Greek Drama
Antigone
Cultural Implications
 Not epic, not lyric, but tragic
 Only source of entertainment
 Considered civic responsibility to attend
 Plays were not performed more than once
 Performed on a simple, empty stage in an open air
amphitheater
Tragedy
 Immediate objective of a tragedy is to arouse pity and
fear in the viewers
 Underlying message was that the audience should learn
wisdom from observing the suffering of others……..
And ultimately become a better citizen
 Usually depicts the downfall of a hero or heroine
through a combination of hubris, fate, and the will of the
gods
Tragic Hero
 Neither a villain or a model of perfection
 An overall decent man or woman with a critical flaw or
error (hamartia)
 The hero falls because of some weakness of character,
moral blindness or error. The gods may also play a role
Plot of a Tragedy
 All plots have some pathos (suffering)
 Complex plot includes reversal and recognition
 Reversal: occurs when a situation seems to be developing
in one direction, then suddenly “reverses” to another
 Oedipus first hears the death of his father, Polybus, which
appears to be good news. This is then reversed to be
terrible news.
 Recognition: a change from ignorance to awareness of a
bond of love or hate
 Oedipus kills his father in ignorance and then learns of his
true relationship with the King of Thebes.
Chorus
 Greek tragedy contained 2 basic elements:
 Dramatic, spoken exchanges between 2 or 3 lead characters
 Choral song
 Comes from Greek word “choros” = “dance”
 Chorus sang or chanted the lyric passages of a drama to the
tune of a flute or lyre and stylized with choreography
 Chorus members wore masks to represent a group of people
commenting upon the action of the drama (choral response)
 Strophe and Antistrophe
Sophocles
496-406 BC
Central Greek Tragedian
Wrote 123 plays, we have 7
Was an ambassador, priest,
general- fully invested in his
city
He was concerned with
forces of justice, destiny,
perspective, pride, and
human personality
He often has gods as the
backdrop of his plays but
much more interested in
how human beings control
their own destiny
He was the first to use
scenery as a back drop
Added a third actor
Antigone
 442 BC
 Classical Period
 Birth of personal awareness
 Part of the Theban Plays (3 total)
 All concerned with the fate of Thebes during and after the
rein of King Oedipus
Characters
 Antigone: Daughter of King Oedipus and Jocasta
 Creon: Jocasta’s brother, the new King of Thebes
 Chorus: the voice of elders in the City of Thebes
 Haemon: only survivng son of Creon
 Ismene: sister of Antigone
 Tiresias: the blind seer of Thebes
 Eurydice: the wife of Creon