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Sophocles
The son of a wealthy merchant, he enjoyed all the comforts of a thriving Greek empire. He studied all of the arts. By the age of sixteen, he was already known for his beauty and grace and was chosen to lead a choir of boys at a celebration of the victory of Salamis. Twelve years later, his studies complete, he was ready to compete in the City Dionysia--a festival held every year at the Theatre of Dionysus in which new plays were presented.
In his first competition, in 468 B.C, Sophocles took first prize, defeating none other than Aeschylus himself. More than 120 plays were to follow. He would go on to win eighteen first prizes. An accomplished actor, Sophocles performed in many of his own plays. However, his voice was comparatively weak, and eventually he would give up his acting career to pursue other ventures.
In addition to his theatrical duties, Sophocles served for many years as an ordained priest of Alcon and Asclepius, the god of medicine. He also served on the Board of Generals, a committee that administered civil and military affairs in Athens, and for a time he was director of the Treasury, controlling the funds of the association of states known as the Delian Confederacy.
One of the great innovators of the theatre, he was the first to add a third actor. He also abolished the trilogic form in which Aeschylus, for example, had used three tragedies to tell a single story. Sophocles chose to make each tragedy a complete entity in itself as a result of which he had to pack all of his action into the shorter form, and this clearly offered greater dramatic possibilities.
Of Sophocles' more than 120 plays, only seven have survived in their entirety. Of these, Oedipus the King is generally considered his greatest work. This tragedy of fate explores the depths of modern psycho-analysis as Oedipus unwittingly kills his father and marries his mother in an attempt to avoid the very prophecy he ultimately fulfills. A masterful work of plot and suspense, Oedipus the King is often heralded as a "perfectly structured" play.
Another masterpiece, Antigone, is the story of a passionate young woman who refuses to submit to earthly authority when it forbids a proper burial for her brother. Illustrating the rival claims of the state and the individual conscience, Antigone is an excellent example for the modern social dramatist.
In The Women of Trachis, Sophocles presents another well-rounded female character--Deianira, the wife of Heracles. His greatest character drama, however, is probably Electra.
Sophocles passed away shortly after the production of Oedipus at Colonus in 405 B.C.
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Truth vs Pragmatism in Oedipus The King.
I have a couple of questions concerning this play , I would really appreciate any idea from you that could help me understand more. I always thought that the play is essentially about the value of truth in our life. Whenever Oedipus tries to find the truth he is faced by those who questions the utility of truth and his goal . I think the most effective line among many lines is when the shepherd told Oedipus " why to know truth when truth is only pain!" Isn't that Pragmatism? I made some research about it and I found that there are many branches for it and many philosophers . If I wanna look for a philosopher who speaks of the issue concerning the play which one should I read ? I read that the kind of truth Oedipus is looking for is facts so is this empiricism vs pragmatism ??
Posted By caddy_caddy at Fri 13 May 2011, 3:36 PM in Sophocles, || 1 Reply
Odipus as a tragic hero???
aright guys, so i have a paper coming up and i have to compare Oedipus and Hamlet...so i just wanted to see different opinions of how Oedipus can be seen as a tragic hero....am just looking for some opinions, whether it be opposing or for...
Posted By Lit.Rox at Fri 4 Dec 2009, 4:48 PM in Sophocles, || 7 Replies
Does anyone have any information on sophocles
ok so here is whats up i am doing research for drama on the playwright Sophocles i have looked at some sites (i.e. Sophocles.net) but still are only getting mininal information the project is due may 5th 2009 and i also need to know what sophocles would have been wearing...... any help would be appricated and will be cited as sources.
Posted By Daniel Hall at Thu 7 May 2009, 12:42 PM in Sophocles, || 1 Reply
Thinking of Sophocles
It is the belief of some writers, some thinkers, some human beings, that there is nothing new under the sun or perhaps, to put their view more accurately, there is nothing new to say about the human condition. The greats of history, the Shakespeares and the Sophocleses have already said it inimitably, brilliantly. At best, it seems to me, this is only a partial truth. The historian, the critic, the autobiographer, among others, interprets and reinterprets the human condition and, although, the human condition has elements that stay the same(plus ca change, plus c’est la meme chose)much changes. For, as it is said, you can not step into the same river twice. There is, then, much more to say, much more that is new. At least that, in summary, is my view.:yawnb: ___________________ “Original composition,” said Wordsworth speaking of poetry, does “infinitely less mischief.” Let us hope there is little mischief in my work. Perhaps I should have stuck with writing poetry which I have come to enjoy as a literary avocation in the last decade. Readers will certainly find little overt criticism of my work in my essays. I am an unknown and so little criticism has come my way. I do not have that view of my writing which Arnold had of Wordsworth even though he loved and admired Wordsworth, namely, that this was poetry would have been richer, more complete and varied if he had read more books. Some of my creative power comes from my being in the right place at the right time, when there were the materials and the basis for the emergence of a Baha’i consciousness in world literature. Like Athens in the mid to late fifth century BC, the mid to late twentieth century provided the milieux for the glow of life and thought and for world literature to make its first major strides. I feel I have been, that I have happened along at the start. It was not the start of democracy, or the breakdown of the architecture of the Middle Ages and the first stirrings of modern science, that led to the literature of Sophocles or of Shakespeare, respectively, it was the start of a world literature and the first imprint of a new, a democratic theocracy, a vision with the future in its bones, that had just stuck its head above the ground and enshrined that priceless jewel, the world civilization, of which this infant Faith White had joined was “the sole begetter.” By the time I began to write seriously I was not an expert scholar or highly qualified academic, not the serious student with that rich, deep and varied reading behind him that Arnold would have liked Wordsworth to possess. But for me that is not important; indeed, I think, like Shakespeare, some poets are better for the freshness and spontaneity they bring to ideas, to their poetry. The absense of erudition is part of whatever fresh-air and delightful everyday idiom I bring to my work.
Posted By Ron Price at Sun 30 Mar 2008, 4:33 AM in Sophocles, || 2 Replies
Oedipus (Tyrannus/Rex) and the Chorus.
I'm writing an essay about the impact the Chorus has on the audience and have been looking at the roles it plays. I have all the obvious things like creating empathy, responding to action, offering advice, affecting the tempo, irony, foreboding, their moral standards and things like that. But I was wondering if there is anything else that I might have missed. Something less obvious or even something slightly controversial. Any thoughts? Thanks.
Posted By insipidlywitty at Fri 26 Oct 2007, 1:40 PM in Sophocles, || 0 Replies
What happens to Ismene?
The Oedipus Trilogy was my serious summer read, but I found myself quite alarmed when I reached the end of Antigone. My question is: What happens to Ismene, Antigone's sister? At the end of Oedipus Rex, Antigone and Ismene are brought out to bid their father Oedipus fare well; in Oedipus at Colonnus, Ismene plays a rather important role in beseeching the gods to allow her father to live uncursed on holy ground; and of course in Antigone, Ismene acts as a foil to her noble and stubborn sister. But after she attempts to share responsibility with Antigone for burying her brother Polynices, she disappears. What happens to her? (Does she die?) Sophocles seems to ignore her fate completely--and I find this unsettling. Can anyone help?
Posted By Literary_Cat at Mon 13 Aug 2007, 3:50 PM in Sophocles, || 6 Replies
Sophocles
Im statting to study Antigany in my drama Alevel class and i have to find background information on Sophcles is there anything vital that i should know? thanks alotx
Posted By charlotte565656 at Sat 17 Mar 2007, 6:37 PM in Sophocles, || 1 Reply
Help -> Antigone by Sophocles
So for an assignment my professor asked me what the primary question in Antigone is...and I have no idea I was thinking that is has something to do with pride and wisdom - PRIDE VS. PRUDENCE? does this make sense. I need help!:crash:
Posted By sexi_angel at Thu 19 Oct 2006, 8:28 PM in Sophocles, || 3 Replies
antigone fav character?
NE1 have a fav character? i like creon - hes cool. :brow: :brow: :brow: :brow:
Posted By felix at Sat 18 Mar 2006, 10:55 PM in Sophocles, || 0 Replies
antigone was a wuss
NE1 think like I do and that antigone was weak and silly? Y didn she just bury her brother quietly (all she had to do was chuck sum dirt over him) and not make a fuss - then she cuduv lived. :cool: :banana: :banana: :banana:
Posted By felix at Sat 18 Mar 2006, 10:52 PM in Sophocles, || 1 Reply