Prometheus Bound and Other Plays: Prometheus Bound, The Suppliants, Seven Against Thebes, The Persians

This volume carries many of the same virtues and pitfalls as the other Grene/Lattimore collections. For more information, please see my review of 'Aeschylus I.' To speak directly to this volume, I can guarantee that each play is produced in straightforward English. The entire collection is a pleasure to read.

A decent read. Prometheus Bound is one of the classics of Western Literature - and Vellacott's commentaries are pretty helpful in understanding the history and banckground of the plays, the life of Aeschylus, and pretty good translator notes. If Greek plays are your cup of tea, this book is a decent and economical choice.

Of dozens of plays written by Aeschylus, only 7 survive. Three comprise the great Oresteia and the other 4 are brought together in this anthology. Most are the surviving members of trilogies. All are at least interesting and contain much powerful language. None have the impact of the Oresteia, though its impossible to know what impression they would make if read or performed with the missing components of the trilogies. The Persians, written not long after the catastrophic Persian defeat at Salamis, is a surprisingly sympathetic portrayal of the Persian court learning of the defeat. Seven against Thebes, part of Aeschylus' rendering of the Oedipus myth, shows an interesting aspect of the story with language recalling Homeric epics. The somewhat static Suppliants, which seems to have been essentially a prologue with its lost successors in a trilogy, is the least interesting. Prometheus Bound is the most interesting, largely because of the powerful and sympathetic figure of Prometheus. Aeschylus' Prometheus is no stick figure of virtue; arrogant, even sarcastic in his defiance of the Olympian Gods, he is a compelling champion of humanity. Somewhat like the Oresteia, a major theme of Prometheus Bound and presumably the whole trilogy is the conflict of reason and power.

Ok, missed these in college, but I think you have to read these, and quite frankly, they're a little better with some age on you. Prometheus Bound is more interesting after you have had a chance to watch people (perhaps yourself) let their ego run away with them and get them in horrible trouble. Otherwise, at 18-22 Prometheus is an unmittigated hero, and that's less interesting. As a bonus, Prometheus was used as a model for Milton's Satan, and that Satan is pretty much the coolest Devil. If the Fonz had a big brother, wouldn't you want to meet him? Fantastic lines in this one, and the translation is excellent. "Do you think I quake and cower before these upstart gods?" Use it in your next salary negotiation. The Suppliants is kind of a waste of time. It's obviously the introduction to the action, and not much to reflect on unless you know a woman in an unhappy marriage, and then you can supply them with the line, "I would rather meet my fate in a drawn noose/ Than give my flesh to a husband I abhor;/ Sooner let Death possess me!" That'll add zazz to any domestic argument. Seven Against Thebes is fantastic and serves as the end to the Oedipus trilogy if you want to read it that way. Lots of great slams on the boastful and praise to the quiet effective types. It's required reading. The Persians is great reading right now if you're not thrilled with the way America is headed under current leadership. It's about the most powerful empire in the world shattering its massive army in a war of folly. Superior wealth and technology (bridge of boats across the ocean) are squandered in the wastelands. It's from the point of view of the losers, and I can't help but think it's cautionary to the Greeks rather than celebratory. America should read it that way as well. It's eerily relevant. I read this passage this morning and it gave me the creeps: (Mother of Xerxes's premonition concerning the fall of the Persian empire) I saw an eagle fly for refuge to Apollo's hearth. I watched, speechless with terror; then a falcon came, and swooped with rushing wings, and with his talons clawed the eagle's head; it, unresisting, cowered there, offering itself to wounds. Not good for us, not good at all. In any case, just about every page has some piece of wisdom on it, and the translation here puts the the thought with the perfect words. If you're enjoying Shakespeare or KJV right now but want a different flavor, give Aeschylus a shot. He has a strong grasp on the mind of the king and the burden of leadership, more so than WS. There's also a sophisticated view of how real democracy lends strength to a society, in a way that resonates with an adult brain that has become jaded on jingoism.

Vellacott has supplied us with excellent translations with commentaries on the four non-Oresteian plays. The seven plays of Aeschylus should be read by every college-level student, irrespective of their major (I'm in the sciences and I have enjoyed them). The popular "Prometheus Bound" is concerned with the conflict between force and injustice on one side and intelligence, justice, and altruism on the other. The Titan Prometheus, who has stolen fire from heaven and given it to Earth's mortal inhabitants, is being punished for his presumption by being bound to a rock on Mount Caucasus and tortured. He can foretell the future, but refuses to tell Zeus the secret of Zeus' downfall. "The Persians" is the least read play; probably because it has very little action. But, I like it. It is the oldest surviving play based on an event of recent history. The play was first produced in 472 B. C., only eight years after the Battle of Salamis. The speech by the Messenger in the play is the earliest known historical account of that battle. A disgraced Xerxes follows the Messenger. Interestingly, this play also contains the earliest known appearance by a ghost in a drama. "The Suppliants" is the first play of a trilogy, has very little action, and is merely a prologue to the two missing members of the trilogy. The fifty daughters of Danaus are fleeing from the fifty sons of Aegyptus, their cousins. The daughters seek sanctuary from Pelasgus, King of Argos. The play, and probably the trilogy, focuses on when city-states should give sanctuary to others. "Seven Against Thebes" is a retelling of the war between the sons of Oedipus, Eteocles and Polyneices. They were to supposed to share power in Thebes but have quarrelled. Eteocles seizes power and Polyneices goes to get help from Adrastus, King of Argos, and six other kings. Eteocles sends champions to fight the six kings at six of the gates of Thebes. The seventh gate is left to Eteocles. However, that is the gate to which his brother comes. Eteocles feels that he has no choice but to fight and further incur the wrath of the gods by shedding kindred blood. Eteocles had an "out" of his predicament but he choses not to use it. "When the gods send destruction there is no escape."