SAPPHO c. 600 BCE HOMER c. 700 BCE HESIOD
SAPPHO, the POETESS LIFE: 620 550 BCE Born in Greek island of Lesbos, located in the northeastern Aegean Sea Member of affluent family Contributed to lyric poetry (wrote poems and musical accompaniment) Also, played important role in educaxon of other women ConXnues to ayract ayenxon of literary scholars and feminist crixcs
SAPPHO, the POETESS OF INTEREST: complexity of her work (sapphic meter/ metrical inventor ), contribuxon to lyric poetry, expression and themes, one of them being lesbian desire Influenced poets based on expression of emoxon, love, longing and exploraxon of eroxc themes (with references to religion/myth/eros) Her work belongs to the genre of lyric poetry (described as, inxmate, private, focusing on subjecxve experiences- unlike epic poetry focusing on heroic idenxty, war )
SAPPHO, the POETESS Poems: -Hymn to Aphrodite -One Girl -I Asked myself -To an Army wife, in Sardis
HOMER LIFE: c. 750 BCE UncertainXes as to when and where he was born (Asia Minor coast or island close by) Produced epic poetry; verses narraxng heroic deeds, war and journey of hero/ es. Heroism in Ancient Greece rooted in : Honour, acclaim (kleos), excellence (arete), deeds/labours/ (athle) Individual value from within a social, polixcal framework that was familycentred, hierarchical, male dominated Homeric hero: from a select group of people of noble descent celebrated in life and death because of extraordinary deeds
HOMER OF INTEREST: - Primary representaxve of epic poetry/ oral tradixon - Homer and Hesiod were the first poets of the Greeks, according to Herodotus - Homer viewed by many as the guide of all the great tragic poets and as an educator WORKS: recited by rhapsodes -THE ILIAD (the anger of Achilles/war Troy/Helen-Paris) -THE ODYSSEY (the return of Odysseus/ Ulysses-P enelope)
The Odyssey -Epic poem (as The Iliad/didacXc in nature) -gives account of the period (10 years) it took Odysseus to travel from Troy to his home in Ithaka Divided in 24 books I-IV: The adventures of the son of Odysseus, Telemachos V-VIII (and XIII): The homecoming of the hero Odysseus IX-XII: The adventures/wanderings of hero XIII: The hero s return to Ithaka
The adventures of Odysseus Kikonians (enemies of his allies) The island of the Lotus Eaters (lotus/ loss of interest in the journey) Cyclopes (one eyed giants) Aiolos (god of the winds) Laistrygones (cannibals) Island of Circe (sorceress) Descent to the Underworld Sirens (monsters) Scylla and Charybdis (monsters) Thrinakia, island of Helios (Sun) Ogygia, island of nymph Kalypso--- Homer s narra7on begins Scheria, island of Phaiakians (Naysikaa)-- Odysseus narrates his adventures Ithaka
Narra7ve pa=ern: The journey Elements: thresholds, guardians/co-travelers, transformaxve experiences Themes: homecoming, nostalgia, memory, lethe/ oblivion
Examples through the centuries Demeter and Persephone Myth of Persephone abducxon by Hades and Demeter s journey to find her Another example of literary descent to the underworld Persephone and Hades in the Underworld Greek vase, 5th c. BCE
Examples through the centuries Modern works: James Joyce s Ulysses chronicles the journey of the hero, Leopold Bloom, during the course of one day, in Dublin (with similar structure-and named ajer Odyssey characters, themes and moxf-e.g. Molly Bloom as Penelope)
HESIOD LIFE: c. 700 BCE SimilariXes with Homer Connected to Asia Minor Coast, Ionic dialect, use of dactylic hexameter However, includes brief autobiographical references in his works OF INTEREST: Theogony: creaxon, glorifying gods, organizes stories on mythical enxxes/categorizes them, glorifies kings (targeted audience)
Hesiod s Theogony, 700 B.C.
AESCHYLUS c. 524 456 BCE SOPHOKLES c. 496 406 BCE EURIPIDES c. 480-407 BCE ARISTOPHANES c. 447 386 BCE
GREEK THEATRE During the fijh century tragedy was performed at the Theater of Dionysus. This theater was near the agora, the area that housed the councilors of the vouli (council) Theatre was performed at the center of Athens. About Dionysus: Father: Zeus, Mother: a mortal, Semele Known as Bacchus, god of excess, wine, theatre, ecstasy. Followed by the maenads/bacchae and satyrs
Greek Tragedy Didac/c a medium for moral improvement of audience members who are not viewed as passive receptors of the drama unfolding but as capable of reacxng to what unfolds before their eyes Poli/cal: a discourse of the polis. Educa/on was poli/cal in Athens of the 5 th c at the center of which was the city/ polis.
Tragedy Hubris/Hybris: crime driven by disregard of moral laws HamarXa: error which Anagnorisis: as to what is Nemesis: retribuxon against those commiong crimes Peripeteia: adventure affecxng the Katharsis: moral improvement /educaxon based on the different emoxonal states the audience members experience while witnessing the drama unfolding before their eyes
On Greek Tragedy Plato: tragedy as mimesis cannot ayain or reflect the truth so, one cannot learn the truth from it. Tragedy is also based on emoxonal states which is also problemaxc. Aristotle: mimesis is directly connected to learning as we start to learn through mimesis (PoeXcs 1448b5 9). The emoxons, which include pleasure, fear and pity, do not exclude the possibility of thought; they have an intellectual value,they can force people to reflect on moral virtue.
On Greek Tragedy For Aristotle then tragedy can play an important part in educaxng the emoxons, itself an important part of a moral educaxon. Tragedy educates by educaxng the emoxons (PoeXcs 1451b5 11). While Plato crixcizes how and what tragedy teaches, Aristotle understands the beneficial emoxonal and intellectual effects tragedy can have.
Aeschylus born in 525 BCE, in the village of Eleusis, near Athens comes from noble family fought at Marathon in 490 BCE (Persian invasion) Created Oresteia, Prometheus Bound Died in 456 BCE
Sophocles 496-406 BCE Aoca Wrote AnXgone, Oedipus Rex, Electra, Philoctetes and Oedipus at Colonus Served as a general ParXcipated in dramaxc compexxons of the city-state of Athens such as the Dionysia
Euripides Born in 480-406 BCE Reflected on human nature, female characters, emoxonal turmoil Presented work at the FesXval of Dionysus at Athens Wrote Medea, Hecuba, The Trojan Women, Iphigenia, Helen
Divine IntervenXon Dieus ex machina (in tragedies of Euripides) Determining the course of human acxon/by influence/ use of power Socrates (reflecxons on myth, divine) / Plato (in Republic, discussion on divine intervenxon)
On Comedy Aristophanes known for comedy part of which is saxre (broadly based on polixcal commentary); if one takes watching tragedies as an educaxon, one then should turn to comedy, his saxres, to reflect on polixcs Goldhill 1991, 201 22; Heiden 199
Aristophanes c. 447 386 BCE Major works The Wasps The Frogs The Birds Lysistrata