Oedipus the King/Greek Tragedy.

Tragedy/Tragic Plays

• fatal or disastrous conclusion
  

• pity and fear

General Principles of Tragedy

• man’s troubles but affirms things
  

• philosophical statements
  

• rational and emotional
  

• reason overrules emotion
  

• prosperity to adversity for protagonist
  

• punishment or suffering for protagonist is excessive betraying a higher force
  

• order, chaos, back to order
  

• Conclusion with death and a cleansing

Pattern of the Tragic Hero

• Dilemma

• Choice

• Catastrophe

• Suffering

• Realisation

• Death

Aristotle's 5 Basic Elements of Tragedy

• Plot

• Characters

• Themes

• Diction

• Spectacle

Drama

“dran” - to do

Theatre

'theatron' = 'viewing place'

Theatron

• 'seating place'

• max 15000 people

Parados

Path into Theatron.

Skene.

Tent on the stage with a set of doors.

Dionysus

• Gave midas the golden touch

• was able to restore life

• brought, semele, his mother back from the underworld

• Chiron taught him to dance

Greek theatre era

flourished in 550-220 BC

Great Dionysia/City Dionysia

• festival honoring dionysus

• 3 comic & 3 tragic palys

• prizes awarded first place: a bronze cauldron.

• records of victories on monuments

• attendance was civic & religious duty

The Plays

formulaic and predictable

play’s unities

• Unity of Time

• Unity of Place

• Unity of Action

Greek Tragedy Origins

• Athens 6th century BC
  

• varying origins: epic poetry, rituals for Dionysus

Greek Theatre Themes

• religion & history

• respect

Theatre of Dionysus at Athens

largest & most famous facility for theatre

Evolution of Number of Actors

• earliest tragedies and one actor

• by 520 BC: 3 actors

Thespis

• first actor

• created the concept of only one character on stage

• father of Greek tragedy

• thespian denotes actor

Oedipus

• Dilemma: decided to aid thebes

• choice: the truth

• catastrophe: revelation of identity

• suffering: he suffers

• Realization: uncovers his identity

• Death: blinds himself