAMA
(discussion)
• WHAT IS DRAMA? Define drama and describe its primary ingredients. Share your thoughts on the purpose of theatre. • DRAMA & RITUAL. Give examples of the relationship between drama & ritual. • DRAMA: THE ILLUSION OF REALITY -­‐ What is meant by “dramatic illusion” and how does our perception of “reality on stage” vary in different time periods and cultures. • SEEING A PLAY – How does the historical time frame, along with developmental changes in theatre structures, affect the audience’s experience of seeing a play? • READING A PLAY – Describe the pros & cons of reading a play versus seeing a live performance. What useful tips can make reading a play more rewarding? GREAT AGES OF DRAMA (for Quick Reference) 1. ANCIENT GREECE (5TH CENTURY BCE) * OEDIPUS REX (C.430-­‐425) by Sophocles Theater festivals honor the Greek god Dionysus as a religious and civic obligation and are supported by public funding. Playwrights compete for prizes during all-­‐day theatrical festivals that drew audiences numbering from ten to fifteen nd
thousand. Actors (all male) were held in high esteem. Major playwrights include Aeschylus (who introduced the 2 rd
Actor), Sophocles (introduced the 3 actor and developed both scenic elements and more complex plots), Euripides (the most modern of the Greek tragedians), Aristophanes (Old Comedy – political satire), and Menander (New Comedy – stock characters.) 2. ROMAN THEATER (240 BCE – 533 AD) Romans borrowed from the Greeks, but never matched their glory and literary achievement. Drama performed at religious festivals (Ludi Romani – honoring Jupiter). Roman appetite for spectacle, often cruel and debased, prevails. Fall of the Roman Empire in 476 AD -­‐ Last recorded theater performance in 533 AD. Actors (all men) were not citizens-­‐ placed in the same category as foreigners, slaves, and social inferiors. Like prostitution, theater was “a necessary evil.” Livius st
Andronicus (284-­‐204 BCE) from Southern Greece – 1 actor to appear on the Roman stage in 240 BCE. Stock Character types emerge from Roman comic authors Plautus & Terrence. Seneca recognized as the greatest of Roman tragedians. Rocius – most popular Roman actor. 3. MEDIEVAL DRAMA (900-­‐1400) RELIGIOUS DRAMA -­‐ Initially banned by the Catholic Church, theater reemerges and serves as a teaching tool to promote st
religious doctrine (c. 925 “Quem Quaeritis” -­‐ 1 Easter trope). Acting, however, is not considered a legitimate profession. Local tradesmen perform “Mystery” plays (sponsored by Trade Guilds – also called “Cycle” plays), “Miracle” plays (depicting lives of the Saints), and “Morality” plays (religious allegories). Actors become wandering minstrels and st
troubadours. The Second Shepherd’s Play, Abraham & Isaac, & Everyman are notable examples of this period. 1 known Female Playwright Hrosvitha, a Catholic Nun of Gandersheim, wrote six plays based on the comedies of Plautus. TA 125 / Spring 2015-­‐ Student Study Guide #1 2 th
NOH DRAMA -­‐ Emerged from Buddhist ceremonial dances in the 14 century. First Noh dramatist, Kan’ami Kiyotsuga (1333-­‐1444), was considered the Japanese “Thespis.” His son, Zeami Motokiyo, perfected the style. Plays are serene and spiritual. Appealed to upper classes. All performers were male. 4. RENAISSANCE (1400-­‐1700) ITALY st
The “Revival or Rebirth of Learning.” Great achievements in theater architecture and scenic devices. 1 proscenium theater (1618-­‐ Teatro Farnese in Parma, Italy). Opera (1637). Commedia dell’arte, a popular form of improvised street th
theatre, which included women (c 1500). Limited form of printing press (very labor intensive) appeared in China in 8 century -­‐ Invention of the European Printing Press (attributed to Johannes Gutenberg – Gutenberg Bible – c. 1450-­‐56) made reading material available to a larger public. ELIZABETHAN AGE * OTHELLO by William Shakespeare Elizabeth I was a generous patron of the arts, and Shakespeare’s works are unmatched as the pinnacle of dramatic literary achievement. Great actors: Richard Burbage (Lord Chamberlain’s Men) and Edward Alleyn (Lord Admiral’s Men). Ben Jonson noted for Court Masques and Comedy of Humors. However, the acting profession (all males) was not regarded highly. Public theaters were illegal within the city limits. Theaters closed by Puritans in 1642 and eventually destroyed. SPAIN -­‐ Spain’s “Golden Age” produces prolific playwright, Lope de Vega (estimated from 800-­‐1500 plays – 470 survive – many “auto sacramentales” -­‐ religious dramas), and the popular, Pedro Calderon (1600-­‐81). TH
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5. LATE 17 & 18 CENTURY 17 CENTURY ROYAL COURT THEATERS * TARTUFFE by Moliere TH
French comic genius, Moliere, becomes France’s “Shakespeare” – his patron was Louis XIV. Acting profession still held in low regard and Moliere was denied burial in consecrated ground until his wife, Armande, made a special plea to the King. He was later buried secretly at night. French Academy (1629 / 1635) maintained strict literary standards. Neoclassicism, a rediscovery of classical Greek drama, promoted strict observance of Aristotle’s “unities” of time, place and action. RESTORATION ENGLAND (1660-­‐1700) Theaters reopen in 1660 with Restoration of “Merry Monarch” Charles II. Men are no longer seen in female roles -­‐ emergence of the actress (Nell Gwyn, Eng. Actress and comedienne, was the mistress of Charles II.) Theater was a social event for the upper classes. Comedy of Manners satirized the customs of the day. Aphra Behn emerges as the first female playwright in the English language -­‐ her most notable work, The Rover (1677). JAPANESE KABUKI st
1 performer known as Okuni (female temple dancer and courtesan) who in 1603 performed exotic dances on the dried Kamo riverbed near Kyoto. Chikamatatsu Monzaemon (Love Suicides at Sonezaki) was considered Japan’s Shakespeare and the most renowned of Kabuki playwrights. Women’s Kabuki (Onna Kabuki) ban in 1629, and actors have remained all Male since that time. Height of Kabuki popularity (1675-­‐1750) but still performed to present day. TH
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6. 19 CENTURY THROUGH TURN OF 20 CENTURY MELODRAMA -­‐ REVENGE TRAGEDY -­‐ SENTIMENTAL DRAMAS – ROMANTICISM Acting companies organize and theater managers emerge. Status of acting profession improves in England. Actors had “possessed parts” and owned a role for life. Acting styles somewhat “artificial” by our standards. EARLY MODERN REALISM * A DOLL HOUSE (1879) by Henrik Ibsen *THE CHERRY ORCHARD (1903) by Anton Chekhov Theater reflects the “realism” of the modern world. Industrial Age, migration to the cities, disease, poverty, feminism, etc. are all defining forces. Theater responds to social issues and is influenced by Freud, Darwin, & Marx. The plays of Anton Chekhov, Henrik Ibsen, and August Strindberg call for more naturalistic styles of acting. Oscar Wilde revives comedy of manners in England with remarkable success, but sexual sandal abruptly ends his career. SOCIAL SATIRE – COMEDY OF MANNERS *THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST (1895) by Oscar Wilde TA 125 / Spring 2015-­‐ Student Study Guide #1 3 TH
7. DRAMA IN THE EARLY & MID-­‐20 CENTURY POST MODERN / ANTI-­‐REALISM (1940s – to present) Theater of the Absurd, Epic Drama, Existentialism, Expressionism. A reaction to the “meaninglessness” of man’s existence in the modern age. Samuel Beckett, Bertolt Brecht, Lugi Pirandello, Jean Paul Sartre, and Eugene Ionesco are major playwrights in this period. Eugene O’Neill, Tennessee Williams, Arthur Miller, Lorraine Hansberry, Lillian Hellman are considered to be the most outstanding American playwrights of the Post WWII era. 8. CONTEMPORARY DRAMA EXPERIMENTAL THEATRE -­‐ Major forces of experimental theatre of the early 1960s included Jerzy Grotowski of the Polish Laboratory Theatre – Towards A Poor Theatre, England’s, Peter Brook – The Empty Space, and The Open Theatre in New York, led by Joseph Chaikin. CURRENT THEATRE of today includes many voices and an enormous diversity of talent and vision. Our selection of plays from this category includes: *FENCES (1985) by August Wilson * ANGELS IN AMERICA (1992) by Tony Kushner
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GENRES OF DRAMA … WHAT IS “GENRE?” 1. Tragedy (“tragos ode” Goat Song) 2. Comedy (“Komos” Song of Revelry) 3. Other Genres: Tragicomedy Revenge Tragedy Domestic Tragedy Melodrama Farce Romantic Comedy Comedy of Manners Satire Theatre of the Absurd Theatre of Cruelty •
ELEMENTS OF DRAMA Vocabulary: Plot Character 1
Setting (Spectacle) Dialogue Music Movement (Spectacle) Theme For 10 pts. Extra Credit . . . The Rising of the Moon (1907) by Irish dramatist Lady Augusta Gregory (1852-­‐1932) Discuss this short play in terms of the elements of drama listed (above) from your text. Which of these areas were the most effective, in your opinion, and explain why? What was your overall response to the play? 1
Aristotle, in The Poetics (335-323 BCE), combines Movement & Setting (plus Costumes) into one category of visual elements, which he
defines as SPECTACLE.
TA 125 / Spring 2015-­‐ Student Study Guide #1 4 II. GREEK DRAMA TIMELINE
(pp. 30-38)
The Compact Bedford Introduction to Drama, 6th Ed.
800 BCE (9th century) 776 600-­‐700 c. 600 534 510 c. 501 5th century 499-­‐479 486 472 c. 471 c. 468 462-­‐429 458 441 438 431 431-­‐404 c. 430-­‐425 411 400-­‐c.320 336-­‐300 335-­‐323 325 277 240 146 476 CE 533 th 9 century 925 970 th
14 century Age of Homer -­‐ The Iliad & The Odyssey 1st Olympic Games (began with one event – 200 meter footrace) Banned in 394 CE by Roman Emperor Theodsius – Revived 1896 Construction of Acropolis begins in Athens Dithyrambic Choruses begin in Greece Thespis of Attica wins 1st recorded theatrical contest and is now regarded as the 1st known actor. 2
Athens becomes a democracy under Cleisthenes Satyr plays added to play competition at City Dionysia Golden Age of Greece: 500-­‐400 BCE -­‐ Height of Greek achievement in science, art, math, philosophy, architecture, government, etc. Persian Wars -­‐ Battle of Marathon (490 BCE) Comedy added to City Dionysia (women were not allowed to attend) The Persians by Aeschylus (earliest surviving Greek play) 2nd Actor introduced by Aeschylus (c.523-­‐456 BCE) 3rd Actor introduced by Sophocles (c.496-­‐406 BCE) Age of Pericles3 (c 490-­‐429) Oresteia Trilogy by Aeschylus (only extant Greek trilogy) Skene is introduced in Greek theater. First performance of Sophocles Antigone Parthenon is completed. Medea by Euripides (c.484-­‐406) Peloponnesian War -­‐ Between Athens & Sparta (end of Athenian Democracy) Oedipus The King by Sophocles (Sophocles credited with adding 3rd actor) Lysistrata by Aristophanes (c.450-­‐388) Old Comedy (fantasy plots, happy idea, political satire) Era of Middle Comedy (focused on daily life) Era of New Comedy (development of stock characters). Menander’s The Grouch is the only surviving example. The Poetics by Aristotle (384-­‐322 BCE) Theater of Dionysus -­‐ built on the slope of Acropolis Artists of Dionysus – 1st Actors Guild Roman Drama begins -­‐ Livius Andronicus (284-­‐204 AD) Greece falls to Rome (Punic Wars) Fall of the Roman Empire Last recorded performance in Rome Beginnings of Liturgical Drama Earliest Easter Trope in the Catholic Church -­‐ Quem Quaeritis 1st known Female Playwright Hrosvitha of Gandersheim (German Nun) Beginning of Noh drama in Japan 2
CLEISTHENES (c.570 - c.508 B.C.E) Greek statesman regarded as the founder of Athenian democracy. Cleisthenes served as chief archon in Athens in 525 BC. His
most important innovation was the basing of individual political responsibility on citizenship of a city rather than on membership of a clan.
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PERICLES (c.495-429 B.C.E.), - Athenian statesman; responsible for the full flowering of Athenian democracy and the Athenian empire; his administration marked
Athens' political and cultural apex.
TA 125 / Spring 2015-­‐ Student Study Guide #1 5 A. ORIGINS OF GREEK DRAMA 1. Greek Legend & Myth: • Dionysus / Bacchus (son of Zeus & Semele) Maenads • Dithyramb • Tragedy “tragos ode” (goat song) 2. Thespis 1st actor -­‐ 1st recorded contest (534 BCE) • Hypokrite (Actor) “answerer” 3. Religious Festivals honoring Dionysus • Rural Dionysia (Dec) • Lenaea (Jan) -­‐ Comedy added (486 BCE) • Anthesteria (Feb.), • City or Great Dionysia (March) 4. Sequence of Festival Events -­‐ 6 days: • (Day 1) Proagon • (Day 2&3) Dithyrambic Choruses • (Days 3,4,5) Presentation of Plays • (Day 6) Judging & Awarding of Prizes. Plays were presented as a Trilogy (3 related tragedies) and a short comic Satyr play (forming a Tetrology). B. GREEKS -­‐ THEIR GODS & CULTURE 1. Contributions 4 - Golden Age of Greece -­‐ Age of Pericles 5th Century B.C.E. -­‐ City States (Polis) -­‐ Democracy – “Demos” people “kratos” power Philosophy -­‐ Socrates, Plato, Aristotle Literature -­‐ Homer, Hesiod, Aesop, Pindar, Sappho History -­‐ Herodotus, Thucydides Medicine -­‐ Hippocrates Science & Math -­‐ Pythagoras, Thales Sports -­‐ Olympic games Art & Architecture -­‐ Acropolis, Parthenon 2. Greek Culture • Religion – Greek gods (Apollo, Artemis, Athena) • “Golden Mean” • Male and Female Roles in Society C. THE GREEK STAGE – STRUCTURE & SCENIC DEVICES (PHOTO P. 32 IN TEXT) 1. Orchestra (Dancing Place) evolved from “threshing circle” 2. Thymele – Alter (Phallus Symbol) 3. Theatron (Seeing Place) / also known as Koilon 4. Skene (stage house), Proskenion, Paraskenion, Parados 5. Mekane, Deus ex Machina D. PLAY STRUCTURE 1. Prologue, Parodos, Episodes, Odes, Exodus 2. Stasimon (strophe / antistrophe / epode) 3. Stichomythia (hemi-­‐stichomythia) E. GREEK ACTORS & CHORUS / MASKS 1. Number & Description of Chorus (50/12/15) 2. Functions of the Chorus (5) 3. Number of Actors for Tragedy & Comedy 4. Origin and use of Masks 4
Words of Greek Origin: gymnasium, arithmetic, geometry, history, rhetoric, physics, biology, anatomy, hygiene, therapy, cosmetics,
poetry, music, tragedy, comedy, philosophy, theology, ethics, politics, idealism, democracy, architecture.
TA 125 / Spring 2015-­‐ Student Study Guide #1 6 III. THE POETICS
(c. 335 -323 B.C.E)
by ARISTOTLE (384-322 B.C.E.)
A. TRAGEDY IS … •
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Serious in nature Elevated language -­‐ Verse Protagonist of high standing Tragic Flaw VOCABULARY: •
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Mimesis (Imitation) Protagonist / Antagonist 5 Hamartia / Hubris Catharsis (Pity & Fear) Three Unities: Time, Place & Action Irony: Verbal, Situational, Dramatic (Tragic) “Tragedy is an imitation (mimesis) of an action that is serious, complete and of a certain magnitude; in language embellished with each kind of artistic ornament (rhythm, harmony & song) the several kinds being found in separate parts of the play (in verse and ode); in the form of action, not of narrative, through pity and fear effecting the proper purgation (catharsis) of these emotions. B. COMEDY (“KOMOS” SONG OF REVELRY) •
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Humorous View of Life Features “Inferior” Characters -­‐ Lower or Middle Class – also depicted by language and situations. Everyday Language Usually a positive outcome. •
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PLOT -­‐ The “soul of tragedy.” Unified and complete sequence of action. Contrast Story & Plot. CHARACTER -­‐ Defined by: Appearance, Speech, Action, and Description by other Characters. LANGUAGE (Diction) -­‐ The language of the play, the words the actors speak. THEME (Thought) -­‐ REASONING aspect of drama. MUSIC -­‐ Auditory elements-­‐ sound effects, spoken word, music and chanting of the chorus. SPECTACLE -­‐ Visual aspects -­‐ Scenery, lighting, costumes, make-­‐up, dance, physical movement. C. ARISTOTLE’S ELEMENTS OF DRAMATIC FORM D. CONTRAST OF CLIMATIC & EPISODIC PLOT STRUCTURES CLIMATIC (ARISTOTELIAN) PLOT STRUCTURE EPISODIC PLOT STRUCTURE 1. Plot begins LATE in the story – close to the climax. 2. SHORT time span (few hours or days.) 3. Contains FEWER SCENES. Often 3 Acts, each with one long, extended scene. 4. Occurs in a RESTRICTED LOCALE, often one room or house. 5. SMALL NUMBER OF CHARACTERS, usually no more than 6-­‐8. 6. PLOT LINEAR and moves in a SINGLE LINE with few subplots. 7. Line of action proceeds in a “CAUSE AND EFFECT” chain of logical, almost inevitable, developments. 5
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1. Plot begins EARLY in the story -­‐ moves through a series of episodes. 2. Covers a LONGER period of time (weeks, months, or years.) 3. MANY SCENES often short and fragmented -­‐ sometimes alternates between long and short scenes. 4. May cover LARGE AREA – an entire city or several countries. 5. MANY CHARACTERS. 6. Often SEVERAL THREADS OF ACTION – Plot and Subplots. 7. Scenes are juxtaposed to one another. An event may result from several causes, or no apparent cause, but arises from a web of circumstances.
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2 Actor -­‐ Deutergonist (Oedipus: Kreon & Mess. from Corinth) / 3 Actor – Tritagonist (Oedipus: Priest, Teiresias, Jocasta, Shepard, Palace Messenger )
TA 125 / Spring 2015-­‐ Student Study Guide #1 7 E. Elements of PLOT Structure: Oedipus the King by Sophocles •
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Exposition (Protasis): Provides those parts of the story that have occurred prior to the beginning of the play. (Chorus leader describes the effects of the plague.) Inciting Moment / Incident: Triggers the central conflict and its ensuing obstacles. (Creon delivers the Oracle’s message that the murderer of Laius must be found and
banished from Thebes.) Rising Action (Epitasis) / Complication: Events and obstacles that take characters through a series of achievements and defeats on the road to their objectives leading to a major crisis. (Conflict with Teiresias, then Creon. Jocasta tells the story of Lauis’ death at a place where
three roads meet. She dismisses the prophesies of the gods.) Climax / Crisis: The point of highest emotional intensity in the play. (Oedipus learns the truth
when the Shepherd tells his story.)
Anagnorisis: Gr “to make known.” Protagonist major “moment of truth,” recognition or discovery. Greek, “recognition,” formed from anagnōrizein, literally “to know thoroughly,”
from gnōrizein “to get knowledge of.” (“Ah, God! It was true! –Now, Oh, Light may I look on
you for the last time.”) Peripeteia: Gr “to fall.” A reversal of protagonist fortune (for better or worse.) Aristotle praised Sophocles for placing the peripeteia at the same moment as the anagnorisis – though there is also a case for placing it earlier when the Messenger from Corinth arrives. Falling Action: Events of plot following the climax and ending in the resolution. (Messenger describes the death of Jocasta and Oedipus blinding himself.) •
Catastrophe: “kata” down “strophe” turn (Oedipus appears and we witness his suffering.)
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Denouement: French – “unknotting.” Complications and obstacles are resolved. (Departure of Oedipus and end of the plague)
TA 125 / Spring 2015-­‐ Student Study Guide #1 8 IV. Classical Greek Tragedians
AESCHYLUS (c.525-456 BCE)
Known as the “Father of Greek Tragedy.” He wrote approximately 90 plays (7 extant) and won 13
prizes. Prominent family. Religious and patriotic. He died at age 69. According to comic legend, an
eagle dropped a tortoise shell on his baldhead. Wanted to be remembered as a soldier. Fought at the
Battle of Marathon - the great Greek victory in Persian War. Epitaph read, “Under this monument lies
Aeschylus the Athenian, Euphorion’s son who died in the wheat lands of Gela. The grove of Marathon
with its glories can speak of his valor in battle. The long haired Persian remembers and speak of it too.
1) Introduced 2nd actor c.471 & increased use of dialogue.
2) Reduced size of the chorus from 50 to 12.
3) Wrote the only extant trilogy (Oresteia).
4) Cosmic view of the world / lofty themes / poetic language & style.
5) “Composed well without knowing it.”
Plays:
The Persians (472 BCE), The Seven Against Thebes (c.469 BCE), The Suppliants
(c. 490 BCE), Promethus Bound (c. 460 BCE), Oresteia Trilogy: (458 BCE)
includes: Agamemnon, The Choephore (The Libation Bearers), and The
Eumenides (The Furies- The Kindly Ones).
SOPHOCLES (c.496-406 BCE)
Considered the greatest of the Greek tragedians. Wrote approx 120 plays (7 survive extant) and
won 24 prizes. Sophocles was born at Colonus near Athens. Well-respected citizen who served
in government, and as a general in the army. Also, was a priest. Lived to age 90.
1) Introduced third actor c. 468 BCE. Increased chorus from 12 to 15.
2) Added painted scenery.
3) More dramatic complexity, intricate plots. Explored human relationships.
4) Revised tetrology, but not always related. (Trackers - partial satyr play)
5) “Painted men as they ought to be.”
Plays:
Ajax (c.450-440 BCE), Antigone (c.441 BCE), Oedipus Rex (c.430-425 BCE),
The Trachiniae (c.413 BCE), Electra (c. 418-410 BCE), Philoctetes (409 BCE),
Oedipus at Colonus (c.406 BCE). Fragments of some of his satyr plays, including,
The Trackers survive.
EURIPIDES (C. 480-406 BCE)
Most modern of the Greek playwrights. Wrote approximately 92 plays (18 survive), but
won only 5 festivals. Born of a middle class family on the island of Salamis. Not widely
appreciated. Aristophanes openly ridiculed him. Died at 74.
1) Reduced role of chorus – they often ignore the action of the play.
2) Known for “melodrama” some plays end happily. Overuse of deus ex
machina - 12 of 18 of his plays end with it. Ex: magical chariot of
Medea - Clytemnestra’s immortal brothers in Electra - Dionysus in the
Bacchae.
3) Took liberties with myths - often changed them. Questioned the gods.
4) Considered a pacifist. Sympathetic portrayal of women.
5) Greater realism. “Portrayed men as they were”
Plays:
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Alcestis (438 BCE), Medea (431 BCE), The Heracleidae (c. 430-428 BCE),
Hippolytus (c. 428 BCE), Andromache (c. 425 BCE), Hecuba (c.424 BCE), The
Suppliants (c.423 BCE), Electra (c.422-416 BCE), Heracles (c. 422 BCE), The
Trojan Women (415 BCE), Iphigenia in Taurus (c. 414 BCE), Ion (ca. 413
BCE), Helena (412 BCE), The Phonencian Women (ca. 409 BCE),
Orestes (408 BCE), The Bacchae (c.406 BCE). Iphigenia in Aulis (406 BCE).
Also, Satyr Play – The Cyclops (date unknown).
TA 125 / Spring 2015-­‐ Student Study Guide #1 9 Greek Comic Playwrights
ARISTOPHANES (c. 448--380 BCE)
Popular author of OLD COMEDY. Son of a wealthy citizen and member of the prosperous,
conservative middle class. Wrote approximately 40 plays (11 survive). Often satirized
prominent figures, including Euripides in two of his plays.
1) Comedies began with a “happy idea” or comic premise - presented in the
prologue.
2) Parados - chorus often non human - clouds, frogs, wasps etc. (24 in chorus)
3) “Agon” - debate over happy idea.
4) Parabasis – Address to the audience about matters of the day.
5) Episodes - happy idea put into action with disastrous results.
6) Themes often centered on politics or arts – social satire.
Plays: The Acharnians (425 BCE), The Knights (424 BCE), The Clouds (423 BCE), The
Wasps (422 BCE), Peace (421 BCE), The Birds (414 BCE), Lysistrata (411 BCE),
Thesmophoriazusae (411 BCE) The Frogs (405 BCE), The Ecclesiazusae (393 or 391 BCE,
Plutus (388 BCE.)
MENANDER (c.342-291 BC)
Best-known writer of NEW COMEDY. Wrote approximately 100
plays, only one complete text survives: “Dyskolos” (317 BCE) The
Grouch. Hellenistic period - (4th cent.) Comedy of Manners.
Designed for the educated classes.
1) Realistic plots - mistaken identities. Star crossed
lovers.
2) Stock characters - parasite, courtesan, slave, twins,
bragging soldier.
3) Prologue and 5 short Acts.
4) No chorus - musical interludes between Acts.
5) No politics – censorship.
TA 125 / Spring 2015-­‐ Student Study Guide #1 10 Dionysus is the Greek God of ritual dance and sacred mysticism, of death and new life. He can be gentle or provoke the wildness within us all, literally able to drive both his followers and his enemies mad. Euripides called him 'most gentle and most terrible'. Dionysus is the patron of poetry, the song, and drama, and of course wine and its intoxication effects. He was credited with the invention of wine making and its use on Earth and this became almost his chief attribute in his Roman form -­‐ Bacchus. "Mankind ... possesses two supreme blessings. First of these is the goddess Demeter, or Earth -­‐ whichever name you choose to call her by. It was she who gave to man his nourishment of grain. But after her there came the son of Semele [Dionysus] who matched her present by inventing liquid wine as his gift to man." Euripides : Bacchae Dionysus is a paradox however, or a series of paradoxes, like a Chinese box. In ancient art, he is the God most often represented. People identified readily with him, born of a human mother, and therefore half human. Like the Christian Mary, he is felt to be able to understand the problems of humanity and to intercede on our behalf with the other Gods. Dionysus symbolizes excess and even the value and significance of excess and the potential of this path for inner transformation. "The paradoxical combinations that he embodies bespeak an utter strangeness. A god of blissful ecstasy and savage flesh-­‐eating terror; a god described as ‘effeminate’ and yet also the bull-­‐horned and phallic god of male potency; an untamed god of wild mountain rites who brings pandemonium in his wake, yet also a benefactor honored for his gifts of viniculture and theatre, key elements of Greek civilization; he was a fertility god, sometimes considered the life force itself, yet in his myths he was a dark and luminal figure, frequently involved with the spirits and realms of the dead; a subversive god whose myths tell of his incitement to riot and the destruction of kings, yet he was later embraced as a model for rulers as diverse as Alexander the great and the Ptolemaic kings of Egypt." Denise Durance "He borders on madness, as opposed to the rationality of Apollo. Wisdom for him is not the slow accumulation, the step-­‐by-­‐step approach -­‐ but the sudden illumination, the rapture of revelation. He is change and transformation." Edinger Birth of Dionysus The myth of Dionysus is that he was born to a princess of Thebes, the daughter of the King Cadmus named Semele who attracted the love of Zeus. He visited her in the appearance of a mortal and made her pregnant with a potion from the heart of Dionysus -­‐ rescued from his first incarnation. Zeus’ wife, Hera, was extremely jealous and visited Semele in the form of her nurse who then tricked her into asking Zeus to reveal himself in all his glory as he did to Hera. Instantly she was incinerated in his divine fire and descended to the Underworld. From her smoldering body a clustering vine grew to shield the fetus, a bull-­‐horned child crowned with serpents, which was said to have danced in his mother’s womb. Zeus placed him into his own thigh (stitched him to his thigh in some versions), from where Dionysus was later born; hence the important epithet 'twice-­‐born.' "So his mother bore him once in labor bitter; lightning-­‐struck forced by fire that flared from Zeus, consumed she died, untimely torn, in childhood dead by blow of light! Of light the son was born! Zeus it was who saved his son; with speed outrunning mortal eye, bore him to a private place, bound the boy with clasps of gold; in his thigh as in a womb, concealed his son from Hera's eyes." Euripides: Bacchae To protect the new infant from Hera's jealousy, Hermes carried him to Ino, Semele's sister, as a foster mother, and she put him in girl's clothing and started to raise him as a girl. But Ino and her husband were driven mad and killed their own children; Ino ran into the sea, where she was transformed into the sea goddess Leucothea. Then the divine child was changed into a young goat, and taken by Hermes to be raised by the Nymphs of Mount Nysa, whose location was uncertain. He was tutored by the Satyr Silenus. When he had been reared him to full stature, he went into the woods wreathed with ivy and laurel, but not yet with vine-­‐leaves. Dionysus discovered wine in Nyssa, but began his famous wanderings from his traditional place of origin Thrace. Traveling eastwards, he reached the shores of the Ganges (like Alexander the Great) and then turned to travel around Greece. During his travels to Naxos, pirates, who he turned into Dolphins, kidnapped him. Dionysus descended to the Underworld in search of his mother. When he had brought Semele back he had her made one of the immortals and took her up to Olympus. He took her up to Olympus. TA 125 / Spring 2015-­‐ Student Study Guide #1 11 Greek Theatre Structures
Theatre at Epidaurus
TA 125 / Spring 2015-­‐ Student Study Guide #1 12 Apollo’s Temple of the Oracle at Delphi
Map of Ancient Greece
TA 125 / Spring 2015-­‐ Student Study Guide #1