Classic comedy (5th century BC) concerns the vow of Greek women to withhold sex from their husbands until the men agree to end the disastrous wars between Athens and Sparta. Exuberant battle of the sexes with underlying anti-war theme.
Oedipus Rex by Sophocles Landmark of Western drama concerns the catastrophe that ensues when King Oedipus discovers he has inadvertently killed his father and married his mother. Masterly construction, dramatic irony. Explanatory footnotes.
Medea by Euripides One of the most powerful and enduring of Greek tragedies, masterfully portraying the fierce motives driving Medea's pursuit of vengeance for her husband's insult and betrayal. Authoritative Rex Warner translation.
Antigone by Sophocles Filled with passionate speeches and sensitive probing of moral and philosophical issues, this powerful and often-performed Greek drama reveals the grim fate that befalls the children of Oedipus. Footnotes.
Electra by Sophocles Masterpiece of drama concerns the revenge Electra takes on her mother for the murder of her father. One of the best-known heroines of all drama and a towering figure of Greek tragedy.
Prometheus Bound by Aeschylus One of the greatest of the classical Greek dramas, based on the Greek legend of the Titan demi-god who, against the will of Zeus, steals fire from the gods for the benefit of man.
The Trojan Women and Hippolytus by Euripides Two literary classics of human self-understanding: The Trojan Women, one of the most powerful indictments of war ever written, and Hippolytus, a gripping depiction of the struggle to master human passion.
Five Great Greek Tragedies by Sophocles, Euripides, Aeschylus Features Oedipus Rex and Electra by Sophocles (translated by George Young), Medea and Bacchae by Euripides (translated by Henry Hart Milman), and PrometheusBound by Aeschylus (translated by George Thomson).
