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My version is Watling and a Penguin Book. Sophocles knows how to create tension and make us empathize with the characters.
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Rating(3.9 / 5.0, 99 votes)
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99 reviews
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What can't you like about Greek tragedy in a Modern Library format!
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Ajax
Electra
Women of Trachis
Philoctetes
Electra
Women of Trachis
Philoctetes
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The plays are excellent, based on myths containing sensationalist material such as matricide, fratricide, revenge killings, suicide, adultery and deception. Sophocles definitely deserves his legendary status. The ability of these ancient dramatists to portray these stories with the limited resources and technology available at the time is ingenious.
This edition contains good prefaces to the plays which includes an explanation of how the plays might have been staged. However, there is a good general explanation of the set up the Greek theatre in the appendix at the back of the book, which would have been better put at the front. The endnotes to the plays are copious and I found them a bit excessive. I prefer it if the notes are limited to an explanation of references that might be unknown to the general reader but the notes in this edition give quite extensive commentary on each scene. However, anyone who wished to stage the play might find these helpful.
Electra: E's brother Orestes returns home and kills their mum & her lover in revenge for killing their dad.
Ajax: A goes mad when dead Achilles' armour is given to Odysseus and kills some cows thinking he is killing the Greek generals. A kills himself. O makes sure his body is buried with honour.
Women of Trachis: Heracles' wife Deianira gives H a poisoned robe after learning that H plans to take a mistress.
Philoctetes: P has been stranded on a island with his magic bow for years because of a poisoned foot. Neoptolemus and Odysseus try to steal the magic bow by trickery.
This edition contains good prefaces to the plays which includes an explanation of how the plays might have been staged. However, there is a good general explanation of the set up the Greek theatre in the appendix at the back of the book, which would have been better put at the front. The endnotes to the plays are copious and I found them a bit excessive. I prefer it if the notes are limited to an explanation of references that might be unknown to the general reader but the notes in this edition give quite extensive commentary on each scene. However, anyone who wished to stage the play might find these helpful.
Electra: E's brother Orestes returns home and kills their mum & her lover in revenge for killing their dad.
Ajax: A goes mad when dead Achilles' armour is given to Odysseus and kills some cows thinking he is killing the Greek generals. A kills himself. O makes sure his body is buried with honour.
Women of Trachis: Heracles' wife Deianira gives H a poisoned robe after learning that H plans to take a mistress.
Philoctetes: P has been stranded on a island with his magic bow for years because of a poisoned foot. Neoptolemus and Odysseus try to steal the magic bow by trickery.
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فقظ به خاطر ترجمه یه ستاره کم کردم
در ادامه بیشتر ازش مینویسم
در ادامه بیشتر ازش مینویسم
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Short, and semi-simple. You have to have the mindset of the time to really get anything important out of this story, but a good read.
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These plays, particularly Ajax and Philoctetes, are just too good to be true. So many timeless themes of honor v survival, will v fate, family v justice, sorrow, the psychological trauma of war, the unintended consequences of measures taken out of insecurity, the addiction to misery, and the ultimate hollowness of class and rank distinctions when it comes down to it.
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If you thought the ending of the extended version of the Lord of the Rings was protracted, wait until you read the back and forth between Neoptolemus and Philoctetes in Philoctetes, the last of four plays in this collection.
That said, all four plays are marvelous. It is easy to see why they are considered classics. Vivid and evocative verse, powerful characters, discussing important intellectual and moral topics: justice, retribution, duty to one's honor versus duty to one's family, and more. Ajax was my favorite, but again, all four plays are great.
That said, all four plays are marvelous. It is easy to see why they are considered classics. Vivid and evocative verse, powerful characters, discussing important intellectual and moral topics: justice, retribution, duty to one's honor versus duty to one's family, and more. Ajax was my favorite, but again, all four plays are great.
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Previously I had read Oliver Taplin’s translations of Aïas and Philoctetes. So here I read The Women of Trachis translated by Michael Jameson and Electra by David Grene. All together, Sophocles is my favorite among the tragedians, though I still have about half of the works of Euripides left. Euripides according to Plutarch was the better loved by those beyond Athens borders, yet Sophocles was the winningest playwright.
Reviews for Aïas and Philoctetes appear in an earlier review, so here I will only add to a holistic comparison of all four works, and then add specific thoughts on The Women of Trachis and Electra. What thread might connect the four works here are time and the emotions: betrayal and rage, betrayal and rage, betrayal and rage, betrayal and rage.
Ajax tells of the fall of the mighty son of Telamon, of his rage and sense of betrayal in the the brothers Atreus proclaiming Odysseus the winner of the Shield of Achilles. A powerful unsung tragedy of the Trojan War.
The Women of Trachis tells one story of Heracles, and his separation from Deianira for twelve years, only to return with a young girl bride, and the consequences of such on the family. This ought to be compared with Euripides Heracleidae where the outcome is quite different.
Sophocles’ Electra is a powerful work adding to the saga of the family Atreus, of the consequences for the sacrifice of Iphigenia, and of the even older family transgression of Thyestes by Atreus. Here Sophocles diverges from Aeschylus and Euripides in the portrayal of Electra. She is vengeful and bitter, and in a unique way mirrors the just virtues of Antigone while Chrysothemis’ self preservation mirrors Ismene’s conservatism.
Another tale of the Trojan War, Philoctetes is an incredible story about the necessity to recover Philoctetes from Lemnos, where Odysseus and the Greeks abandoned the injured bowman to his screams. His possession of the mark-perfect bow of Heracles is prophesied a requirement for victory. Yet he rages at Odysseus and it is only by his cunning use of Achilles’ son Neoptolemus and the divine intervention of Heracles that Philoctetes is persuaded.
In all, all of these remaining plays are critical to understanding the Homeric epics. Their tales are woven throughout the larger mythology, and it is an understanding of the variations that one can come to understand the depths of Athenian tragic interpretations.
Reviews for Aïas and Philoctetes appear in an earlier review, so here I will only add to a holistic comparison of all four works, and then add specific thoughts on The Women of Trachis and Electra. What thread might connect the four works here are time and the emotions: betrayal and rage, betrayal and rage, betrayal and rage, betrayal and rage.
Ajax tells of the fall of the mighty son of Telamon, of his rage and sense of betrayal in the the brothers Atreus proclaiming Odysseus the winner of the Shield of Achilles. A powerful unsung tragedy of the Trojan War.
The Women of Trachis tells one story of Heracles, and his separation from Deianira for twelve years, only to return with a young girl bride, and the consequences of such on the family. This ought to be compared with Euripides Heracleidae where the outcome is quite different.
Sophocles’ Electra is a powerful work adding to the saga of the family Atreus, of the consequences for the sacrifice of Iphigenia, and of the even older family transgression of Thyestes by Atreus. Here Sophocles diverges from Aeschylus and Euripides in the portrayal of Electra. She is vengeful and bitter, and in a unique way mirrors the just virtues of Antigone while Chrysothemis’ self preservation mirrors Ismene’s conservatism.
Electra
You may be sure I am ashamed, although you do not think it. I know why I act so wrongly, so unlike myself.
The hate you feel for me and what you do compel me against my will to act as I do.
For ugly deeds are taught by ugly deeds.
Clytemnestra
O vile and shameless, I and my words and deeds give you too much talk.
Electra
It is you who talk, not I. It is your deeds, and it is deeds invent the words.
Clytemnestra
Now by the Lady Artemis you shall not escape the results of your behavior, when Aegisthus comes.
Electra
You see? You let me say what I please, and then you are outraged. You do not know how to listen.
Another tale of the Trojan War, Philoctetes is an incredible story about the necessity to recover Philoctetes from Lemnos, where Odysseus and the Greeks abandoned the injured bowman to his screams. His possession of the mark-perfect bow of Heracles is prophesied a requirement for victory. Yet he rages at Odysseus and it is only by his cunning use of Achilles’ son Neoptolemus and the divine intervention of Heracles that Philoctetes is persuaded.
In all, all of these remaining plays are critical to understanding the Homeric epics. Their tales are woven throughout the larger mythology, and it is an understanding of the variations that one can come to understand the depths of Athenian tragic interpretations.
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I especially liked Philoctetes.
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Joyful sibling reunions and the wheels of justice....and just the side issue of matricide.
Having grown up in the aftermath of her father's murder by her mother and in witnessing the marriage of her mother to her father's ancient enemy, Electra is left to lament her fate as an outcast daughter. She rages against her mother's crimes and yearns for the day that her brother will return to seek vengeance. After much subterfuge and many misunderstandings, the brother and sister reunite at last. Together, they hatch a plot to avenge their father- by murdering their mother and her husband in the name of justice.
Although a beautifully constructed play in itself, this is by far the most unsatisfying treatment of the Electra myth I've read. We're lucky enough to possess the plays by all three of the great Greek tragedians on the subject of Electra/Orestes but I struggle to find a deep sense of tragedy or complexity in this version. The reason for Clytemnestra killing her husband Agamemnon (he sacrificed their daughter to the gods at the beginning of the ten year Trojan War) is brushed off by Electra as if it were merely an unfortunate necessity and no further mention is given to this motive behind her mother's actions. Although the play makes it clear that, from Electra's perspective, she has been mistreated and abused by her mother throughout the years, therefore providing her with extra motive, the cold and calculating Orestes shows absolutely no sign of hesitancy or revulsion towards murdering his own mother. There is no tension in this act, no sense of dread, no remorse or fear of the Furies, only cold 'justice'. In my opinion, this diminishes the myth's power and any emotional impact it might have had.
In terms of language, structure, set ups, it's all superb as you would expect, but I just don't feel it has the impact in the same way as in the Aeschylus or Euripides treatments of the myth.
Having grown up in the aftermath of her father's murder by her mother and in witnessing the marriage of her mother to her father's ancient enemy, Electra is left to lament her fate as an outcast daughter. She rages against her mother's crimes and yearns for the day that her brother will return to seek vengeance. After much subterfuge and many misunderstandings, the brother and sister reunite at last. Together, they hatch a plot to avenge their father- by murdering their mother and her husband in the name of justice.
Although a beautifully constructed play in itself, this is by far the most unsatisfying treatment of the Electra myth I've read. We're lucky enough to possess the plays by all three of the great Greek tragedians on the subject of Electra/Orestes but I struggle to find a deep sense of tragedy or complexity in this version. The reason for Clytemnestra killing her husband Agamemnon (he sacrificed their daughter to the gods at the beginning of the ten year Trojan War) is brushed off by Electra as if it were merely an unfortunate necessity and no further mention is given to this motive behind her mother's actions. Although the play makes it clear that, from Electra's perspective, she has been mistreated and abused by her mother throughout the years, therefore providing her with extra motive, the cold and calculating Orestes shows absolutely no sign of hesitancy or revulsion towards murdering his own mother. There is no tension in this act, no sense of dread, no remorse or fear of the Furies, only cold 'justice'. In my opinion, this diminishes the myth's power and any emotional impact it might have had.
In terms of language, structure, set ups, it's all superb as you would expect, but I just don't feel it has the impact in the same way as in the Aeschylus or Euripides treatments of the myth.
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Continuing the tradition of greek tragedy reviewing.
Sophocles is by all definitions one of the greatest playwrites of all time. He focuses on the psyche, and often on characters who fall by doing the right thing: who define themselves by honorable traits until it kills them. These plays may be less known on the whole, but still pack a punch.
I did notice that these plays had little affect on me in comparison to certain others by Sophocles, but I believe this may partially be a result of translation; these translations feel less biting, less sharp, more direct meaning than emotion.
Reviewed Plays from this Collection
→Ajax ★★★☆☆ Sophocles← (c.445 BCE) (from a diff. volume)
Ajax is a man with a name that shrieks: the Greeks would have called him Aias. The vocative, when speaking to him, would've sounded like aiai, the Greek exclamation. In this play, following Ajax's final day after a prophesy comes he will kill himself, he certainly lives up to that. After this one day, the time for his fate to come will expire, and he may live. Ajax dies upon a Trojan sword, on Trojan ground, but he has placed it himself.
Tecmessa, Ajax's wife and war-bride, plays a much wider role in this than expected: she garners respect, in contrast to the expectations for war brides. Yet she still has a fragile role. The consequences for her if Ajax dies are not just losing him, but losing everything. His son, Eurysaces, would be considered illegitimate; indeed, this is the fate of his half-brother, Teucer. The contrast between him and Teucer is also interesting: while Teucer is an archer, associated with cowards (Paris) and tricksters (Odysseus), Ajax is a straight-shooting fighter. But the 'deception' speech to Tecmessa complicates this, using arrow imagery around his upcoming death.
The breaks in convention are notable: the play breaks typical narrative structure, the location shifts, the chorus leaves and comes back, and Ajax dies on stage, rather than off.
Notable Lines (John Moore translation):
CHORUS: Strangely the long & countless drift of time brings all things forth from darkness into light. (646)
AJAX: My speech is womanish for this woman's sake. (652)
→Electra ★★★★★ Sophocles← (unk)
Reviewed here.
→Women of Trachis ★★★★★ Sophocles← (unk)
The saddest of these plays... to me, anyway. Following Deianira, wife of Heracles, as she is tricked by the dead into killing her husband, this play pulls its audience in. Deianira is hopeless, but never pathetic—she uses what agency she has to great renown.
This play made me feel genuinely claustrophobic. We, as the audience, know from the beginning that Deianira is killing her husband through her actions: as she battles with whether to stand still or act, we know she should stand still. But it is impossible to fully want that for her. It is her willingness to act that makes her so compelling; it gives her the chance to fix her life, and eventually destroys her life.
→Philoctetes ★★★☆☆ Sophocles← (409 BCE)
This play revolves around the consequences of an evil trick played by the Greeks (as per usual). Ten years ago, the Greek army abandoned war hero Philoctetes on an abandoned island. Now, as per a prophecy, trickster Odysseus and young Neoptolemus must retrieve him. The character of Neoptolemus here must grapple with the bones he's standing on, but also keep the peace with both parties.
This play is interesting in that, like Ajax, it's a story about war that occurs removed from war. This is a recurring theme of Greek tragedy: the battles are not actually the topic of drama. It is the psychological trauma of war and the dynamics of heroism that are up for debate.
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Sophocles is by all definitions one of the greatest playwrites of all time. He focuses on the psyche, and often on characters who fall by doing the right thing: who define themselves by honorable traits until it kills them. These plays may be less known on the whole, but still pack a punch.
I did notice that these plays had little affect on me in comparison to certain others by Sophocles, but I believe this may partially be a result of translation; these translations feel less biting, less sharp, more direct meaning than emotion.
Reviewed Plays from this Collection
→Ajax ★★★☆☆ Sophocles← (c.445 BCE) (from a diff. volume)
Ajax is a man with a name that shrieks: the Greeks would have called him Aias. The vocative, when speaking to him, would've sounded like aiai, the Greek exclamation. In this play, following Ajax's final day after a prophesy comes he will kill himself, he certainly lives up to that. After this one day, the time for his fate to come will expire, and he may live. Ajax dies upon a Trojan sword, on Trojan ground, but he has placed it himself.
Tecmessa, Ajax's wife and war-bride, plays a much wider role in this than expected: she garners respect, in contrast to the expectations for war brides. Yet she still has a fragile role. The consequences for her if Ajax dies are not just losing him, but losing everything. His son, Eurysaces, would be considered illegitimate; indeed, this is the fate of his half-brother, Teucer. The contrast between him and Teucer is also interesting: while Teucer is an archer, associated with cowards (Paris) and tricksters (Odysseus), Ajax is a straight-shooting fighter. But the 'deception' speech to Tecmessa complicates this, using arrow imagery around his upcoming death.
The breaks in convention are notable: the play breaks typical narrative structure, the location shifts, the chorus leaves and comes back, and Ajax dies on stage, rather than off.
Notable Lines (John Moore translation):
CHORUS: Strangely the long & countless drift of time brings all things forth from darkness into light. (646)
AJAX: My speech is womanish for this woman's sake. (652)
→Electra ★★★★★ Sophocles← (unk)
Reviewed here.
→Women of Trachis ★★★★★ Sophocles← (unk)
The saddest of these plays... to me, anyway. Following Deianira, wife of Heracles, as she is tricked by the dead into killing her husband, this play pulls its audience in. Deianira is hopeless, but never pathetic—she uses what agency she has to great renown.
This play made me feel genuinely claustrophobic. We, as the audience, know from the beginning that Deianira is killing her husband through her actions: as she battles with whether to stand still or act, we know she should stand still. But it is impossible to fully want that for her. It is her willingness to act that makes her so compelling; it gives her the chance to fix her life, and eventually destroys her life.
→Philoctetes ★★★☆☆ Sophocles← (409 BCE)
This play revolves around the consequences of an evil trick played by the Greeks (as per usual). Ten years ago, the Greek army abandoned war hero Philoctetes on an abandoned island. Now, as per a prophecy, trickster Odysseus and young Neoptolemus must retrieve him. The character of Neoptolemus here must grapple with the bones he's standing on, but also keep the peace with both parties.
This play is interesting in that, like Ajax, it's a story about war that occurs removed from war. This is a recurring theme of Greek tragedy: the battles are not actually the topic of drama. It is the psychological trauma of war and the dynamics of heroism that are up for debate.
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