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Introductory Note
Introductory Note
Sophocles, the most perfectly balanced among the three great masters of
Greek tragedy, was born in Colonus, near Athens, about 495 B.C. His father was
a man of wealth, and the poet received the best education of the time, being
especially distinguished in music. He began his career as a dramatist at the
age of twenty - seven, when he gained a victory over Aeschylus; and from that
time till his death in 405 B.C. he retained the foremost place as a writer of
tragedy. Like a true Greek, he played his part in public affairs, both in
peace and in war, and served his country as a diplomat and as a general. He
was profoundly admired by his contemporaries for character as well as genius,
and after his death was honored as a hero with annual sacrifices. His son,
Iophon, and his grandson, Sophocles, both gained distinction as tragic poets.
Besides lyrics, elegies, and epigrams, Sophocles is said to have composed
upward of one hundred and twenty plays, one hundred of which are known by
name, but only seven have come down to us entire. These are the "Trachiniae,"
dealing with the death of Heracles; "Ajax," "Philoctetes," "Electra," "Oedipus
Rex," "Oedipus at Colonus," and Antigone."
The development of tragedy by Aeschylus was continued by Sophocles, who
introduced a third actor and, later, a fourth; reduced still further the
importance of the chorus, and elaborated the costumes of the players. He did
not, like Aeschylus, write trilogies which carried one story through three
plays, but made each work complete in itself. The art of clear and full
characterization was carried to a pitch of perfection by him, the figures in
the plays of Aeschylus being in comparison rather drawings in outline, while
those of Euripides are frequently direct transcripts from real life, without
the idealization given by Sophocles. With his restraint, his balance, his
clearness of vision, his aptness in the fitting of means to ends, and the
beauty of his style, he stands as the most perfect example in literature of
the characteristic excellences of the Greek artist. In the two dramas here
given will be found illustrations of these qualities at their highest.
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