Bell Work

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Bell Work

• Define what Loyalty means to you. Who are you
  loyal to? Who are others loyal to? What does it
  mean if something you are loyal to is not the
  same as someone else? Write 3-5 lines

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Intro to Greek Tragedies and Antigone
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Learning Objectives

• Identify characteristics of classical drama
• Analyze theme and conflict
• Analyze and evaluate style
• Research word definitions and connotations
• Build academic vocabulary
• Analyze Literature

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Vocabulary in Context

• decree
• carrion
• auspicious
• scavenging
• comprehensive
• intolerable
• senile
• demoralizing
• sultry
• anarchy/anarchist

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Vocabulary in Context

• deflects
• furrows
• yoke
• lithe
• edict
• insolence
• brazen
• transcends
• deference
• subordinate

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Vocabulary in Context

• absolve
• blasphemy
• lamentation
• dirges
• transgress
• profane
• entrails
• defile
• citadel
• crevice

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• Greek Tragedy Terminology

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Catastrophe

• A disastrous conclusion usually involving
  multiple deaths. If the tragic hero survives, he
  suffers complete ruin.

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Chorus

• A masked group of actors who intermittently
  appear on stage to comment on the plotusually
  through song.
• Choragus chorus leader

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Fate

• Meaning 1 Preordained destiny
• Meaning 2 The Fates, or Moirai, are the three
  goddesses of fate (particularly death and pain).

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Tragic Hero

• Protagonist, or central character (good guy)
• Usually fails or dies (with dignity) because of
  character flaw
• High rank or status
• Shows strength while facing fate

This is Zorro. He was an awesome hero from long
ago. Youve probably never heard of him because
your generation has replaced real heroes with
Barbies like Zac Efron and Channing Tatum.
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Tragic Flaw

• Take a moment to brainstorm archetypal character
  flaws with a partner
• I dont get it either.

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Tragic Hero

• Anakin Skywalker?
• Batman?
• Severus Snape?

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Tragic Hero Qualities

• Hubris arrogance
• Catharsis a move from ignorance to knowledge
• Hamartia weakness that causes downfall
• Nemesis fate that cannot be escaped

Hugh the Pirate
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Classical Greek Drama

• Developed by the Greeks to analyze the
  human/diety relationship.
• Most modern religions
• God is the model for man
• Greek mythology
• Man is the model for the gods

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Two Forms of Greek Drama

• Tragedy
• Human suffering
• Religious celebrations solemn, poetic,
  philosophic
• Based on myth
• Imperfect hero confronted by a difficult moral
  choice or conflict
• Struggle usually ends in defeat and death happy
  endings not unheard of.

• Comedy
• About human comedy
• Social commentary, farce and parody
• Contemporary
• Satire (brief comic parody of myth)
• New Comedy (a comedy of errors or situation
  comedy)

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Tragedy
Comedy

• Antigone
• Hamlet
• Romeo and Juliet

• A Midsummer Nights Dream
• 10 Things I Hate About You

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Drama through Festival

• Dionysian was a large religious festival in
• ancient Athens in honor of the god Dionysus, the
• central event of which was the performance of
• tragedies and comedies.
• Celebration of vines and fertility.
• Contests, dancing, and singing
• Performances from Choruses
• Possible for spectators to visit more than one
  festival an excuse for Athenians to travel.

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• Ritual at Rural Dionysia (7th 6th cent. B.C.)
• Origins in orations or choral hymns to Dionysis
  during rural festivals
• Chorus and Actors (answerer to chorus)
• Religious celebration
• Performance at City Dionysia (5th 4th C. B.C.)
• Social-Religious Commentary Entertainment

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Mythological Influence
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ZeusKing of the Gods and ruler of Mount Olympus
god of the sky, thunder, and justice.
HeraQueen of the Gods and of the heavens
goddess of women, marriage, and motherhood.
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DemeterGoddess of fertility, agriculture,
nature, and the seasons.
PoseidonLord of the Sea god of the seas,
earthquakes, created horses.
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AphroditeGoddess of love, beauty, desire, and
fertility
ApolloThe Sun God god of light, healing, music,
poetry, prophecy, archery and truth
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The Theatre
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• Orchestra dancing space used by chorus often
  included an altar (thymele).
• Skene tent or structure behind the stage, with
  doors and upper levels.
• Parodos passageways by which the chorus and
  actors entered and existed the stage area.
• Theatron viewing-place usually part of a
  hillside overlooking the orchestra.

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Parts of a Greek Tragedy

• Simple Structure Prologue spoken, chorus enters
  (singing and dancing) with additional scenes that
  alternate between spoken sections and song
• Prologue Usually gives mythological background
• Parodos Sung by the chorus it enters dancing
• Episodes This is the first of many "episodes
  (literally between odes), when the characters
  and chorus talk and main action occurs.
• Ode At the end of each episode, the actors
  leave the stage and the chorus dances and sings a
  choral ode summarizing the episode. The rest of
  the play is an alternation between episodes and
  odes, until the final scene.
• Exodos Chorus exits singing a processional song
  which usually offers words of wisdom related to
  the play.

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About Sophocles (480-406 B.C.)

• A prominent citizen of Athens known for his
  musical, poetic and dramatic talents
• Wrote 127 tragedies only seven survive
• His works always contain a moral lessonusually a
  caution against pride and religious indifference
• Most admired for his Theban playsthree
  tragedies about King Oedipus of Thebes and his
  family

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Antigone

• Chronologically, it is the third of the three
  Theban plays but was written first
• First performed in 442 B.C.
• It is a story that pits the law of the gods-
  unwritten law-against the laws of humankind,
  family ties against civic duty, and man against
  woman.

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• Antigone
• Oedipus Rex
• Oedipus at Colonus

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Antigones Family Tree
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Laius, King of Thebes
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• Chains Oedipus on the mountain to die.
• Found by King of Corinth.
• As a teenager, his approached by a shephard who
  warns him of a strange fate to befall him.
• Decides to travel to Thebes to escape his fate.
• On the journey, his chariot meets another.
• Road rage. Kills the owner. Travels on.
• Thebes falls under plague of Sphinx.

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• Sphinx gives approaching Oedipus a riddle. Once
  solved correctly, he wins the throne and a wife.
• Jacosta and Oedipus have 4 children (these are
  the main characters of Antigone)
• Etecoles
• Polyneices
• Antigone
• Ismene

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• Oedipus sends Creon (Jacostas brother) to
  Tireseas (the oracle) to determine how they can
  end the play that is destroying the city.
  Tireseas says they must find Laius murderer.
• Oedipus summons the oracle, but Tireseas refuses
  to speak to him.
• Oedipus mocks the prophet.
• Tireseas vaguely hints at a dramatic incestuous
  history.
• Oedipus confides in Jacosta.

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• Jacosta laughs off the prophesy saying her first
  son had died. Her first husband was murdered at a
  crossroads.
• The prophesy clicks. Oedipus suddenly
  understands.
• Messenger enters and says Oedipus father is
  dead. (His adopted father that he doesnt know is
  his adopted father.)
• He rejoices! Yay! The prophesy is wrong!

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• A shepard shows up and confirms the prophesy.
• Just kidding! That stuff DID happen!
• Jacosta kills herself. Oedipus blinds himself.
• Antigone remains loyal to father until he dies.
• In the meantime, TWO sons (Eteocles and
  Polynices) are alive to inherit the throne.
• The solution theyll take turns in four-year
  increments
• What could go wrong?

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Interesting stuff aside You NEED to know

• Eteocles didnt want to give up the throne.
• Polynices gathered an army and killed him.
• Polynices was killed.
• Creon, the brother in law, assumes power.
• Creon refuses a proper burial for Polynices.
• A burial refusal is equivalent to eternal
  damnation, embarrassment, and humiliation.

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Antigone Summary of the Prologue

• Creon has decided that only Eteocles will get a
  burial.
• Creons reign is new hes still forging his
  reputation.
• Antigone believes it is her sacred duty to bury
  her brother and asks Ismene to help.
• Ismene refuses, fearing repercussions from
  disobeying the kings command.

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Antigone Cast of Characters

• Antigone
• Ismene
• Creon
• Haemon
• Euydice
• Teiresias
• Chorus
• Choragus
• Sentry
• Messenger

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