III.

Aeschylus’s Works

Aeschylus wrote tragedies in the form of trilogies on a common theme, such as the fortune of the house (family line) of Laius. Whether Aeschylus was the first to produce such unified trilogies is unknown, but the form did permit a wider range for his thought than would otherwise have been possible. During performances each trilogy was followed by a satyr play, a comedy that mocked a mythological subject and included a chorus of satyrs.

Although only seven of Aeschylus’s tragedies still exist, these seven were carefully selected late in ancient times. They may thus represent the best or the most characteristic of his plays. The surviving plays are The Persians, The Suppliants, Prometheus Bound, The Seven Against Thebes, and the three plays known as the Oresteia trilogy. The Oresteia comprises Agamemnon, The Libation Bearers, and The Eumenides.

A.

The Persians

The Persians is the earliest of Aeschylus’s surviving plays. This historical tragedy about the Greek defeat of the Persians in the Battle of Salamis in 480 bc was first presented eight years later, in 472 bc. The play is set in Persia at the court of the mother of King Xerxes I, leader of the expedition against Greece, and is told from the Persian point of view. A messenger arrives with news of the defeat and describes the battle in detail. Towards the end, the ghost of Darius, father of Xerxes, appears to say that pride has brought about the downfall of his impetuous son.

B.

The Suppliants

The Suppliants, probably first performed in c. 463, is a drama about the 50 daughters of Danaüs, who fled from Egypt rather than marry their cousins, the sons of Aegyptus, and who sought refuge at Argos. The 50 young women are the suppliants who ask for protection from the king of Argos, who consults his people. Although the play has little action, it has many passages of great beauty for the chorus, which represents the suppliants. The Suppliants is believed to be the first play of a trilogy that included the lost plays The Egyptians and The Danaïds.

C.

The Seven Against Thebes and Prometheus Bound

The Seven Against Thebes, produced in 467 bc, is based on a Theban legend concerning the conflict between the two sons of Oedipus, Eteocles and Polynices, for the throne of Thebes (see Seven Against Thebes). It is believed to be the third play of a trilogy, the first two being Laius and Oedipus.

Prometheus Bound, a work of uncertain date, portrays the punishment of Prometheus for his theft of fire and his defiance of Zeus. For his actions Prometheus is bound to a rock and tortured. Prometheus Bound is probably the first play of a Promethean trilogy, the others being Prometheus Unbound and Prometheus the Fire Bringer.

D.

The Oresteia

The Oresteia, or story of Orestes, consists of the three tragedies Agamemnon, The Libation Bearers, and The Eumenides. It was first produced in 458 bc. The trilogy is about the operation of the curse that had been placed on the house of Atreus after Atreus, the son of Pelops, had quarrelled with his brother Thyestes, killed Thyestes’s children, and served them to Thyestes at a grim banquet. The curse that Thyestes placed on Atreus descended to his son Agamemnon. In order for Agamemnon to sail to Troy to fight in the Trojan War, he had to sacrifice his own daughter, Iphigenia, to appease the goddess Artemis. For this crime his wife, Clytemnestra, never forgave Agamemnon. During his absence she took a lover, Aegisthus, the son of Thyestes, with whom she plotted revenge on Agamemnon. After ten years of war, Troy fell and the Greeks returned home.

Agamemnon, one of the greatest works of dramatic literature, opens with the return of King Agamemnon from the Trojan War and his murder by his faithless wife Clytemnestra. When Agamemnon appears, accompanied by his Trojan slave and mistress Cassandra, he is welcomed into the palace by Clytemnestra but is then slain in his bath. Cassandra shares his fate. After the murders, Aegisthus appears and announces that he and Clytemnestra have taken over the royal power. The chorus of elders, still loyal to Agamemnon, protests in vain and hints at possible retribution when Agamemnon’s son Orestes comes of age.

The Libation Bearers, or Choephoroe, tells of the return of Orestes, the son of Agamemnon. Orestes had been smuggled out of the palace at the time of his father’s murder and has spent years in exile. At the command of the god Apollo, Orestes comes secretly to Argos to avenge his father. With the help of his sister Electra, Orestes enters the palace, slays Aegisthus, and finally murders his own mother. After this deed he is attacked by the avenging goddesses, the Erinyes or Furies. Orestes flees to seek Apollo’s help.

The Eumenides deals with the sufferings and final atonement of Orestes. Pursued by the Erinyes, who form the chorus, Orestes goes to Athens on the advice of Apollo. There he is tried in a special court convened on the Areopagus and presided over by the goddess Athena. Defended by Apollo, Orestes is acquitted by Athena’s vote when the human jury is unable to reach a verdict. In this way the curse on the house of Atreus is laid to rest. The Erinyes are outraged at the verdict, but are soothed by Athena, who persuades them to turn over their rights to dispense justice to the god Zeus and to settle in Athens as beneficial earth spirits.