Herodotus and Tragedy

Bibliographic Data

ID20046446
AuthorsSuzanne Saïd (corresponding author)
Year2002
Pages117-147
Publication date2002-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeCHAPTER
VenueBrill's Companion to Herodotus (SOURCE_BOOK)
PublisherBrill (PUBLISHER • NL)
DOI10.1163/9789004217584_007
OpenAlexW846569388
ISBN9789004217584
LanguageEN
Citations received16

Ancient authors, from Thucydides to Themistius, paid much attention to the parallels between Herodotus, who was fond of myths. The author attempts to assess the true impact of tragedy on Herodotus' vision of the working of human life, an impact which has been taken for granted by too many scholars, identifying as precisely as possible the borrowings of Herodotus from tragedy and their function. The author points out some isolated motives, which are also prominent in early and middle Attic tragedy, excluding those also found in Homer, such as double determination. The author focuses on ' the tragedy of Croesus' and the other stories of the rise and fall of barbarian kings, Greek tyrants, or Spartan leaders that have been dubbed 'dramatic' or 'tragic, because 'they orchestrate many of these tragic motives into a tightly constructed narrative'. The author compares books seven to nine of Herodotus with Aeschylus' Persians. Keywords: Aeschylus' Persians; attic tragedy; barbarian kings; Herodotus; myths; Themistius; Thucydides; tragedy of Croesus

Ancient history · Art · Barbarian · Greek tragedy · Literature · Mythology · Narrative · Parallels · Classical Antiquity Studies · Engineering · History

Tools

Open DOILibgen