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The features of ancient greek drama
Greek play lysistrata by aristophanes
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CLOUDS
Production
The setting of the Clouds requires two doors in the skene, one representing Strepsiades's house and the other, the Thinkery, both in the city of Athens. The play begins with Strepsiades and Pheidippides sleeping in their beds. Since the ancient Greek theater had no curtain, these two men in their beds had to be carried out in full view of the audience by stagehands (probably slaves) and placed in front of one of the doors of the skene representing Strepsiades's house. The audience was no doubt expected to imagine that this was an indoor scene, because it was not usual for Greeks to sleep outside. This assumption is strengthened by the fact that, since Pheidippides is sleeping under five blankets, the weather is cool, which would make it even less likely that this was intended as an outdoor scene.
The method of presenting the scholarly activities that go on inside the Thinkery is by no means certain. K. J. Dover (Aristophanic Comedy, Berkeley and Los Angeles, 1972, 107) suggests two possibilities. The students could come out of the door of the skene carrying their apparatus with them, which they could leave behind when they go back inside. Another possibility is that a screen made of canvas and wood with a door, held from behind by stagehands, could conceal the students until Strepsiades asks that the door be opened. The stagehands then could remove this screen revealing the students and their equipment. When the students are ordered to go back inside, they could go through a door of the skene which then would become the door of the Thinkery for the rest of the play.
One other aspect of production needs to be mentioned. Socrates first appears in the play suspended in air. The means of his suspension is undoubtedly the mechane, which in tragedy is mostly used for gods, but in comedy is used for any character who needs to fly or just be in the air.
Aristophanes's Comic Portrait of Socrates
Although there is something of the real Socrates1 in the character of the same name in the Clouds, it is clear that Aristophanes's depiction of Socrates in the Clouds is in good part a comic distortion. Socrates was a well-known figure in Athens who was popularly perceived as an intellectual. Aristophanes, taking advantage of this popular perception, arbitrarily places him at the head of the Thinkery, in which subjects such as rhetoric and astronomy are taught.
For these two articles that we read in Crito and Apology by Plato, we could know Socrates is an enduring person with imagination, because he presents us with a mass of contradictions: Most eloquent men, yet he never wrote a word; ugliest yet most profoundly attractive; ignorant yet wise; wrongfully convicted, yet unwilling to avoid his unjust execution. Behind these conundrums is a contradiction less often explored: Socrates is at once the most Athenian, most local, citizenly, and patriotic of philosophers; and yet the most self-regarding of Athenians. Exploring that contradiction, between Socrates the loyal Athenian citizen and Socrates the philosophical critic of Athenian society, will help to position Plato's Socrates in an Athenian legal and historical context; it allows us to reunite Socrates the literary character and Athens the democratic city that tried and executed him. Moreover, those help us to understand Plato¡¦s presentation of the strange legal and ethical drama.
Most of the time, we assume that two different authors have a similar idea of the same thing, but sometimes, the two interpretations can widely vary. The philosopher, as described in both Aristophanes’ Clouds and Plato’s Apology, has certain traits that both authors agree with: they consider philosophers to be thoughtful and curious but not well liked among the people. However, they disagree as to the effect the philosopher has on society. Aristophanes believes that the philosopher is creating unrest in a society that was in good shape beforehand, while Socrates, being a philosopher, sees himself as a key component in the development of Athens. Aristophanes and Socrates have a similar understanding of what a philosopher is, but they disagree
People have accused Socrates of teaching their children to question the gods and to question other things within their lives. Both Aristophanes and Plato give well thought out explanations that prove Socrates did not corrupt the youth. Plato briefly describes how Athens’s established constitution that directs the children towards violence and how average Athenian citizens are choosing politicians are the reasons why the minds of the youth have been corrupted. Adding to the proof of why Socrates did not corrupt the youth, Aristophanes’s play, The Clouds, depicted Socrates as a different person, which could have persuaded children’s minds through pathos. The tactic of pathos exaggerated and made fun of Socrates and his questioning. Aristophanes defends himself by stating how his plays are of the satire genre and should not be taken literally. “Who will be able to speak freely anymore if Socrates is put to death,” asks Aristophanes. Socrates was able to teach his ways of questioning because people were able to speak freely. Yes, Socrates may have taught some bad eggs, but he taught so many other good eggs. One person that is an accuser of Socrates and how he corrupting the youth is Tethis. Tethis’s son, Critias, is one of those bad eggs that Socrates taught. What happened to Critias and how he led the 30 tyrants was Tethis’s reason why Socrates corrupted the youth. However, as Aristophanes says, “Socrates only taught students to question their own understanding of things.” This quote demonstrates that Socrates did not tell Critias to overthrow the government and kill 1,500 innocent Athenians. Concluding, Critias thought of this plan all by himself without the help of Socrates. Therefore, Socrates did not corrupt the
I must say that this film is very traumatizing. There are some images in this film that will be burned and scarred into my mind for as long as I live. I have seen many holocaust films, but no one was as near as dramatic and depicting as Night and Fog. However I did like the theme of this movie. It is very sad but yet realistic. Our minds are murky and dull. We tend to only remember the important situation in our lives. Yet we don’t remember the importance of our own history. I say OUR history be cause we all are human beings on this earth. Whether we believe in Allah, Jesus, Jehovah, or whatever higher power, we are all one race, and that the human race. It is very sad to know that human beings were treated and slaughtered just because of an ideology of superiority complex. Al though the Jewish people were massacred I learned that we must always keep a sense of hope in order to assure our own survival. When I saw in the movie the moments where there were journals that read about favorite foods and important dates, my heart was filled with sadness. Not because these victims didn’t have this to eat but because of the false illusions that they had to dream in order to stay sane.
Well-known for his significant impact on the philosophical world, Socrates was one of the first people to truly question individuals and take the average level of thinking to a much more elevated level. The Last Days of Socrates, specifically Euthyphro, Apology, and Crito, written by Plato demonstrates Socrates’ great use of the Socratic method as well as rhetoric, the art of persuasion. Many people looked down upon Socrates because they viewed his calling, as told by the Oracle of Delphi, to be impious. Although Socrates was put to death for living a life such as his, he was very extremely successful during his time alive. Socrates was successful in both the realm of philosophical truth and in the outside world because humans used rhetorical ways of thinking to find purpose and make decisions without the influence of other members in society.
Open in London in 1599, William Shakespeare’s Globe theatre grew to be recognized as the most popular playhouse in the region and home to some of the greatest players in England. The King’s Men, previously the Lord Chamberlain’s Men, were a playing company for whom Shakespeare was a member of for most of his career. They frequently performed in the Globe and staged many of Shakespeare’s works. Nevertheless, the lack of stagecraft information provided from these XVI century texts has made it hard to interpret how Shakespeare originally intended his plays to be performed in the Globe. In particular, the famous tragedy of Romeo and Juliet suggests that there are many alternative staging options for each scene. However, from a close reading of the play-text as a manual for performance, it is possible to describe how the play may have been staged, specifically in Act 2, Scene 1, by analysing elements such as the acting measures, the costume design and the stage setting.
The curtains of the play draw, the audience, quiet and eager waits for the lights to dim to see what William Shakespeare had brought before them. Shakespeare’s plays became enjoyable and fun to watch, seeing actors dress in amazing costumes and props used in The Globe Theater. (1-1)
The set plays a central role in dramatizing the theatrical experience of this particular production. As you can see in both figures 1 and 2, the set is purposely designed to resemble a metropolitan alleyway. This dramatic ambiance is created in an effort to parallel the harshness of the unforgiving streets of any particular conurbation. Normally, the audience would tend to construe this setting as a symbol of turmoil in the kingdom of Corinth. Thus, the set itself works as a device in developing a sense of political drama.
This confirms that her argument is directed towards the king. The second audience is the people of Thebes. In the play, the chorus represents the citizens of Thebes. They are almost always present when the king speaks, and this scene is no exception. Anitgone forms her argument to appeal to the thoughts and emotions of the citizens.
Socrates uses metaphors and imagery to explain the place of the philosopher and politics. Some of these famous analogies include the gadfly and the horse and the ship of state. Both of these images show the philosopher in similar ways while also using different contexts and symbolism. The first of these images is described in the Apology, where Socrates compares himself to a gadfly and the state of Athens to a horse. The second is in the Republic, in which Socrates uses the image of the ship of state. A closer look into the metaphors help in the understanding of the philosopher and politics. The similarities between these images are clear upon first reading them. Although similar the differences can be seen in a considerably more in-depth reading
In the 6th century BC, Greek comedy was one of the most popular and influential form of theatre that was performed in ancient Greece. The most famous playwrights of the genre were Aristophanes and Menander. Their works included their contemporaries, poking fun at politicians, philosophers, and fellow artists. In addition to maintaining their comic touch, the plays gave an indirect and invaluable insight into the Greek society. This was by providing details on the workings of the political institutions, legal systems, religious practices, education and warfare in the Hellenic world. These plays also revealed something about the audience's identity and showed what the Greeks' sense of humour was
By using all these techniques together Sophocles successfully engages the audience throughout the play. The features attracts the modern audience by black comedy, making them use their imagination, relate to the characters by irritating them, the play keeps the audience alert to notice techniques, and makes them tense and relax over and over again. The fact that most important events occur off-stage forces them to imagine which gives a greater impression then of the actors trying to act it. It also gives a more individual interpretation of the play.
About the year of 470 B.C, a man was born in Athens and his name was Socrates. He was a son of a working sculptor and a midwife. Socrates lived in the greatest and most exciting period of his country's history, when Athens developed from a mere city-state to be the head of an empire. He studied problems of Physics, Biology, and other sciences, and learned the art of making the worse argument appear the better. He could easily be involved in public decisions but he did not enjoy politics so he stuck to his interests and life that consisted the qualities of a thinker. He would constantly be thinking about the "ordinary man" and the interests of an "ordinary man". He had many companions, men of all ages and from all parts of the Greek world. This already tells us that he is very pre-occupied with how other people's minds worked and if he could figure out how to teach them rational thinking. Easily most of his ideas would come from talking to other people
In ancient Greece, plays were more then simply a form of entertainment. "Athenian drama was supported and financed by the state. (...)Greek theater was directed at the moral and political education of the community." (Kennedy and Gioia, pgs 1357-1363) Sophocles understood this, and dissipated any pollyanic view of society by presenting us with plays that were intended to teach. Sophocles's Oedipus the King issued a warning for those who foolishly believed that they could challenge the forces of nature. Sophocles was known for presenting characters that are fluid not static. So it should come as no surprise that the Oedipus the reader encounters at the outset of the play, an extraordinary leader, but one who's pride has lead him to challenge his fate, has changed by the end of the play. He comes to realize that all his efforts to change the outcome of his life were acts of futility. We are shown a man who has finally accepted divine will and though now fallen from high estate is uplifted in moral dignity. (Kennedy and Gioia Pg 1364-1365)
When considering a source to consider, when looking for films that portray Latin American lifestyle or values, I choose one film in particular. A Walk in the Clouds, directed by Alfonso Arau came to mind. When one watches this film, it is plain to see the interaction and struggles between a traditional Mexican family and the lifestyle of a United States California lifestyle. I have watched this particular film in the past, but now with a different pair of lenses to watch through, it became more exceedingly distinguished to my new found perception of Latin America. Unknowingly to myself, I did not know that the director was the same who directed Like Water for Chocolate. One review describes it as follows, “Alfonso Arau has a somewhat easy time of it in A Walk in the Clouds. The Mexican filmmaker who made kitchens look like boudoirs in Like Water for Chocolate transports that same fairy-tale feeling to this romance set in Northern California.”. With further reflection I can see the connection now after watching the later.