through suffering, despair?

euripides’ trojanwomen 2

Andromache and Astyanax

2euripides trojan women

Agenda

• Class Project (cont.)• Problem and Approach

• Recap and Update• Euripides: A Different Kind of Tragedy?

• Tragedy in Performance (pp. 487 ff.)• Is Talthybius a monster?

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Class Project (cont.)

Problem and Approach

4euripides trojan women

Problem, ApproachApproach: Critical Thinking

• Studied to learn…• How to think• Not how to pass

• Elements?• Grasping problems

• And formulating questions?...• Reading evidence

• text / subtext• Anything else?

• applying what you already know• thinking outside the box• running the tests

• things to avoid

Problem: Universal/Particular

• Nature of problem?…• Questions to ask?

• My response to tragedy? (feelings, thoughts)

• Other?...

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Recap and Update

Euripides: A Different Kind of Tragedy?

• Prologue (Signet pp. 460 ff.)• Poseidon, Athena

• Lyric monody (464)• Hecuba

• Parodos (465)• Choruses in dialogue (kommos)

• Episode 1 (468)• Talthybius, Hecuba• Cassandra (lyric monody –

frenzied dochmiacs)• Cassandra, Hecuba• Hecuba

• Stasimon 1 (480)• Trojan Horse

• Episode 2 (481)• Lyric dialogue (kommos): Hecuba,

Andromache, Astyanax (silent)

• Episode 2 cont. (483)• Spoken: Hecuba, Andromache• Talthybius, Andromache,

Astyanax (silent)

• Stasimon 2 (491)• 1st destruction of Troy

• Episode 3 (493)• Menelaus, Hecuba• Helen, Menelaus, Hecuba• Agon: Helen, Hecuba

• Stasimon 3 (501)• Women’s lament

• Exodos (503)• Talthybius, Hecuba• Lyric dialogue (kommos):

Hecuba, Chorus

Analysis

7euripides trojan women

What is Tragic?Previous• Sheer misfortune• Origins, Bacchae

• imitation’s power

• Plato• imitation’s dangers

• Aristotle• imitation’s benefits

• Aeschylus-Herington• formula, cycle, suffering,

knowledge

• Sophoclean pessimism• “Not to be born is best” (OAC)

Euripides’ Trojan Women

• “Count no one happy till he is dead” (Hec. p. 479)

• “Fortune is the prey of whims” (Hec. p. 506)

• “ . . . one who falls from happiness to tragedy …” (Andr. p. 484)

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9euripides trojan women

Agōn (pp. 494 ff.) — Spectator Sport?Helen’s arguments

• Hecuba’s guilt• as Paris’ mother

• Heroic opportunities• Divine compulsion

Hecuba’s arguments

• Bogus “judgment”• Human decision• Brazen collaboration

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Is that tragic?

Tragedy in Performance (pp. 487 ff.)

Is Talthybius a monster?