1. Greek Drama

2. “Big 4 Playwrights”
•Aeschylus •Euripides
•Aristophanes •Sophocles

3. Sophocles
• circa 496-406BC
• most admired playwright
• only 7 of his estimated 127 plays remain
• won over 20 prizes in theater competitions
• works explore “human suffering and despair”,
dignity, morals
• “the unsolvable dilemma”- tests faith in the gods, in
justice, in morals

4. Greek Theatres

5. Theaters
• huge, outdoor facilities
• large audience capacity, all seats are good
• natural acoustics
• space also used for funerals of state, forums,
meetings
• Romans turned theaters into arenas for sports
and gladiators
• sometimes flooded for boat races

6. Major Themes
•fatal flaw vs. victim of fate
•role of divine justice... is there free
will? or are we pawns of fate?
•roles of humans in the universe

7. Tragedy and
the Tragic Hero
•tragic flaw: character’s weakness, faults
•Aristotle: tragedy is “when a hero goes
through one or more reversals of
fortune, leading up to a final
recognition of truth”

8. Notes from Film
• Role of theatre in ancient Greek society: illustrate the
“how” and “why” of the human experience
✴structure of the universe
✴structure of gods and family groups
✴give people a sense of the universe and how they fit
in
✴truth of the human nature and experience
✴values, models for community living

9. Notes from Film
• Birthplace and Time: Athens, 4th or 5th century
• Original function: celebrate/honor Dionysis, the god
of wine, sex, revel
• Schedule of Performances: seasonal, or part of theater
competitions
• Play Themes and Narratives: not “highbrow”, based on
myths and historical events, usually tragedy or comedy
• Actors: originally amateurs, then eventually
professionals, then eventually acting troupes; low
wages; only men

10. Notes from Film
•The SuperStars? playwrights!
highest status in the theatre, did it
all... wrote, acted, directed,
costuming, wrote music
•Audience/Cost: men only at first,
then women eventually; cost about
a day’s wages, the eventually free

11. • group speaking in unison or
antiphonally
The
• speaks directly to audience Chorus
• purpose of Chorus:
✴provide background
✴move plot along
✴state or reinforce values, themes
✴comment on human nature
✴misc remarks, information

12. Drama Terms to Know...
• Drama: art of writing or producing a story intended for
performance
• Protagonist: main character, principal figure in a story
• Antagonist: character in opposition of protagonist or
hero
• Comedy: dramatic work that is light or humorous in tone
• Tragedy: dramatic work in which the protagonist suffers
sorrow or extreme ruin, especially as a consequence of a
tragic flaw or moral weakness

13. Drama Terms to Know...
• Theatre: “what is seen” (vs THEATER: the place where
it is seen)
• 3 Parts of Greek Theater
• Scene/Sheenee: acting platform (later became a
raised area, and called the stage)
• Theatron: seating
• Orchestra: where chorus stood
• Altars: to honor gods

14. Oedipus Rex
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sA1_QZxvRyo

15. Necessary Info...
• first of a trilogy about Thebes (Greek city/state)
• Oedipus Rex, Oedipus at Colonus, Antigone
• Opening Situation: Thebes is suffering a great plague. Apollo
says it will not end until the murderer of King Laius is found
and punished.
• Audience Familiarity: would have known story (see summary
in packet)
• Tight Dramatic Structure: very small range of time and space,
can stand alone apart from rest of trilogy
• Aristotle’s wholeness in literature: completeness of
beginning, middle, and end

16. THEMES
๏quest for identity
๏nature of innocence and
guilt
๏moral responsibility
๏human will vs fate,
destiny
๏abuse of power
๏human weaknesses, flaws

17. Terms

18. Terms
• Dramatic Irony: when reader/audience knows or
understands important point the character does not

19. Terms
• Dramatic Irony: when reader/audience knows or
understands important point the character does not
★ we already know Oedipus’ true identity before story
begins!

20. Terms
• Dramatic Irony: when reader/audience knows or
understands important point the character does not
★ we already know Oedipus’ true identity before story
begins!
• Prologue/Prologos: opening, exposition (character, setting,
conflicts)

21. Terms
• Dramatic Irony: when reader/audience knows or
understands important point the character does not
★ we already know Oedipus’ true identity before story
begins!
• Prologue/Prologos: opening, exposition (character, setting,
conflicts)
• Parados: entrance song of chorus

22. Terms
• Dramatic Irony: when reader/audience knows or
understands important point the character does not
★ we already know Oedipus’ true identity before story
begins!
• Prologue/Prologos: opening, exposition (character, setting,
conflicts)
• Parados: entrance song of chorus
• Episodes (Scenes): action in the drama, performed by actors

23. Terms
• Dramatic Irony: when reader/audience knows or
understands important point the character does not
★ we already know Oedipus’ true identity before story
begins!
• Prologue/Prologos: opening, exposition (character, setting,
conflicts)
• Parados: entrance song of chorus
• Episodes (Scenes): action in the drama, performed by actors
• Stasimons (Odes): chorus passages, alternate with Episodes

24. Terms
• Dramatic Irony: when reader/audience knows or
understands important point the character does not
★ we already know Oedipus’ true identity before story
begins!
• Prologue/Prologos: opening, exposition (character, setting,
conflicts)
• Parados: entrance song of chorus
• Episodes (Scenes): action in the drama, performed by actors
• Stasimons (Odes): chorus passages, alternate with Episodes
• Exodus: conclusion, ends usually with chorus singing final
lines as they exit