Greek Tragic Women on Shakespearean Stages

Greek Tragic Women on Shakespearean Stages explores how ancient Greek plays influenced early modern England's dramatic landscape, challenging assumptions about their invisibility and highlighting the popularity of tragedies by Euripides that focused on grieving mothers and sacrificial virgin daughters. This book argues that these plays challenged early modern writers to reimagine the affective possibilities of tragedy, comedy, and tragicomedy.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 352 pages
Publication date: 30 June 2022
Publisher: Oxford University Press

Greek Tragic Women on Shakespearean Stages explores the profound and hitherto undiscovered influence of ancient Greek plays on the dramatic landscape of early modern England. By conducting original research, the book challenges prevailing notions about the invisibility of Greek texts and demonstrates that these plays were more prominent than previously thought. Moreover, it reveals that early modern readers and audiences responded strongly to specific plays and themes, highlighting the enduring power of Greek tragedy.

The most popular Greek plays during this period were not male-centered dramas like Sophocles' Oedipus, but tragedies by Euripides that centered on grieving mothers and sacrificial virgin daughters, particularly Hecuba and Iphigenia. Tragedy, being deeply rooted in Greek origins, granted these iconic female figures a privileged status as synecdoches for the tragic theater, representing its ability to evoke sympathetic emotions in audiences. When Hamlet contemplates the emotional impact of tragic performance, he turns to these prominent figures, questioning their relationship and the depth of his sorrow.

Through readings of plays by Shakespeare and his contemporary dramatists, this book argues that newly visible Greek plays, associated with the origins of theatrical performance and characterized by passionate female figures, challenged early modern writers to reimagine the emotional possibilities of tragedy, comedy, and the emerging genre of tragicomedy. By delving into the interplay between Greek and Shakespearean theatrical traditions, Greek Tragic Women on Shakespearean Stages sheds light on the rich and complex interplay between ancient and modern cultures, contributing to our understanding of the evolution of dramatic genres and the enduring power of storytelling.

Weight: 420g
Dimension: 217 x 138 x 20 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780192871022