Aeschylus, Suppliant Maidens

K. Paul Bednarowski (The University of Maryland)

Ed. by Jonathan Burgess, University of Toronto
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.1.1: Greek Writing and Culture: Archaic, Classical, Hellenistic and Imperial, -800--100.
Vol. editors: Jonathan Burgess (University of Toronto), Anca Dan (École Practique de Hautes Études PSL), Martine Diepenbroek (University of Johannesburg), Giacomo Fedeli (University of Exeter), Victoria Fendel (University of Oxford), Emily Kneebone (University of Nottingham), Vaios Liapis (Open University of Cyprus), Elodie Paillard (University of Sydney), Mali Skotheim (Ashoka University), Laura Swift (The Open University), Guendalina Daniela Maria Taietti (University of Liverpool)

Dates

First circulation or publication c. -450

Places

Ancient Greece (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Play
Tragedy

Resources

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Suppliant Women

is an early, and the only surviving, play in a connected tetralogy that treated the myth of the Danaids, the daughters of Danaus who marry their cousins, the sons of Aegyptus, only to kill them on their wedding night. The fourth play, a comedic performance in which satyrs formed the chorus, dramatized how the god Poseidon saved the Danaid Amymone from rape and then seduced her.

Suppliant Women

was once thought to be the oldest extant Greek drama due to its preponderance of sung lyrics, archaic composition, and sparing use of its second speaking actor as compared to the three actors of later tragedy. A fragmentary notice published in 1952 (

Oxyrhynchus Papyrus

2256 fr. 3), however, places the performance in the 460’s.

Suppliant Women

takes place before the murder. The…

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2608 words

Citation: Bednarowski, K. Paul. "Suppliant Maidens". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 27 June 2013 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=1777, accessed 22 November 2024.]

Aeschylus, Suppliant Maidens

Dates

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Genres and Modes

Resources

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