Greek Tragedy :: essays papers

Hellenic TragedyThe tragedy was a lifesize part of peoples lives in ancient Greece. Tragedies became prominent long before christ was born. A tragedy, or goat-song, usually were seen during festivals in ancient Greek times. Tragedies little by little increased in seriousness until they were given utmost importance. Greek tragedies began at a festival in honor of a god, there were three great tragic authors, and all tragedies include a tragic status.Greek tragedies began at a festival in honor of Dionysius, who was the god of wine. At the early festivals, drinking, quarrels, and sexual activity occurred frequently. Later on, tragedies gained much more admiration and were taken very seriously. The plays dealt with mans relationship with god(s). These plays besides dealt with a specific lawsuit of life. The chorus wore goat-skins and served a great purpose in the tragedies, themselves. Thespis, the father of the tragedy, created an sham who talked with the leader of the chor us to further make the importance of the chorus seen. In Greek tragedy, three masters were paramount. They were Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides. These three playwrights all wrote for the festivals of Dionysius, but no(prenominal) of the three were alike. Aeschylus writes about Athenian power, arrogance, and ancient rule. Sophocles accepts the gods as the way they are. He does not believe in the violation of cosmic order. Euripides questions spirit. He also faults the old way of doing things.Every tragedy has a tragic situation in which the tragic hero finds himself. There are two staple tragic situations. The most common situation is a man between two clashing principles. Every situation results in sorrow and worthless for the protagonist, or tragic hero. Creon is the tragic hero who suffers dearly for his situation. A selection is imperative to a tragic situation. In tragic situations, a completion must be made, or has already been made, which results in suffering for the hero.