Greek Plays and Playwrights
The Greeks invented two kinds of drama, tragedy and comedy. Tragedy is the older and more famous of the two t ypes: it is said to be the invention of Thespis in 534 BC , while comedy is generally dated some half century later, around 486 BC. But both genres were important to Athenians of the fifth and fourth centuries, and both were performed several times during the year as part of religious and agricultural festivals. We know the names of many dozens of Greek tragic and comic playwrights, but the works of only four authors have survived in their entirety. Three of them are tragic playwrights, Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides; among the comic playwrights, only the works of Aristophanes have survived intact . It is a pity that so much has been lost of the literature of the ancient world, but at least we have the consolation of knowing that the work we do possess is the best there was; Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, and Aristophanes were all acclaimed by their contemporaries as the most talented of Greek playwrights, and together they won many prizes in the dramatic competitions. What follows is a list of the extant works of Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, and Aristophanes. From it and from the time line you can see how their careers overlapped.
Tragedy
Aeschylus (525 - 456 B.C.)
The Persians (472)
The Supplicants (c. 468)
Seven Against Thebes (467)
Agamemnon
Sophocles (496 - 406 B.C.)
Antigone (441?)
Oedipus Rex (430-425?)
Electra (418-410?)
Euripides (c. 480 - 407)
Medea (431)
The Children of Heracles (427?)
Hecuba (425?)
Heracles (422?)
Electra (413?)
Iphigenia in Tauris (414-412?)
Helen (412)
The Phoenician Women (409?)
Comedy
Aristophanes (c. 448 - c. 380 B.C.)
The Knights (424)
The Clouds (423)
The Birds (414)
The Frogs (405)
The Greeks invented two kinds of drama, tragedy and comedy. Tragedy is the older and more famous of the two t ypes: it is said to be the invention of Thespis in 534 BC , while comedy is generally dated some half century later, around 486 BC. But both genres were important to Athenians of the fifth and fourth centuries, and both were performed several times during the year as part of religious and agricultural festivals. We know the names of many dozens of Greek tragic and comic playwrights, but the works of only four authors have survived in their entirety. Three of them are tragic playwrights, Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides; among the comic playwrights, only the works of Aristophanes have survived intact . It is a pity that so much has been lost of the literature of the ancient world, but at least we have the consolation of knowing that the work we do possess is the best there was; Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, and Aristophanes were all acclaimed by their contemporaries as the most talented of Greek playwrights, and together they won many prizes in the dramatic competitions. What follows is a list of the extant works of Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides, and Aristophanes. From it and from the time line you can see how their careers overlapped.
Tragedy
Aeschylus (525 - 456 B.C.)
The Persians (472)
The Supplicants (c. 468)
Seven Against Thebes (467)
Agamemnon
Sophocles (496 - 406 B.C.)
Antigone (441?)
Oedipus Rex (430-425?)
Electra (418-410?)
Euripides (c. 480 - 407)
Medea (431)
The Children of Heracles (427?)
Hecuba (425?)
Heracles (422?)
Electra (413?)
Iphigenia in Tauris (414-412?)
Helen (412)
The Phoenician Women (409?)
Comedy
Aristophanes (c. 448 - c. 380 B.C.)
The Knights (424)
The Clouds (423)
The Birds (414)
The Frogs (405)
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