#Classics Ancient Greek Literature

Finish date:  06 September 2025
Genre: The Great Courses: Western Literature series ( Audible)
Rating: A+++
Title: Masterpieces of Ancient Greek Literature  18 hr  25 min (spread  over 3 weeks)

Why do we like reading tragic plays?
Professor David Schenker explains the answer!
Excellent narration and I am inspired to read and in some cases
re-read plays by:
Aeschylus – Often referred to as the father of tragedy, Aeschylus introduced the second actor, which allowed for more complex dialogues and interactions.
Sophocles – Known for his development of character and plot, Sophocles wrote famous tragedies such as “Oedipus Rex” and “Antigone,” emphasizing moral dilemmas and human suffering.
Euripides – Euripides is celebrated for his character-driven narratives and psychological depth, often challenging traditional values and norms in plays like “Medea” and “The Bacchae.”

NOTES:

Lectures 9-10-11 close the study of the Archaic period…800 BC to 480 BC, characterized by the emergence of early Greek poetry (Homeric hymns, Solon, Sappho and Alcaeus) and including works attributed to Homer. Why did lyric poetry fade away? This was b/c of the rise of Greek Tragedy/Comedy. We start the Classical period in the next 13 lectures.

Aeschylus’S plays are explained in lectures 13-14-15 Persians -Agamennon – Libation Bearers – Eumenides (the furies).

Listened to lectures 17-18-19-20: Sophecles and Euripides
This is an excellent series of lectures on Audible…worth every penny!
Of all the great plays by Sophecles (Oedipus King a favourite)…I still would have liked to have seen 1994 Broadway production of Medea with Dame Diana Rigg. Powerful play…the character of Medea is on stage from start to finish. Dame Rigg won a Tony Award for Best Actress.

Listened to 29/36 lectures. Listen to explanation of The Frogs by Aristophanes. I knew very little about the play but sounds like fun to read! Today were also 5 selections about the historians Herodotus and Thucydides. A bit boring….much rather listen to info about the tragedies and comedies.

Just 3 more lectures to listen to!
Learned about the 3 different types of of rhetoric/oratory today:
Performative
Forensic (in courtroom)
Politica