Phrynichus (tragic poet)

Phrynichus (tragic poet)

Phrynichus, son of Polyphradmon and pupil of Thespis, was one of the earliest of the Greek tragedians.ref|Buckham1 Some of the ancients, indeed, regarded him as the real founder of tragedy. He gained his first victory in a drama contest in 511 BC, when his famous play, the "Capture of Miletus" (probably composed shortly after the conquest of that city by the Persians [see Ionian Revolt] ) moved the audience to tears.

Miletus was a colony of Athens and traditionally held very dear by the mother city. Phrynichus was fined "polytonic|ὡς ὑπομνήσας οἰκεῖα κακά" ("for reminding familiar misfortunes"). It was decreed that no play on the subject should ever be produced again.

In 476 BC Phrynichus was successful with the "Phoenissae", called after the Phoenician women who formed the chorus. This drama celebrated the defeat of Xerxes I at the Battle of Salamis four years earlier. Themistocles provided the funds as "Choregos" (producer), and one of the objectives of the play was to remind the Athenians of his great deeds. The "Persians" of Aeschylus (472 BC) was an imitation of the "Phoenissae". Phrynichus is said to have died in Sicily.

Some of the titles of his plays, "Danaides", "Actaeon", "Alcestis", "Tantalus", show that he dealt with mythological as well as contemporary subjects. He introduced a separate actor, as distinct from the leader of the chorus, and thus laid the foundation for theatrical dialogue. But in his plays, as in the early tragedies generally, the dramatic element was subordinate to the lyric element as represented by the chorus and the dance. According to the "Suda", Phrynichus first introduced female characters on the stage (played by men in masks), and made special use of the trochaic tetrameter.

Fragments in A Nauck, "Tragicorum graecorum fragmenta" (1887).

Notes

# P.W. Buckham, "Theatre of the Greeks", p. 108: "The honour of introducing Tragedy in its later acceptation was reserved for a scholar of Thespis in 511 BC, Polyphradmon's son, Phrynichus; he dropped the light and ludicrous cast of the original drama and dismissing Bacchus and the Satyrs formed his plays from the more grave and elevated events recorded in mythology and history of his country."

References

*P.W. Buckham, "Theatre of the Greeks", 1827.
*"The Oxford Classical Dictionary", p. 1177.
*1911

ee also

*Theatre of ancient Greece


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно сделать НИР?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Phrynichus — (Greek: polytonic|Φρύνιχος) may refer to:* Phrynichus , a genus in the Amblypygi, an order of arachnidsPeople*There are two dramatic poets named Phrynicus whose plays only survive in fragments: **Phrynichus (tragic poet), a pioneer of Greek… …   Wikipedia

  • Phrynichus — ▪ Greek comic poet flourished late 5th century BC, Athens       comic poet of Attic Old Comedy. Phrynichus, son of Eunomis, belonged to the last generation to write in that style. He produced his first play in 434 or 429 BC. (His contemporary… …   Universalium

  • The Birds (play) — The Birds Rider and birds Laconian calyx ca. 540 B.C. The Dramatis Personae in ancient comedy depends on interpretation of textual evidence.[1] This list is developed from D.Barrett s translation.[2 …   Wikipedia

  • List of Greek artists — This is a list of Greek artists from the antiquity to today.Artists have been categorised according to their main artistic profession and according to the major historical period they lived in:The Ancient (until the foundation of the Byzantine… …   Wikipedia

  • The Clouds — This article is about the play by Aristophanes. For other uses, see Cloud (disambiguation). The Clouds Strepsiades, his son and Socrates (from a 16th Century engraving). The Dramatis Personae in ancient comedy depends on interpretation of textual …   Wikipedia

  • Tragedy — other uses redirect|Tragedian LiteratureTragedy ( gr. , tragōidia , goat song ) is a form of art based on human suffering that offers its audience pleasure. [Banham (1998, 1118). In his speculative work on the origins of Athenean tragedy, The… …   Wikipedia

  • List of ancient Greeks — This an alphabetical list of ancient Greeks. These include ethnic Greeks and Greek language speakers from Greece and the Mediterranean world up to about 200 AD. compactTOCRelated articles NOTOC A*Acacius of Caesarea bishop of Caesarea… …   Wikipedia

  • List of Ancient Greek poets — This Assortment of Ancient Greek poets covers poets writing in the Ancient Greek language, regardless of location or nationality of the poet. For a list of modern day Greek poets, see List of Greek poets. Contents: Top · 0–9 A B C D E F G H… …   Wikipedia

  • ancient Greek civilization — ▪ historical region, Eurasia Introduction       the period following Mycenaean civilization, which ended in about 1200 BC, to the death of Alexander the Great, in 323 BC. It was a period of political, philosophical, artistic, and scientific… …   Universalium

  • Theatre of ancient Greece — For other uses of Greek Theatre , see Greek theatre (disambiguation). Theatre mask, 1st century BC …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”