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Ο πόλεμος της Αντιγόνης
Αθήνα 440 π.Χ. Υπό την ηγεσία του Περικλή, η δημοκρατία οικοδομεί την αυτοκρατορική κληρονομιά της στηριζόμενη στο αίμα, την πέτρα και την ψήφο των πολλών. Κυρίαρχος στη θεατρική σκηνή της πόλης, ο Σοφοκλής παρουσιάζει την τραγωδία της Αντιγόνης, κερδίζοντας τέτοια φήμη που καταλαμβάνει τον τιμητικό τίτλο του στρατηγού. Όμως η κατάσταση αλλάζει, όταν ξεσπά πόλεμος ενάντια στην ισχυρότερη νησιωτική πόλη-κράτος της Σάμου. Μπορεί ένας συγγραφέας θεατρικών έργων να καθοδηγήσει όχι ηθοποιούς, αλλά πραγματικούς στρατιώτες, σε έναν πόλεμο που θα καθορίσει τη μοίρα της ναυτικής αυτοκρατορίας της Αθήνας;
312 pages, Paperback
First published April 1, 2007
13 people are currently reading
58 people want to read
About the author
Nicholas Nicastro
18 books35 followersNicholas Nicastro was born in Astoria, New York in 1963. His education includes a B.A. in English from Cornell University (1985), an M.F.A. in filmmaking from New York University (1991), an M.A. in archaeology and a Ph.D in psychology from Cornell (1996 and 2003). He has also worked as a film critic, a hospital orderly, a newspaper reporter, a library archivist, a college lecturer in anthropology and psychology, an animal behaviorist, and an advertising salesman. His writings include short fiction, travel and science articles in such publications as "The New York Times", "The New York Observer", "Film Comment", and "The International Herald Tribune". His books have been published by Penguin, St. Martin's, and HarperCollins.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
June 21, 2015
Another side of the ancient Greek playwright Sophocles, was revealed in this novel. Besides his writing so many plays, many of which are still read and performed today, in his 50s he served as a general during a 440 BC war between Athens and Samos for nine months or so. [In Athens in those days, the Age of Pericles, each able-bodied male was required to serve in the military until he was 65.] Sophocles has his doubts about serving in a military leadership capacity but he is asked by one of the ruling council:
"Who has led more men than you [in your capacity as playwright directing dramas], in circumstances the whole city was watching?...[Generalship] is nothing that a capable man like you can't learn very quickly."
The main body of the book is taken up with Sophocles' military command: he is one of ten generals, with Pericles as Supreme Commander. He wins an exciting sea battle at first at Tragia through his quick thinking. The rest of the book is taken up with a siege of Samos Town and attempt of the Athenians to enter the city through a tunnel.
I appreciated a different view of the man; he became more than just a dry name on a title page. His family: wife, son, and daughter, are brought into the story but not developed all that well, except for his son, Iophon, the perfect know-it-all teenager. He insists on accompanying his dad to Samos and is captured by the Samians. Portrayals of Sophocles and the pompous Pericles were well done. I was glad to learn of an event in history of which I knew nothing. This novel read very quickly. The 'Author's Note' explained the circumstances of this relatively unknown though important Athens/Samos war. I liked learning something of the Greek theater of that period and the Dionysia Play Competitions. The awfulness of his war experiences teach Sophocles that he can write in a new way and extend his horizons in writing, e.g., dividing the chorus; showing onstage action that had previously been offstage.
July 29, 2023
Nicastro's historical novel is based around two historical facts: the playwright Sophocles was an Athenian General for the 9 month siege of Samos in 440/439 and in the years before that he had written and one the drama prize for his play Antigone. This books reads much more like literary historical fiction than war historical fiction, despite using a siege as its primary setting. I mean that as a compliment.
Nicastro's setting and characters feel authentically Classical Greek. They're three dimensional in a way that is often lacking in historical fiction. The characters aren't just dropping empty references to set the scene, it's a fully realized historical setting.
In honor of Sophocles' victory, the ship captain assigned to him on the Samos campaign renames his trireme "Antigone's Wake" and paints eyes on the head of the ship. As Sophocles becomes increasingly conflicted over the ways Pericles chooses to prosecute the war/siege, Sophocles' conscious expresses itself in imaginary dialogues between himself and the ship which bears Antigone's name. The way Nicastro dramatizes Sophocles' conscious with echoes of the Antigone/Creon exchanges in the play is brilliantly done.
I've ordered Nicastro's Spartan novel, Isle of Stone, and look forward to reading it.
Nicastro's setting and characters feel authentically Classical Greek. They're three dimensional in a way that is often lacking in historical fiction. The characters aren't just dropping empty references to set the scene, it's a fully realized historical setting.
In honor of Sophocles' victory, the ship captain assigned to him on the Samos campaign renames his trireme "Antigone's Wake" and paints eyes on the head of the ship. As Sophocles becomes increasingly conflicted over the ways Pericles chooses to prosecute the war/siege, Sophocles' conscious expresses itself in imaginary dialogues between himself and the ship which bears Antigone's name. The way Nicastro dramatizes Sophocles' conscious with echoes of the Antigone/Creon exchanges in the play is brilliantly done.
I've ordered Nicastro's Spartan novel, Isle of Stone, and look forward to reading it.
December 9, 2014
A little threadbare, but gritty, mostly believable, and packed with exceptional language. A 3.51 star rating in truth, thus rounded up to 4.
June 24, 2024
Easy read. Fine story. Not much depth
April 18, 2018
Excellent and haunting. A rich life is intersected with joy and tragedy, both compounding their effect to make it well lived. A 'human' experience. This book describes it well.
July 14, 2012
"Antigone’s Wake: A Novel of Imperial Athens" by Nicholas Nicastro describes Athens’ campaign against Samos in 440-439 BC through the eyes of the playwright Sophocles. Allegedly, Sophocles was one of the ten elected Athenian generals who conducted the campaign under the overall leadership of Pericles. Although there is no attempt to apologize for Athens’ aggressive and imperial policy and many of the negative aspects of Athenian society are described in the course of the book, Nicastro clearly likes Athens and his characters in this book better than he liked his heroes or Sparta in "Isle of Stone." Throughout the book, the tone is light-hearted and whimsically self-critical rather than oppressive and hopeless, making it a much easier and more pleasant read than "Isle of Stone."
Particularly well-drawn is the hero Sophocles. Nicastro very effectively portrays the great playwright as a man who is at once vain and insecure, a man proud of his accomplishments and yet conscious of his failings. He is a man with weaknesses, but not without virtues and conscience. All in all, he is a likeable protagonist and one which the reader readily follows.
The portrayal of Pericles was also intriguing. Since I know very little about the historical Pericles, I have no way of judging the accuracy of Nicastro’s portrayal, although from what I do know the fictional character represents a legitimate interpretation of the historical figure. Certainly, Nicastro’s Pericles was effective in the context of the novel, where the "rational" Pericles serves as a good foil for the more emotional Sophocles. Because Pericles epitomizes “rational” policy and “realpolitik,” he also advocates cold-blooded political expediency and so embodies Imperial Athens, a role that is appropriate for the most famous Athenian politician of his age.
Sophocles' son Iophon likewise plays a believable, if more monotone role in the novel, as the spoilt son of a successful father. Fathers of teenage sons will probably identify strongly with Sophocles in his disappointment over his son's refusal to recognize his own achievements and his frustration in trying to provide wise guidance. The relationship between father and son is at once completely modern and compellingly authentic, as a variety of ancient writers also complained about the rudeness of youth and their lack of respect for their elders. In short, the phenomenon appears timeless.
Unfortunately, all three women characters in "Antigone's Wake" are mere stereotypes: the intelligent whore (Aspasia), the nagging wife (Nais) and the stupid teenage girl, Sophocles’ daughter Photia. Whereas Aspasia and Nais are well drawn steriotypes, who still play their roles within the novel effectively, Nicastro’s failure to breathe life into Photia is a serious flaw in the novel. Nicastro's plot requires Photio to fulfil a key function and provide a dramatic climax to the novel. Because Nicastro neglects Photia for the larger part of the novel and makes no effort to develop a character rather than a steriotype, she fails to play her assigned role convincingly. In consequence, I found the ending of the novel a severe disappointment after an otherwise good read.
Particularly well-drawn is the hero Sophocles. Nicastro very effectively portrays the great playwright as a man who is at once vain and insecure, a man proud of his accomplishments and yet conscious of his failings. He is a man with weaknesses, but not without virtues and conscience. All in all, he is a likeable protagonist and one which the reader readily follows.
The portrayal of Pericles was also intriguing. Since I know very little about the historical Pericles, I have no way of judging the accuracy of Nicastro’s portrayal, although from what I do know the fictional character represents a legitimate interpretation of the historical figure. Certainly, Nicastro’s Pericles was effective in the context of the novel, where the "rational" Pericles serves as a good foil for the more emotional Sophocles. Because Pericles epitomizes “rational” policy and “realpolitik,” he also advocates cold-blooded political expediency and so embodies Imperial Athens, a role that is appropriate for the most famous Athenian politician of his age.
Sophocles' son Iophon likewise plays a believable, if more monotone role in the novel, as the spoilt son of a successful father. Fathers of teenage sons will probably identify strongly with Sophocles in his disappointment over his son's refusal to recognize his own achievements and his frustration in trying to provide wise guidance. The relationship between father and son is at once completely modern and compellingly authentic, as a variety of ancient writers also complained about the rudeness of youth and their lack of respect for their elders. In short, the phenomenon appears timeless.
Unfortunately, all three women characters in "Antigone's Wake" are mere stereotypes: the intelligent whore (Aspasia), the nagging wife (Nais) and the stupid teenage girl, Sophocles’ daughter Photia. Whereas Aspasia and Nais are well drawn steriotypes, who still play their roles within the novel effectively, Nicastro’s failure to breathe life into Photia is a serious flaw in the novel. Nicastro's plot requires Photio to fulfil a key function and provide a dramatic climax to the novel. Because Nicastro neglects Photia for the larger part of the novel and makes no effort to develop a character rather than a steriotype, she fails to play her assigned role convincingly. In consequence, I found the ending of the novel a severe disappointment after an otherwise good read.
April 7, 2017
Continuing on my journey through Ancient Greece via historical novels, I've now moved passed the Persian War into the beginning of The Peloponnesian War (431–404 BC). This is the whole Athens versus Sparta war that lead to the rise of the Athenian Empire.
This month's book was Nicholas Nicastro's 2007 novel Antigone's Wake, which focused on the character of Sophocles (playwright of Antigone, Oedipus Rex, Electra, etc.), and his career in his early fifties as a military general for Athens.
The novel is short, to the point, and does a great job of painting its protagonist as a man in transition. Sophocles friend Pericles suggests that as Sophocles already knows how to effectively mount a stage play, why couldn't he use his skills towards military victory, and honestly, it would be a largely ceremonial role in response to his recent success with the play Antigone.
The story works quite nicely in painting Sophocles as a man near the top of his game thrust into a position he never trained for or wanted, and how he deals with some terrifying challenges, including his own teenage son coming along for an "adventure".
Considering that history largely focuses on Sophocles role as playwright, an examination of him as military leader was a real treat for me, and one that has me looking to view some of his plays before moving onto my read for next month, which in the end, is the mark of any successful historical fiction novel.
This month's book was Nicholas Nicastro's 2007 novel Antigone's Wake, which focused on the character of Sophocles (playwright of Antigone, Oedipus Rex, Electra, etc.), and his career in his early fifties as a military general for Athens.
The novel is short, to the point, and does a great job of painting its protagonist as a man in transition. Sophocles friend Pericles suggests that as Sophocles already knows how to effectively mount a stage play, why couldn't he use his skills towards military victory, and honestly, it would be a largely ceremonial role in response to his recent success with the play Antigone.
The story works quite nicely in painting Sophocles as a man near the top of his game thrust into a position he never trained for or wanted, and how he deals with some terrifying challenges, including his own teenage son coming along for an "adventure".
Considering that history largely focuses on Sophocles role as playwright, an examination of him as military leader was a real treat for me, and one that has me looking to view some of his plays before moving onto my read for next month, which in the end, is the mark of any successful historical fiction novel.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews