Week 9 (Sophocles' Oedipus Tyrannus, Thucydides' Histories and the Peloponnesian War) Flashcards
Sophocles lived c. 496-406 BC: was once a public _________, strategos, and commissioner for the ________ state reform in 413 BC. In total, he wrote c. ___ plays
treasurer
Athenian
120
Sophocles contributions: introduced the _rd actor, increase chorus size from 12 to __ members.
Inaugurated ______ backdrops.
Known for his “______ plays” about Oedipus and his family, that question traditional Greek ______ with moral conundrums.
3rd
15
painted
Theban
values
Main themes of Oedipus Tyrannus:
1) fate/destiny - it is ___________
2) Consequences - uphold the law
3) Respect for the gods
4) Personality flaws - hubris and anger (what makes a ____?)
1) inescapable
4) hero
Thebes’ problems beginning of play
1) plague
2) drought
3) death of livestock
4) women’s inability to bear children
The ______ at Delphi tells Oedipus the problems have been caused by blood __________, or the unavenged murder of King Laios
pythia
pollution
Tiresias tells Oedipus he is the problem: Oedipus becomes _____ with Tiresias and accuses him of ________ with Kreon.
angry
plotting
his burst of anger is reflective of the Homeric trait, defending his _____, and above all else, Oedipus still ___________ the city.
honor
prioritizes
Kreon attempts to guide Oedipus through ______; Sophocles is capturing the contemporary intellectualism in ______, reflecting the democratic systems of Athens with subtlety.
reason
Athens
Jokasta relates the prophecy given to Laios; Oedipus begins to connect Laios’ death with killing a group of men where the _____ highways meet.
three
Jokasta realizes that Oedipus is her own ___ when the messenger from _______ relates that baby Oedipus had _________ feet.
son
Corinth
punctured
Jokasta _____ herself, and Oedipus ______ himself. He reflects on the gods and fate, before leaving he gives thought to his ________. Chorus have the _____ words of the play, words of wisdom for the audience.
kills
blinds
children
final
Thucydides was an elite Athenian born c. 460 BC
- he was a _______ in the Northern Aegean at Amphipolis during the Second Peloponnesian War, but exiled in 424 BC.
general
-Unlike Hesiod & Homer, Thucydides was not concerned with ____ or myth: very human centric view.
- He utilized a mix of textual, material, and eyewitness sources (ex. debate in the ________ assembly).
- utilization of factually based, yet _________ speeches.
gods
Athenian
fictional
Causes of the Second Peloponnesian War
- renewed hostilities: the Aegean is divided into ___ larger hostile camps, the pro-__________ vs. the the pro-_________.
- 435-433 BC: the democratic faction of Epidamnus, the colony of Corcyra, which was in turn the colony of _______, asks for help from Corcyra
two
pro-oligarchic, pro-democratic
Causes of the Second Peloponnesian War Continued
- 435-433 BC: the democratic faction of Epidamnus, the colony of Corcyra, which was in turn the colony of _______, asks for help from Corcyra, but it declined. Epidamnus appeals to _______ instead. Corcyra allies with ______, ultimately earning victory over _______.
Corinth
Corinth
Athens
Corinth
-433-432 BC: Tensions continue between Athens & Corinth. Athens orders that Potidaea dismiss their ___________ magistrates, and submit. The Athenian siege of Potidaea takes until 430 BC.
Corinthian