The Theban plays of Sophocles

Name: The Theban plays of Sophocles
Author: Unknown Author
ISBN: 9780300117769

by Unknown Author

237 pages2007Yale University PressISBN 9780300117769

Drama

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About this book

"In this translation of the Theban plays of Sophocles, David R. Slavitt presents an accessible, modern version for both longtime admirers of the plays and those encountering them for the first time. Slavitt's translation preserves the innate verve and energy of the dramas, engaging the reader - or audience member - directly with Sophocles' texts. Slavitt chooses to present the plays not in narrative sequence but in the order in which they were composed - Antigone, Oedipus Tyrannos, Oedipus at Colonnus - thereby underscoring the fact that the story of Oedipus is one to which Sophocles returned over the course of his lifetime. This arrangement also lays bare the record of Sophocles' intellectual and artistic development." "In this volume Slavitt avoids personal intrusion on the texts and relies upon the theatrical machinery of the plays themselves. The result is a major contribution to the art of translation and a version of the Oedipus plays that will appeal enormously to readers, theater directors, and actors."--BOOK JACKET.

Publication Details

Publisher: Yale University Press
Published: 2007
Pages: 237
ISBN: 9780300117769

About Unknown Author

Sophocles (circa. 496 BCE - 406 BCE) was the second of the three ancient Greek tragedians whose work has survived to the present day. His first plays were written later than those of Aeschylus, and earlier than those of Euripides. According to the Suda, a 10th century encyclopedia, Sophocles wrote 120 or more plays during the course of his life, but only seven have survived in a complete form, namely Ajax, Antigone, Trachinian Women, Oedipus the King, Electra, Philoctetes and Oedipus at Colonus. For almost 50 years, Sophocles was the most-awarded playwright in the dramatic competitions of ancient Athens that took place during the religious festivals of the Lenaea and the Dionysia. Sophocles competed in around thirty drama competitions; he won perhaps twenty four and never received lower than second place. Aeschylus won fourteen competitions and was defeated by Sophocles at times. Euripides won only four competitions.