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Aeschylus (525–456 BC) brought a new grandeur and epic sweep to the drama of classical Athens, raising it to the status of high art. In Prometheus Bound the defiant Titan Prometheus is brutally punished by Zeus for daring to improve the state of wretchedness and servitude in which mankind is kept. The Suppliants tells the story of the fifty daughters of Danaus who must flee to escape enforced marriages, while Seven Against Thebes shows the inexorable downfall of the last members of the cursed family of Oedipus. And The Persians, the only Greek tragedy to deal with events from recent Athenian history, depicts the aftermath of the defeat of Persia in the battle of Salamis, with a sympathetic portrayal of its disgraced King Xerxes.
Philip Vellacott’s evocative translation is accompanied by an introduction, with individual discussions of the plays, and their sources in history and mythology.
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A rocky mountain-top, within sight of the sea. Read the first page
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Arguably Aeschylus brought something else to the theatre. No longer were there loads of scenes of blood lust but actors had to learn lines and achieve realistic dialogue between themselves, the true art of acting. Therefore these plays are more about dialogue than any action. Prometheus Bound is the story of Prometheus being chained to the rocks and his discourse with others, including his prophecy to Io. The Suppliants is a tale of Danaus' daughters who have to leave their homeland to avoid arranged marriages. Seven Against Thebes is the tale of the downfall of the last remainders of the Oedipus family. The Persians is about the defeat of the Persians at Salamis and a portrayal of Xerxes.
There isn't loads of action here but there is great dialogue, which has made these plays still admired and which gained Aeschylus the accolade of being a classic playwright shortly after his death. There is an introduction here by Philip Velacott although I should warn you that this is in much smaller print that the actual plays themselves, also there are some notes. If you are interested in the history of the theatre or Greek tragedies as well as those who may have to study them, this is a great volume.
I must say that tragedy is the right word for these plays. I would dub them "poor me" dramas. In each case, one or more characters suffers an ignominious fate and bemoans his/her/their lot in life, sometimes cursing the gods to boot. In Prometheus Bound, the giant Prometheus has been chained to a rock on a mountainside as divine punishment for stealing fire from Hephaestas and giving it to humans. Prometheus is proudly defiant and has a word or two to say to just about every man and god he is exposed to. The Persians must have been received very well by the Athenians because it casts Persia and her king Xerxes in a pitiful light. When a long-overdue messenger arrives home with word that the Persian army has been decimated, the whole community wails and mourns their fate; when the defeated Xerxes arrives, he takes the suffering to yet another level, his pride destroyed and replaced with self-loathing and defeatism. Seven Against Thebes details the attack by Polyneices and his followers on his brother Eteocles and the city of Thebes. While much of the play consists of the naming of the opposing champions to lead the fight at each gate, I was most interested in the dialogue between the chorus of Theban women and Eteocles. The women rush in fright to the statues of the gods, pleading for mercy and grieving over their fate. Eteocles is offended by their defeatist words, saying such talk will spread doubt and fear among the city's defenders and is an injustice reflecting a loss of faith in the gods whose likenesses they are embracing.
I consider The Suppliants the best of these four dramas, as it contains some action whereas the other plays are basically static in setting. The story of Io, a fair maiden turned into a cow/human creature and cursed by a maddening gadfly by Hera due to Zeus' pursuit of her, forms a provocative background to this tale. Io's descendants number 50 women and 50 men, and the lustful men seek to forcibly take their female cousins for wives. The women run to Argos and seek the protection of its king and people, setting the stage for a great battle (which unfortunately takes place in a lost drama).
I enjoyed these dramas, although I can't say I would care to see them presented on stage. For the most part, nothing happens, but everyone is miserable and none too shy to broadcast that misery. There can be no mistaking these plays for comedies, yet they do speak to timeless matters of the human spirit even today.
If you have no knowledge of Greek mythology, I'd suggest some brief background reading before diving into the plays to familiarize yourself with some of the main players in the plays. Worth checking out for sure.
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