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Greek Theatre and Tragedy: an Introduction to Antigone

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Greek Theatre and Tragedy: an Introduction to Antigone Monday, September 17th For tomorrow, please make sure you’ve read Oedipus Rex: Prologue - Ode 2 (pp. 3-47). We’ll begin class by discussing your questions, so please make notes in your text As you begin reading, consider how the crisis unfolds How is Oedipus initially characterized? Use your notes to guide your annotations If you do not have a book, there is a copy posted on my website. Greek Theater and Tragedy: An Introduction An Introduction to Greek Theatre *this is not in your notes… it’s a preview Lecture Outline I. Greek Theater i. Role of theater in society ii. Conventions of Greek drama ▪ Staging ▪ Actors ▪ The chorus II. Greek Tragedy i. Defining characteristics ii. Aristotle ▪ Theory of tragedy ▪ Aristotelian unities iii. Dramatic structure iv. The tragic hero v. Sophocles ▪ Background ▪ The Sophoclean Hero III. Oedipus IV. Antigone In the grander scheme of Greek literature… Supposedly written toward the mid to end of the 8th century B.C. i.e. latter part of the 700s B.C. A few CENTURIES pass… Focus on heroic exploits of Focus on individual suffering, events an individual, high depicted are increasingly tragic, minimal adventure, war, action, etc. to no direct interaction with gods Heavy interaction with Gods i. Role of Theater in Society Theater was a religious & civic occasion in 5th century B.C. The plays (comedy, satyr, tragedy) were performed annually at festivals in honor of Dionysus, god of wine, revelry, and theater were entered in a competition (between 3 playwrights) and voted on Plots drawn from mythic or legendary events of the past i. Role of Theater in Society Funded by wealthy citizens (required by the polis (city-state) Theater tickets were free to citizens – allowing everyone to participate Greek theater was directed at moral and political education of the community Poet/playwright's role was the improvement of the polis Tragedies, particularly, enabled the audience to reflect on personal values that might conflict with civic ideals ii. Conventions of Greek Drama Staging Performed at an open-air hillside amphitheater 14,000-17,000 spectators Performance space: Theatron “viewing place” of spectators Parodos “passage ways” used by the chorus to enter & exit Orchestra “dancing space” location of the chorus during the play Skene “tent” i.e. the stage house/building/backdrop ii. The theater Below: The Theater of Dionysus (at the Acropolis) ii. The theater A fully constructed Greek theater would have looked like this ii. Conventions of Greek Drama The actors 3 or fewer actors on stage at one time – all male Wore imposing masks “Personae” - Represented certain conventional characters (e.g. young man, king, old woman, etc.) Exaggerated mouthpieces helped project sound and facial features for those sitting far away Focus is on the WORDS, not action iii. Conventions of Greek Drama The Chorus ~12-15 men Sing & dance to music Alternate monologue/dialogue w/ actors May give characters advice Reflect/represent attitudes of ordinary citizens; a communal voice Comment on dramatic action Reflect on important events/ideas Present central themes & common sense Choragos – head chorus leader iii. Conventions of Greek Drama The Chorus cont. Stay physically near one another – when they moved, the moved TOGETHER Keep in mind that the play is written (and sung) in Greek verse… so their movement is sometimes centered around this Some interactions are structured in strophic pairs Strophe = “turn” Antistrophe = “turn against” The chorus would dance across the stage while singing the strophe and then turn around and come back across during the antistrophe The language in a strophic pair is usually more vivid/flowery than the actors’ lines ii. Conventions of Greek Drama The play Composition: Plot is often drawn from traditional myth Plays are written in verse (poetic form in original Greek language) Conversations often interrupted by chorus Structure: Prologue – a preparatory scene at the beginning of play; contains dialogue which informs audience of the play’s circumstances (the exposition) Párados – the first song sung by the Chorus after the Prologue; marks the entrance of the chorus Episodes/Scenes – contain the action of the play (similar to modern “acts”); separated by danced choral songs or odes Odes – summarize/comment upon the preceding action or speculate about its significance; further illuminate important concepts for the audience Éxodos – the last scene; characters and chorus conclude the action and depart II. Greek Tragedy i. Defining characteristics ii. Aristotle → ideas on tragedy → the tragic hero iii. Important Terms iv. Dramatic Structure v. Sophocles → background → the Sophoclean Hero What is tragedy? A tragedy is a drama which, according to Aristotle, depicts the downfall of a basically good person through some fatal error or misjudgment, producing suffering and insight on the part of the protagonist and arousing pity and fear on the part of the audience. Some defining characteristics of Greek tragedy… ➢ Plots are based on Greek myths → the audience would have been familiar with the “story” being depicted, but playwrights sometimes added “twists” ➢ deals with elevated issues such as justice, free will and fate, public vs. private life, knowledge and illusion, and ultimately human suffering ➢ Consider that these are still modern issues! ➢ Greek tragedies, including those of Sophocles, almost always focus on conflict within a family & the destruction of the family due to that conflict Defining ➢ Plays often depict conflicting characteristics loyalties between of tragedy cont. ➢ city/state (polis) ➢ family/household (oikos)… not the yogurt) ➢ Murder, sex, natural disasters, suicide, and battles (i.e. events requiring direct “action”) all took place offstage; messengers then reported the results. ➢ The focus of the drama is largely on the verbal exchange between characters. Aristotle his work, Poetics, contains the classic theory of tragedy (Poetics is an early version of literary criticism) TRAGEDY, according to Aristotle = “the imitation of an action that is serious and also as having magnitude, complete in itself” “a form of drama exciting the emotions of pity and fear. Its action should be single and complete, presenting a reversal of fortune, involving persons of renowned and of superior attainments… it should be written in poetry embellished with every kind of artistic expression” Aristotle considered Oedipus Rex the “perfect” tragedy Aristotle continued Why is it that people are drawn to watching tragic heroes suffer horrible fates? According to Aristotle… Action of the play should arouse extreme pity and fear in the audience - pathos – pity for the protagonist and a sympathetic fear because he is like us First, the audience develops an emotional attachment to the tragic hero; Second, the audience fears what may befall the hero Finally (after misfortune strikes) the audience pities the suffering hero. Through these attachments the individual members of the audience go through a catharsis, the “relief” or “purging” (of pity and fear); the viewer of a tragedy refines his or her sense of difficult ethical issues through a vicarious experience of such thorny problems. Aristotle continued – “Unities” Aristotelian “unities” = the principles of a drama (a formula of sorts…) Aristotle believed that a good tragedy has the following elements: Unity of place The play should be in one location and should not span distance/geography (e.g. in Oedipus Rex, most of the actions takes place on the palace steps) Unity of time The play should take place over the course of one day (note that previous events can be recalled/discussed within the play, but the main/current action unfolds in one day) Unity of action All action must contribute to the main plot or a single plot (i.e. few digressions or subplots) Important Greek Tragedy Terms: Hamartia – an error in judgment (closely associated with or leads to the tragic flaw). Translates to “missing the mark” Peripeteia –reversal of fortune/circumstances, a negative turning point; usually a move from power/success to misery and misfortune Anagnorisis - the recognition by the tragic hero of some truth about his or her identity or erroneous actions (hamartia) that often accompanies the reversal of the situation in the plot, the peripeteia Pathos - describes the powerful emotions of pity and fear aroused in the audience of a tragedy Catharsis - the purging of the emotions of pity and fear that are aroused in the viewer of a tragedy Aristotle’s Tragic Plot Structure – A rough sketch III. Tragedy – The Tragic Hero The hero/heroine… cannot be either all good or all evil, but rather someone the audience can identify with hero is often superior in status makes the tragedy more intense and the fall more calamitous b/c it involves an entire nation or people Suffers (and ultimately falls) because of an error in judgement (hamartia) due to a character flaw that causes the hero to ignore a divine warning or break a moral law The hero will realize a horrible truth and that he is responsible for the tragic events (anagnorisis) - but it’s too late Experiences a peripeteia: a reversal from power and success to misery and misfortune iii. Sophocles 496 B.C – 406 B.C. One of the 3 great tragedians of Athens (others = Aeschylus and Euripides). Their plays are the only ones preserved as a whole Considered the most successful playwright by Athenians – won the Dionysian festival multiple times Wrote 120 plays; ONLY 7 survive Best known for his Theban plays Antigone, Oedipus Rex, Oedipus at Colonus Plays contained a moral lesson and usually a warning against religious indifference. The Sophoclean Hero Sophocles’ plays concentrate on the INDIVIDUAL Protagonist is isolated in some way Tragedy will focus on difficulties of the individual amidst family conflict the main character is usually faced with a crisis in which disaster can only be averted by a compromise that, in the protagonist’s view, would constitute betrayal of something that he or she holds to be supremely important.
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