Greek Theater and Oedipus Rex

Flashcards covering key vocabulary related to Greek Drama and Oedipus Rex.

Drama Origins in Ancient Greece

Legendary Greek gods and goddesses were celebrated through formal arts, ceremonies, and rituals, often appearing as characters in drama.

Dionysus

God of wine and procreation, often the subject of early Greek dramas.

Thespis

The first actor who performed around 534 BC.

Greek Theater Festivals

Three week-long festivals were set aside each year for dramatizing stories of the Greeks’ lives.

Theatron

Tiered seating area built into a hillside in the shape of a horseshoe.

Mask (Greek Theater)

Key to the actor’s identity, helping to project voice and depict character traits.

Aristotle’s Definition of Tragedy

Based on past events, noble protagonist, downfall due to flaw, audience sympathy, protagonist gains self-knowledge, plot unfolds in one place in a short time, allows catharsis.

Prologue

Opening scene of a Greek tragedy.

Parados

First of the Chorus’s lyric songs in a Greek tragedy.

Exodos

Concluding scene of a Greek tragedy.

Anagnorisis

Startling discovery; moment of epiphany; time of revelation when a character discovers his true identity.

Antagonist

Chief opponent of the protagonist in a Greek play.

Catharsis

In literature and art, a release of tension / pent-up emotions; cleansing the audience of disturbing emotions.

Chorus

Bystanders in a play who present odes on the action; explain, interpret, foreshadow, serve as actor, sing/dance, give author's views.

Dialogue

Conversation between characters in a play.

Drama

Literary work with dialogue written in verse and spoken by actors experiencing conflict and tension.

Dramatic Irony

Failure of a character to see or understand what is obvious to the audience.

Hamartia

Character flaw or judgment error of the protagonist of a Greek tragedy.

Hubris

Great pride, often the character flaw of a protagonist in Greek drama.

Machine (Deus ex machina)

Arm-like device in an ancient Greek theater that could lower a "god" onto the stage from the "heavens."

Mask

Face covering with exaggerated features and a mouth device to project the voice.

Peripateia

In a tragedy, sudden reversal of fortune from good to bad.

Prologue / Prologos

Introduction of a play that provides background material.

Satire

In Greek literature, a play or a passage in a play that pokes fun at public figures or the gods.

Trilogy

Group of three plays on a related subject or theme.