Grčke tragedije

by Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides

Eshilov "Okovani Prometej", Sofoklov "Kralj Edip" i "Antigona", Euripidova "Medeja", "Elektra" te "Ifigenija među Taurijcima" - tragedije su trojice starogrčkih klasika koja su se našla objedinjena ovim izdanjem "Mozaik knjige". S obzrom na to da je knjiga namijenjena ponajprije čitateljima školske lektire, djela svakog od pisaca popraćena su kratkim uvodnim tekstovima s osvrtom na drušveno-povijesni kontekst u kojem su nastala, kao i cjelokupni opus spomenutih pisaca.

Genres: Classics, Plays, Mythology, Fiction, Drama, War, Literature

449 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1988

About the author

Greek Αισχύλος , Esquilo in Spanish, Eschyle in French, Èsquil in Catalan, Eschilo in Italian, Эсхил in Russian.

Aeschylus (c. 525/524 BC – c. 456 BC) was an ancient Greek tragedian often described as the father of tragedy. Academic knowledge of the genre begins with his work, and understanding of earlier Greek tragedy is largely based on inferences made from reading his surviving plays. According to Aristotle, he expanded the number of characters in the theatre and allowed conflict among them. Formerly, characters interacted only with the chorus.
Only seven of Aeschylus's estimated 70 to 90 plays have survived. There is a long-standing debate regarding the authorship of one of them, Prometheus Bound, with some scholars arguing that it may be the work of his son Euphorion. Fragments from other plays have survived in quotations, and more continue to be discovered on Egyptian papyri. These fragments often give further insights into Aeschylus' work. He was likely the first dramatist to present plays as a trilogy. His Oresteia is the only extant ancient example. At least one of his plays was influenced by the Persians' second invasion of Greece (480–479 BC). This work, The Persians, is one of very few classical Greek tragedies concerned with contemporary events, and the only one extant. The significance of the war with Persia was so great to Aeschylus and the Greeks that his epitaph commemorates his participation in the Greek victory at Marathon while making no mention of his success as a playwright.

Reviews

[Lucy · Rating 4 out of 5]

4**** overall

Hate is a bottomless cup; I will pour and pour.

The first play in this Greek Tragedy bind up is Agamemnon by Aeschylus. I have this play 3*** as I just wasn’t fully engaged and it took a while to get to Clytemnestra- who I loved. A woman who plots revenge on her husband who sacrificed her daughter to the Gods.

The second play was Oedipus Rex by Sophocles which I loved! I gave this one 4.5**** as I was fully immersed in this book and really enjoyed the translation! I just felt so sorry for Oedipus at the consequences of his ignorance. Additionally I have now ordered the complete “Theban Plays” from the library so I can read about Oedipus (and Antigone) completely.

The third play was Medea by Euripides and I seriously LOVED this- 5*****. Medea is cunning and blood thirsty and I was here for this. Spurned by her lover Jason and banished by King Creon she gets her fantastic revenge. She was the feminist I didn’t realise I needed. She also takes part in “witchcraft” and worships Hecate (possibly my favourite Goddess).

[sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

*read two of the plays for greek myth class*

agamemnon 4.5
oedipus rex 4
medea: unrated (already read in another collection)
frogs 2.5
poetics: unrated (skimmed bc im so uninterested in aristotle’s poetry theory 🥱

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aeschylus' Agamemnon had moments, but I had to work in a way that I don't have to form Homer. I've read this play thrice and still don't enjoy it; I'll wait until I meet someone who loves it and Nietzsche doesn't count.

Sophocles had a sense of irony; I might revisit it... someday...

Euripides had stuff, but the whole situation was too grim and miserable for me to get into it too much.

Aristotle's poetics is helpful to include.

The Frogs: I too laughed out loud. Much obscurity, but some of it was very accessible--sometimes more than the Tragedians.

So, as a collection: pretty decent. I might include the Eumenides instead of Agamemnon, but overall it's a good selection either as an introduction or just to give a little taste of it.

[Matthew Hurley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I heart Greek Tragedy.

[Davvybrookbook · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading just the Introduction and Medea in this edition (as I had just read Agamemnon by Aeschylus, Oedipus Rex by Sophocles, and Aristotle’s Poetics—Aristophanes to come after all the tragedies) I was impressed by the general overview achieved by the Introduction.

Medea is the first complete tragedy I have read by Euripides through I am currently reading The Phoenician Women among a collection of five works by Euripides. Medea is a character to whom her name precedes her, but not particularly her story, or it would be read all the more. So far this is the most unique rendering of a powerful woman in Greek, err Athenian, tragedy. Her story begins when Jason in the Argo sails for Colchis where King Aeëtis, Medea’s father, safeguards the golden fleece on the far shore of the Black Sea. This backstory filled with quest, riddles, and betrayal presents so much legend that the actual present happenings seem fated, when we know our characters are given choices. Throughout this play Medea weighs then makes some of the most calculated and costly decisions in all ancient Greek tragedy. She is a dangerous woman, accused of sexual jealousy by her husband when he attempts to marry into the Corinthian royal family. The story centers on her choices, and the outcome of these choices on all those in the work: King Aeëtis, her half-brother, King Pelias, Jason, their two boys, the Corinthian King Creon, the princess Creusa, and the Athenian King Aegeus.

Her revenge surely influenced Toni Morrison in Beloved and Circe in Game of Thrones. The fact that the ancient Circe is Medea’s aunt speaks volumes to one avenue in the making of powerful women—spite, calculation and revenge.

[Ali · Rating 4 out of 5]

آشیل یا آخیلوس (متولد 525 قبل از میلاد) اولین از سه تراژدی نویس مشهور یونان (آشیل، اوری پید، سوفوکلس) بوده که به پدر ترازدی هم مشهور است. ارسطو می نویسد که او شمار شخصیت های تراژدی را از یک نفر به دو نفر افزایش داد. تنها هفت تراژدی از حدود نود اثر او بر جای مانده، که در مورد یکی از آنها، "پرومته در زنجیر"، تردید وجود دارد. آشیل اهل آتن بوده و گویا در جنگ "سالامیس" (بین پارس و یونان) شرکت داشته و حدود 450 سال پیش از میلاد فوت کرده است. گفته می شود که بر سنگ قبرش نوشته اند؛ "آخیلوس اهل آتن، زیر این سنگ خفته. خاک مقدس ماراتن و سربازان بلند گیسوی ماد (پارس) که طعم دلاوری او را چشیده اند، بر جنگ آوری او شهادت می دهند".

اوری پید (480 تا 406 پیش از میلاد) در میان سه تراژدی نویس مشهور یونان، جوان ترین آنهاست. او حدود نود و پنج تراژدی و کمدی نوشته که تنها هژده تای آنها باقی مانده است. مده آی او که تصور می کنم توسط ابوالحسن ونده ور به فارسی برگردانده شده، شاید تنها تراژدی اوری پید باشد که به زبان فارسی ترجمه شده. ویژگی کار اوری پید استفاده از شخصیت های معمولی ست. استفاده از شکل جعبه ای صحنه ی تیاتر (بر خلاف صحنه ی دایره وار یونانی در وسط تماشاگران) را به اوری پید نسبت می دهند، جعبه ی سه دیواره ای که تا دوران معاصر، توسط شکسپیر، راسین، ایبسن، استریندبرگ و تا دوران معاصر بکار گرفته می شد. ویژگی دیگر آثار اوری پید، علاقه و همدردی او نسبت به شخصیت هاست، به ویژه زنان، به گونه ای که در همان زمان هم برای تماشاگران مرد، حیرت انگیز می نمود، مورد توجه اوری پید بوده اند. به همین دلیل "مده آ" یکی از تراژدی های او، از مشهورترین و در عین حال زیباترین شاهکارهای تراژدی دنیاست.

سوفوکلس (497 پیش از میلاد) مشهورترین از سه تراژدی نویس بزرگ عهد باستان یونان، صد و بیست سه نمایش نامه نوشته که تنها هفت تای آنها باقی مانده است؛ سه گانه ی اودیپ شاه، اودیپ در کلنوس، و آنتیگون، زنان تراخیس، الکترا، آژاکس و فیلوکتتس. بی تردید ادیپوس شاه و آنتیگون، دو اثر برجسته ی سوفوکلس، از والاترین تراژدی های یونان باستان اند که همراه با ادیپوس در کلنوس، به سه گانه ی "تب" یا "نمایش نامه های تب" مشهور اند. نوشته اند که سوفوکلس تعداد بازیگران را که اوری پید به دو رسانده بود، به سه شخصیت (بغیر از دسته ی کر) ارتقاء داده است.

[steph · Rating 3 out of 5]

i read Agamemnon and Oedipus- Agamemnon was a 3 because i loved the story but it just kinda had too much dialogue and you didn’t get enough of fun the murderous the build up. Oedipus was a 3.5: the dialogue was actually so funny and the irony was perfect
overall the greek tragedies are so easy and fun to read because you can get a quick basic knowledge of myths without reading really hard language

[aaron trowbridge · Rating 4 out of 5]

Man grows wise against his will.
For powers who rule seated above
By ruthlessness commend their love.

This selection of three tragedies and a comedy -- in addition to Aristotle's Poetics -- brilliantly represents the Athenian tragic competition in honor of Dionysus. Athenian society was critiqued, satirized, and prodded. Women were allowed nowhere near the theatre -- in fact they had no place in society and even had to fully cover their heads and faces in public (western ideals?) -- but were represented in complex, agential characters on the stage. Authors often give us a biased picture of their societies, in that they tend to write with the aim of enlightening, empowering, or critiquing their society, not a realistic portrait of the society as it is. This may be my biased sampling speaking, but conservatives rarely leave much literature, at least literature worth reading.

Agamemnon - Aeschylus
Here the main character is Clytemnestra, the wife of Agamemnon, who is returning from his successful sacking of Troy to find a wife that is not as subservient and docile as he undoubtedly assumes. The famous line "Man must suffer to be wise" could here be seen to apply to woman as well, as Clytemnestra had to suffer the brutal child sacrifice of her daughter at the hands of her husband, removing the veil from her eyes so that she could see the wickedness of the society that would condone such an act. Who wouldn't want revenge after that?

Oedipus Rex - Sophocles
This is truly the tragedy of tragedies. What kind of a god could weave such an outrageous fate? For those who don't know the plot, the gist is that Oedipus unwittingly, after being hamstrung to a mountain as a baby (literally), ends up marrying and fathering child-brothers with his own mother. The gory incestuousness is straight-up biblical!

Medea - Euripedes
Medea, the barbarian from far away "unjust" lands compared to Greece, is tossed to the side by Jason like a piece of old, used, life-saving armor. She is left alone in a society that places no value on women. The king, even, is giving his daughter to Jason, who is already married to Medea. Where can she turn for justice? When justice cannot be found what is left but vengeance? I'm not going to spoil the ending of this bloody tale, but the ending is a happy one, for Medea, favored by the gods.

Frogs - Aristophanes
This comedy points fun at the old and new generations of tragic playwrights, Aeschylus and Euripides, respectively. The bumbling Dionysus treks down to the underworld to preside over a competition between the two tragedians, the winner of which will accompany the god of wine and revel back to the land of the living. Sadly, like the case of the whole of Athenian tragedy and comedy, much of this play is missing, thanks once again to the literary valuations of christian western society. Unfortunately for Euripides, he "lost his little flask of oil" so to speak, and Aeschylus, with his undemocratic characters, won over the hapless Dionysus.

Poetics - Aristotle
In these apparent lecture notes, Aristotle lays out his theory of the gradations of dramatic art forms. In contrast to Plato, he does believe that poetry (used generally) is beneficial to society. He also argues that drama is higher than epic, in that it is a condensed or purified form of the same thing. Honestly, I'll have to at some point go back and read this again after reading more tragedy, as there is much technical analysis of the plot of tragedy and the connections to epic. Overall interesting but rather technical and full of jargon.

[Mijke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yassified this book with pink annotations

[Antilibrarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Greek Tragedy (Aeschylus' Agamemnon, Sophocles' Oedipus Rex, Euripides' Medea, Aristophanes' Frogs, Aristotle's Poetics).
:
This is an study of the changing perceptions of Greek Tragedy or Athenian Tragedy. 🎭

The timeline:
Aeschylus (525BC)
Sophocles (496)
Euripides (484)
Aristophanes (448)
Aristotle (384).

Aristotle, the non-Athenian author's Poetics informs us that poetry is a mimetic art, and tragedy imitates admirable action (elevated/serious). It produces catharsis (purification or purgation) which rids us of or the events caused by "pity and fear". Poetics is very much a work of aesthetic theory responding to Plato's moral theory of art in The Republic.

Tragedy reflects on unbearable figures, the limits of human life, the hero's transgression, and the grandeur or awfulness of that transcendence. Performed in the festival of great Dionysia in late Feb early March, the Greek theater was a State-sponsored collective activity; it was a ritual and a spectacle. Going to the theater was every citizen's duty, no different from jury or military services. Not to forget that the theatre itself was a microcosmic city! The State believed that no one should be deprived of theater because of poverty, and therefore it sponsored tickets costing 2 obols to day laborers who couldn't afford them.

These tragedies show Athens as a military power, a major political State, and a democracy, trying to tackle issues of extremism, limits of revenge, and barbarism of a State (Euri's Medea). It critiques the need for excess power (Clytemnestra in Agamemnon), and an individual's obligations to the State and family (Soph's Oedipus). Aristophanes' Frogs is a critique of the genre of Tragedy and marks the transition from high tragedy to Old Comedy (socio-political slapstick) and eventually to New Comedy (satire on domestic/ household figures).

You gotta read these plays!!

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[Jack Bas · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great collection of Greek tragedy which is very importantly presented with the requisite background information that allows the reader to analyze its context and its influence on Western society. Between the introduction/notes and Aristotle's poetics, we are able to gain perspective on the significance of tragedy in ancient Athens as it happened and with about a century of hindsight. We can see the progression of the art and the daring new directions that playwrights took it. The plays were enjoyable, but the depth of understanding is enhanced so much by these helpful additions. Additionally, the connections one can make to modern day performing arts are abundant and add a lot to this volume.

[TheTaleTellingHeart · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good introduction to Greek Tragedies, which I will review using memes:

Agamemnon by Aeschylus:


Oedipus Rex by Sophocles:


Medea by Euripides:


Frogs by Aristophanes:

[Eve]

valid, interesting, made notes in files. ideas about what is tragedy, role of women (is Medea presented as sympathetic? Medea as non-Greek?)
- reception to tragedy - canonisation - how far should we take Aristotle poetics at face value (valuable but not Definitive)
- purgation vs purification of pity in eng translation - removal or neutralisation?
- kind of unsexy for them to say only athenian drama matters lol

[kon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my first dive into Greek Tragedy. I loved Oedipus Rex and Medea but struggled through Agamemnon. The Frogs was also interesting, but I didn’t read the excerpt from Poetics. Overall a satisfying read.

[Antonis Maronikolakis · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very good range of playwrights, with nice background information and extensive notes. The way the plays are written are (understandably) antiquated, but there is still something to take away from the stories told.

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Always love myself some good Greek stories.

[Kayleigh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great selection, clear introductions

[Stan Georgiana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Agamemnon 3.5
Oedipus Rex 3
Medea 5

[Yuni Amir · Rating 5 out of 5]

I want to read more on Medea!

[theo · Rating 4 out of 5]

(4.25)

[Sakramar Guliyev · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best read with editor's commentaries.

[Helen Donovan · Rating 4 out of 5]

No serious qualms with the translation

[Inés ramirez · Rating 5 out of 5]

*chefs kiss. Except Poetics, didn’t care for that. I really enjoyed the rest of the plays, amazing selection.

[Rob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read in school for English class

Agamemnon: 8/10
Oedipus Rex: 7/10
Medea: 6/10
Overall: 7/10

[misha · Rating 4 out of 5]

for my greek mythology class

[Svenja · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a very nice book to get a quick look at greek tragedy. The introduction of the book as a whole and of each chapter are very helpful to understand the context of the plays and the action in them. My only regret is that it is read so quickly, with only three tragedies, one comedy and a treaty, all of which are rather short. I would have liked to know more of the stories of the famous greek tragedy. And in my opinion, Aristotle's "Poetics" is out of place. Even though it creates a whole, making the book more scholarly than I had expected.

[Jennifer Hutchinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book got me into greek tragedies. These are the classic cautionary tales full of drama, betrayal, murder, greed and envy. All the makings for amazing story telling. Medea is still my favorite greek tragedy of all time. Highly Recommend ---- BUT be sure to be in a good mood when you read them. Although they are amazing, they can easily depress a reader. Be warned. :-)

[Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Powerful Stuff, and the one comedy made me laugh out loud repeatedly.

[David Gan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Three stupendous, powerful masterpieces of ancient Greek literature in one volume.

[Melina · Rating 3 out of 5]

not the most elegant translation