INTRODUCTION TO GREEK THEATER
A. THE THEATER AND ITS BEGININGS
1. Role of ritual—“Pomp and Circumstance,” “National Anthem,” welcome,
salutatorian…; “Bridal Chorus,” Dearly beloved…, Who gives this woman…
role of ritual
2. RITUAL OF DIONYSIAN WORSHIP—four day extravaganza; sacrifice and
drama competitions, early spring—tied to re-birth of spirit of vegetation
3. *slides THEATER ITSELF—extant ruins are from the Hellenistic rather
than Classical period—difference of 100+ years
outdoors, semi-circular, hillside, orchestra areas (performance area),
skene (backdrop, only a few steps about orchestra area, deus ex machina), entrance
gates
4. BEGINNINGS—dithyramb—choral lyrics and revels
chorus—15-50 people, commentary in lyric form—revelation of feelings
actors—Thespis the first, Aesychlus added a second, Sophocles a third—
only male, use of highly decorated masks
5. DRAMA FORM
PROLOGUE—exposition and set up the plot
PARADOS—entrance of chorus through arches—parade—ode
EPISODES—building of the plot
STASIMONS—odes in one place; ode—strophe, antistrophe, dancing
directions
EPILOGUE—resolution, dénouement
EXODUS
B. ARISTOTLE ON DRAMA
1. tragedy—IMITATION OF A SERIOUS COMPLETE ACTION; A
DRAMA; AROUSES FEAR AND PITY FOR THE CATHARSIS OF
THE EMOTIONS
2. concept of unity—one action, one time, one place
3. elements:
PLOT: series of incidents—Greeks used well-known stories
use of IRONY—dramatic, verbal, situational
concept of peripety—reversal of fortune or luck
concept of discovery—from ignorance to knowledge
plots to avoid—Gordon Goodly: good man from happiness
to misery—the idea is simply hateful; Norman Nasty 1:bad man from misery to happiness—
not fair!; Norman Nasty 2: extremely bad man from happiness to misery—deserved
TRAGIC HERO: not too virtuous, but virtuous man whose fall
comes about because of an unwise decision—hamartia: missing the mark, the tragic flaw
CHARACTERS: moral, appropriate, realistic, consistent
THOUGHT: ideas, general truth—large issues
DICTION: lofty, no slang—translation: shapes of sounds through
cadence, alliteration and assonance, the pause (caesura), antithesis, parallelisms, figures of
speech
MELODY: accompaniment
SPECTACLE: stage appearance; horror occurs offstage and
audience sees only the responses to the violence
C. THE THEBAN TRILOGY
1. The playwright—Sophocles: 5th c. BC Athens—political expansionism
and social optimism; Protagoras—“man is the measure of all things”—contrasted
with the role of the gods in the Iliad
Sophocles’ fellow playwrights: Aeschylus—humans relationship to
the gods; Euripedes—psychological keenness of characterization
Sophocles’ thrust—human suffering and despair; the testing of faith
in divine and human justice
2. The cycle—composed over a period of thirty years; order of writing was
Antigone, Oedipus the King, and Oedipus at Colonus. The chronological plot
order is Oedipus the King, Oedipus at Colonus, and Antigone. The trilogy asks
life’s basic questions:
Oedipus the King—who am I? Quest for identity; nature of
innocence and guilt; nature of moral responsibility; human will v. fate; abuse
of power
Oedipus at Colonus—death and redemption
Antigone—the individual v. the state; the abuse of power
*slides The story of Oedipus—came to power after death of king, solved
riddle of the Sphinx, now out to rid the land of the plague—oracle at Delphi
Re-read Roche on “The Great Encounter”
Oedipus Plan
Date
Mon. 12/2
Tue. 12/3
Wed. 12/4
Thurs. 12/5
Fri. 12/6
Mon. 12/9
Tue. 12/10
Activities
Introduction
 Intro Greek Theater
 Intro Terms
 Stage Directions
Oedipus Rex (pp 5-14)
 Working with the text
 Journal: What were your difficulties with the
reading of this text. Provide specifics.
 Prologue and First Ode discussion
 Rough Draft of essay due
 Peer edit
 Intro dialogue assignment
Oedipus Rex (pp 14-48)
 Create and explain a metaphor/image that you feel
best depicts Oedipus and/or Jocasta at the end of
the second episode.
OR
What color would each be and explain your choice
 Include a metaphoric visual
Oedipus Rex (pp 48-81)
 Create a gathering poem (#22 on Alfie’s list)
 Use p. 69-71 (official’s speech), p. 74-75
(Oedipus) ?
Oedipus at Colonus (pp 87-150)
 Journal: What is the new perception of Oedipus in
this act? by himself? by others? What are your
unanswered questions?
 Oedipus the pariah/the savior
 Exchange between Oedipus and Creon (pp 130134) “Do you hear me… Grab the girl”
 Structural changes between acts
Oedipus at Colonus (pp 150-185)
 The relationships in the Oedipus family system
 The apotheosis – Oedipus’ death
 The changes from Rex
Portfolio Product
Journal entry
Metaphor/Color explanation
Gathering poem
Journal entry
Wed. 12/11
Oedipus at Colonus
Writing response


Thurs. 12/12
Fri. 12/13
Mon. 12/16
Writing lab
#15 on Alfie’s list – choose a scene from each
play. Where do the plays resist one another?
Antigone (pp 190-227)
 Ode activity
 The “prologue problem”
 Setting up the characters
Antigone (pp 228-252)
 Round robin questions
o Character differentiation (pp 192-193,
216)
o Antigone – Ismene
o Antigone vs. Creon (gender/age)
o Haemon vs. Creon (age/role)
o The conflict between manmade law and
divine law – the role of conscience
o The clash of rigid personalities – each
convinced of his/her own rightness
o The hubris of self-sufficiency
o The vicissitudes of life – virtue cannot
assure happiness, nor can wickedness
explain disaster
Antigone

Tue. 12/17
Wed. 12/18
Thurs. 12/19
Fri. 12/20
Ode activity/response
Video activity
o Show a scene without dialogue – students
guess which scene it is
o Show same scene with dialogue –
students comment on directors choices
o Show same scene from a different
production – students comment on
differences
Oedipus Trilogy
 Perform dialogue/poems
Portfolio
 Share portfolios in small groups
 Self-assessment (#19 in Alfie’s list)
Portfolio
 Choose your best and present to class
 The threads that bind the trilogy (small group
work)
“Two minute Oedipus”
Dialogue/poems
Self Assessment
Final Portfolio due on
Wednesday, January 2, 2003 for
teacher evaluation.
December 2002
The Theban Trilogy: Oedipus the King, Oedipus at Colonus, Antigone
Sophocles as translated by Paul Roche
“Language makes the past present” was the affirmation of Paul Roche at a 1992 convocation. Roche
has powerfully used language to do just that—the past of fifth century B.C. Greece comes alive in the
present final half-decade of the twentieth century. To best understand the trilogy, you need to read
the World Literature text 301-305 and Roche’s own introduction in the Foreword, “The Great
Encounter,” page ix and then the Introduction pages x-xix.
Listed below are the characters present in each of the plays: Oedipus
OEDIPUS, King of Thebes
A PRIEST of Zeus
CREON, brother of Jocasta
CHORUS of Theban elders
TIRESIAS, a blind prophet
JOCASTA, wife of
Oedipus
A MESSENGER from
Corinth
An old SHEPHERD
A PALACE OFFICIAL
Palace Attendants and
Servants
Citizens af Thebes
Antigone, Ismene and a
Boy
the King
Oedipus at Colonus
Antigone
OEDIPUS, former King of
Thebes
ANTIGONE, his daughter
A COUNTRYMAN of
Colonus
CHORUS of Elders of
Colonus
ISMENE, Antigone’s sis,
Oedipus’ daughter
THESEUS, king of Athens
CREON, present ruler of
Thebes
Bodyguard of Creon
POLYNEICES, O.’s son
A MESSENGER
Soldier, attendants to T.
Servant to Ismene
ANTIGONE, sister of
Polyneices and
Eteocles
ISMENE, sister of A.
CHORUS of citizens of
Thebes
CREON, king of Thebes
and uncle of A.&.I.
A SENTRY
HAEMON, son of C. and
betrothed to A.
TIRESIAS, blind prophet
EURYDICE, wife of C.
and mom of H.
FIRST MESSENGER
Guards, Ladies-in-waiting,
and a boy
Our reading schedule is as follows:
12/3 TUESDAY: Oedipus King
12/5 THURSDAY: Oedipus King
12/6 FRIDAY: Oedipus King
12/9 MONDAY: Oedipus Colonus
12/10 TUESDAY: Oedipus Colonus
12/12 THURSDAY: Antigone
12/13 FRIDAY: Antigone
pp. 5-14
pp. 14-48
pp. 48-81
pp. 87-150
pp. 150-185
pp. 190-227
pp. 228-252
Please have your journals in class since we may be doing some entries as responses to characters. I know this is
a busy season, but indulge yourself in the drama, keep up with the assignments that will comprise your
portfolio, and look forward to an assignment-free vacation.
Writing a Gathering Poem
DIRECTIONS: Using the list of 15-20 words which you circled, create your own poem that
responds to the play. The poem may be in any form—try to avoid rhyming couplets since they
often create a forced rhyme and less than solemn tone.
In your portfolio you will need the handout sheet you circled, a list of your words and
TWO typed final versions of your poem—one should have the words you gathered italicized.
EXAMPLE: This response, the incorporation of feelings of the chorus and events in the play, is based on
the Berkowitz/Brunner translation of the end of episode four and of choral ode four.
Oedipus? Yes, begotten by Apollo—
a presumption of dignity,
“Like father, like son,” the gift
of light, of prophecy,
of purification, of justice—
Benevolent, friendly,
The model of beneficent Fortune.
Oedipus? No—the son of Dionysus,
the gift of wine, of fertility
of life
Burst forth, wombed by mother
To explode in horror.
Oedipus, begotten and begetter—
“we who are about to die”
honor you.
Writing a Gathering Poem
DIRECTIONS: Using the list of 15-20 words which you circled, create your own poem that
responds to the play. The poem may be in any form—try to avoid rhyming couplets since they
often create a forced rhyme and less than solemn tone.
In your portfolio you will need the handout sheet you circled, a list of your words and
TWO typed final versions of your poem—one should have the words you gathered italicized.
EXAMPLE: This response, the incorporation of feelings of the chorus and events in the play, is based on
the Berkowitz/Brunner translation of the end of episode four and of choral ode four.
Oedipus? Yes, begotten by Apollo—
a presumption of dignity,
“Like father, like son,” the gift
of light, of prophecy,
of purification, of justice—
Benevolent, friendly,
The model of beneficent Fortune.
Oedipus? No—the son of Dionysus,
the gift of wine, of fertility
of life
Burst forth, wombed by mother
To explode in horror.
Oedipus, begotten and begetter—
“we who are about to die”
honor you.
NAME ____________________________
PERIOD ____
QUIZ—terms for the theater and drama
1. _____ hubris
a. exposition
2. _____ catharsis
b. reversal of fortune
3. _____ peripety
c. exit of chorus
4. _____ parados
d. strength rising out of destruction
5. _____ stasimon
e. choral ode of strophe/antistrophe
6. _____ orchestra
ab. elevation to status of a god
7. _____ hamartia
ac. offering to the gods
8. _____ prologue
ad. dance area for chorus
ae. entrance of chorus
bc. excessive pride
bd. missing the mark
be. purging the emotions
NAME ____________________________
PERIOD ____
QUIZ—terms for the theater and drama
1. _____ catharsis
a. entrance of chorus
2. _____ hubris
b. exposition
3. _____ peripety
c. personal excellence
4. _____ parados
d. offering to the gods
5. _____ stasimon
e. choral ode of strophe/antistrophe
6. _____ orchestra
ab. reversal of fortune
7. _____ hamartia
ac. purging of emotions
8. _____ prologue
ad. dance area for chorus
ae. exit of chorus
bc. excessive pride
bd. strength rising out of destruction
be. missing the mark
NAME ____________________________
PERIOD ____
QUIZ—terms for the theater and drama
1. _____ orchestra
a. entrance of chorus
2. _____ catharsis
b. exposition
3. _____ peripety
c. excessive pride
4. _____ parados
d. offering to the gods
5. _____ stasimon
e. choral ode of strophe/antistrophe
6. _____ prologue
ab. reversal of fortune
7. _____ hamartia
ac. purging of emotions
8. _____ hubris
ad. dance area for chorus
ae. exit of chorus
bc. missing the mark
bd. strength rising out of destruction
be. elevation to the status of the gods
NAME ____________________________
PERIOD ____
QUIZ—terms for the theater and drama
1. _____ hubris
a. exit of chorus
2. _____ catharsis
b. exposition
3. _____ peripety
c. reversal of fortune
4. _____ parados
d. strength rising out of destruction
5. _____ stasimon
e. choral ode of strophe/antistrophe
6. _____ orchestra
ab. elevation to status of a god
7. _____ hamartia
ac. missing the mark
8. _____ prologue
ad. dance area for chorus
ae. entrance of chorus
bc. excessive pride
bd. offering to the gods
be. purging the emotions