Euripides: Hecuba

by John Harrison

Treating ancient plays as living drama. Classical Greek drama is brought vividly to life in this series of new translations. Students are encouraged to engage with the text through detailed commentaries, including suggestions for discussion and analysis. In addition, numerous practical questions stimulate ideas on staging and encourage students to explore the play's dramatic qualities. Hecuba is suitable for students of both Classical Civilisation and Drama. Useful features include full synopsis of the play, commentary alongside translation for easy reference and a comprehensive introduction to the Greek Theatre. Hecuba is aimed primarily at A-level and undergraduate students in the UK, and college students in North America.

Genres: Classics

Paperback

First published September 1, 2008

About the author

Librarian's note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name. This profile contains books from multiple authors of this name.

Reviews

[Gillian · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a Hecuba stan first and a human being second!

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

read for *uni* to compare the polymestor / polydorus story with the version presented by virgil in aeneid book 3. i've read it before, so i knew what happened - but i still love the juicy foreshadowing about agamemnon's death. it's interesting to note how much virgil alters the story in his aeneid though - he completely gets rid of hecuba and polyxena, and instead has polydorus killed by spears and turned into a tree rather than thrown in the sea. perhaps shows how the trojans are still rooted to this land, and aeneas needs to continue on and find an entirely new place without pollution from the trojan war.
also, i can never quite decide whether euripides is a misogynist, or is poking fun at misogynists. this reading made me think he's poking fun, especially cause most of the misogyny comes from polymestor.

[sophia · Rating 4 out of 5]

i hate to say ‘get his ass’ because vengeance in greek tragedy is complex & arguably always begets more suffering but like….. get his ass

[Daniel Campos · Rating 5 out of 5]

En esta tragedia, Hécuba pasa de la impotencia de la víctima al empoderamiento de quien reclama y realiza justicia retributiva para sí misma. Comparada con "Andrómaca", en esta pieza son los seres humanos quienes resuelven sus asuntos, no un diosa ex machina, y para mí es una obra superior por ello.

[Dmk · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've read this play in one breath. Yes, I read better plays, but this one was perhaps most successful in catching my attention. It's just one woman and horrors of her family, she tries to save as much as she can, but for most of the time all she can do is to beg more powerful men to help her.
Really great play, two tragedies that are coming together in order to ask for gloomy conclusion. Great discussion, strong monoloques and stuff like that, just cool, really cool.

Second reading
After reading (twice) Seneca's Troades I decided I must read this play once again. And once again I read this in one breath. But this time it felt less gloomy to me. Afterall Seneca is that really dark guy. And generaly I think story of Polyxena is better in Seneca's Troades, since he pushes the framing of her sacrifice as "marriage to Achilles" much further.
But story of Hecuba's son (possible completely made up by Euripides) is moving and complex story. Great and moving play.