Iphigenia

This book is the second of three volumes of a new prose translation, with introduction and notes, of Euripides' most popular plays. The first three tragedies translated in this volume illustrate Euripides' extraordinary dramatic range. Iphigenia among the Taurians, set on the Black Sea at the edge of the known world, is much more than an exciting story of escape. It is remarkable for its sensitive delineation of character as it weighs Greek against barbarian civilization. Bacchae, a profound exploration of the human psyche, deals with the appalling consequences of resistance to Dionysus, god of wine and unfettered emotion. This tragedy, which above all others speaks to our post-Freudian era, is one of Euripides' two last surviving plays. The second, Iphigenia at Aulis, so vastly different as to highlight the playwright's Protean invention, centres on the ultimate dysfunctional family, that of Agamemnon, as natural emotion is tested in the tragic crucible of the Greek expedition against Troy. Rhesus, probably the work of another playwright, deals with a grisly event in the Trojan War. Like Iphigenia at Aulis, its `subject is war and the pity of war', but it is also an exciting, action-packed theatrical Iliad in miniature.

In this new student introduction to a Greek tragedy, Isabelle Torrance looks at what makes Iphigenia among the Taurians a successful tragedy in ancient Greek terms, and how dramatic excitement is achieved through the exotic setting, the cast of characters, and the chorus. Assuming no knowledge of Greek, and with students in mind, the central themes of ethnicity and gender relations are examined to show how Euripides manipulates established stereotypes. The play was one of Aristotle's favourites and his enthusiasm derived from the fact that, in spite of its ostensibly happy ending, the play presents the audience with an exquisitely constructed reversal of events: when Iphigenia recognizes that she has been about to sacrifice her long-lost brother, kin-murder is avoided and the plot turns into an escape drama. Other significant concerns of the play surround ritual and the gods, and these are discussed to highlight how the drama asks probing theological questions. Finally, the vast reception history of the play in a variety of genres, such as ancient comedy, Roman philosophy, European opera, and 20th century theatre, is sketched out from antiquity to the present day.

First English edition with commentary on one of Euripides' finest texts for 125 years, comprising two volumes sold together as a set (Volume 1: Introduction, Text and Translation; Volume 2: Commentary and Indexes).

Two plays by the acclaimed Irish author: an adaption of Euripides and an “emotionally bruising drama” of three women obsessed with the same man (The New York Times). Triptych With searing acuity, O’Brien presents the story of three women—a mistress, a wife, and a daughter—who are all helplessly drawn to Henry: their lover, husband, and father. While Henry himself never appears, his specter is never absent as these women confront the ways that love can simultaneously liberate and entrap. Triptych is a powerful work that explores sex, marriage, and predatory relationships. Iphigenia In this modern take on the Greek tragedy, O’Brien takes creative license with Euripides’s tale of a daughter sacrificed for the sake of war. This taut, contemporary version presents, in O’Brien’s own words, “a more equal representation of the power and presence of both male and female characters” (Edna O’Brien, Independent, UK). “Intriguingly original . . . emotionally brave and engagingly clever.” –R. Hurwitt, The San Francisco Chronicle

This book presents a cultural history of the Greek tragedy and its influence on subsequent Greek and Roman art and literature.

A Study Guide for Euripides's "Iphigenia in Tauris," excerpted from Gale's acclaimed Drama For Students. This concise study guide includes plot summary; character analysis; author biography; study questions; historical context; suggestions for further reading; and much more. For any literature project, trust Drama For Students for all of your research needs.

Two versions of Euripides' masterpiece in a new verse translation by Andy Hinds, with Martine Cuypers. The first version of Iphigenia in Aulis in this volume is a translation of the complete text as it has come down to us via the only surviving manuscript – a highly corrupt text containing numerous interpolations by hands other than Euripides. The second, shorter version offers a tried and tested, more performable 'stage' version of the play. The translation is the result of a close collaboration between theatre director and playwright, Andy Hinds (author of Acting Shakespeare's Language), and Classics scholar, Dr. Martine Cuypers (Trinity College, Dublin). Whilst preserving a scholarly fidelity to the original Greek, the translation is written in a clear and energetic verse, designed to be as 'performable' in the theatre, as it is 'readable' in the home or study. It will be of equal interest and use, therefore, to teachers, students and academics, to actors and directors, and to the general reader. Companion Volume Iphigenia in Aulis is released as a companion volume to Hinds' translation of The Oresteia. Iphigenia represents Euripides' version of a key episode in the great saga, The Fall of the House of Atreus, while The Oresteia relates Aeschylus' version of the continuation and conclusion of the saga.