This book contains translations of three plays: Ajax, Hecuba, and Trojan Women. They are all centered around the mythological theme of the Greek warrior, Odysseus, hero of the Trojan War. All three plays are complete, with notes and introductions, plus an introduction to the volume with background to the story which was one of the most popular themes and one of the most written about Greek hero in Greek literature.

Written during a tumultuous age of sophists and demagogues, these three plays (c. 450-425 BCE) bear witness to the gradual degradation of Odysseus' character. In presenting the unexpected devolution of a renowned mythic figure, the plays examine numerous themes relevant to contemporary American political life: the profound psychological consequences of brought on by the stress of war and why a once proud and noble warrior might commit suicide; and the dehumanizing darkness that descends upon innocent female war-victims when victors use act on false political necessity.

The great plague of Athens that began in 430 BCE had an enormous effect on the imagination of its literary artists and on the social imagination of the city as a whole. In this book, Professor Mitchell-Boyask studies the impact of the plague on Athenian tragedy early in the 420s and argues for a significant relationship between drama and the development of the cult of the healing god Asclepius in the next decade, during a period of war and increasing civic strife. The Athenian decision to locate their temple for Asclepius adjacent to the Theater of Dionysus arose from deeper associations between drama, healing and the polis that were engaged actively by the crisis of the plague. The book also considers the representation of the plague in Thucydides' History as well as the metaphors generated by that representation which recur later in the same work.

The great plague of Athens that began in 430 BCE had an enormous effect on the imagination of its literary artists and on the social imagination of the city as a whole. In this book, Professor Mitchell-Boyask studies the impact of the plague on Athenian tragedy early in the 420s and argues for a significant relationship between drama and the development of the cult of the healing god Asclepius in the next decade, during a period of war and increasing civic strife. The Athenian decision to locate their temple for Asclepius adjacent to the Theater of Dionysus arose from deeper associations between drama, healing and the polis that were engaged actively by the crisis of the plague. The book also considers the representation of the plague in Thucydides??? History as well as the metaphors generated by that representation which recur later in the same work.

Introducing the problems of location lighting for single-camera operators, this guide provides an insight into the technology and techniques required to solve those problems. The approach is of a basic and introductory nature, geared toward the student and trainee cameraman. Professionals needing a refresher course on the subject should also find this a useful reference packed with key information, theory and practical approaches to different lighting situations.

This new volume of three of Euripides' most celebrated plays offers graceful, economical, metrical translations that convey the wide range of effects of the playwright's verse, from the idiomatic speech of its dialogue to the high formality of its choral odes.

This new volume of three of Euripides' most celebrated plays offers graceful, economical, metrical translations that convey the wide range of effects of the playwright's verse, from the idiomatic speech of its dialogue to the high formality of its choral odes.

This is the Medea we have been waiting for. It offers clarity without banality, eloquence without pretension, meter without doggerel, accuracy without clumsiness. No English Medea can ever be Euripides', but this is as close as anyone has come so far, and a good deal closer than I thought anyone would ever come. Arnson Svarlien has shown herself exceedingly skillful in making Euripides sound Euripidean.--David M. Schaps, Bryn Mawr Classical Review

This is an English translation of Euripides' tragedy Hecuba about Hecuba's grief over her daughter and son's deaths and the revenge she enacts over her son's death. Focus Classical Library provides close translations with notes and essays to provide access to understanding Greek culture.

Euripides' Hecuba is one of the few tragedies that evoke a sense of utter desolation and destruction in the audience. The drama focuses on the status of women, those who are out of power and at the margins of society, by enacting the sufferings of Hecuba. With the city of Troy fallen, Hecuba and Polyxena, her daughter, are enslaved to Agamemnon. Hecuba is despondent with the news that Polyxena is chosen to be sacrificed at the tomb of Achilles. After the sacrifice, the body of her son Polydorus, already a ghost at the start of the drama, is discovered. Polymestor, a king in Thrace who Hecuba sent Polydorus to for safety reasons, murdered Polydorus for his gold. With the tacit complicity of Agamemnon, Hecuba plots her revenge against Polymestor. What transpires next has lasting implications for all involved, including a dramatic trial scene and Hecuba's ultimate metamorphosis.