Amhxania in Euripides ̓ Heraclidae

There has been much controversy over the completeness and unity of Euripides ̓ Heraclidae in the last two centuries. Hermann ̓s characterization of the play as a heavily mutilated piece, which was adopted by Kirchhoff, Wilamowitz, Nauck and Murray, prevailed for a long time. Wilamowitz's thesis that the Heraclidae was revised by the ancient director found its adherents. It was Günther Zuntz who led the general offensive against this widely accepted opinion and whose critical scrutiny reversed the view of the play. According to Zuntz, the play has come down to us substantially as it was written. The alleged mutilation, as well as the specific dramatic technique, shortness and swiftness of the Heraclidae , also influenced the general evaluation of the play as a minor or odd piece. It was Günter Zuntz again and also Franz Stoessl who reconstituted the reputation of the Heraclidae . Today Euripides ̓ Heraclidae is studied and recognized as a classical Hikesiedrama , a play deeply rooted in Athenian ideology and in the social and religious context of fifth-century Athens, and representing various aspects of communal life. Since the play has been interpreted and scrutinized from a very wide range of perspectives, I do not aim at a radically new general interpretation of the Heraclidae , but I would like to make a short remark on an aspect of it which has, as far as I know, been neglected or only briefly referred to: the term ἀμηχανία in crucial passages of the play, which signifies, or rather describes, a situation which is desperate, hopeless, and with no way out. I would like to show that for the characters in the Heraclidae who follow the ideal of justice (τὸ δίκαιον), in contrast to those who prefer profit (κέρδος), no situation is hopeless, even as it was not for Heracles, who managed to do things which could be evaluated as impossible (defeating the Hydra of Lerna and the Nemean lion, gaining the apples of the Hesperides, etc.). On the other hand, those who opt for the Heraclean ideal have to prepare to face the ultimate challenges

Art · Context (archaeology · Ideology · Interpretation (philosophy · Literature · Offensive · Operations research · Political science · Politics · Scrutiny · Theology · Classical Antiquity Studies · Classics · History · Law · Mathematics · Philosophy

• Studio sul dibattito tra Tullo e Fufezio nel libro III della Storia antica di Roma di Dionigi di Alicarnasso

  Open Access•Denise Macciò•Erga-Logoi Rivista di storia…•2024

  Incluir item

• The political plays of Euripides

  Gunther Zuntz•The political plays of Euripides•1955

  Incluir item

• Der Glaube der Hellenen

  Ulrich von Wilamowitz-Moellendorff•Glaube der Hellenen•1955

  Incluir item

• Greed and Injustice in Classical Athens

  Ryan K Balot•Greed and Injustice in Classical…•2002

  Incluir item

• Euripidean Drama

  D J Conacher, Desmond Conacher•Euripidean Drama•1967

  Incluir item

• Palintonos Harmonia

  Bernd Seidensticker•Palintonos Harmonia•1982

  Incluir item

• Euripides

  William Allan•Euripides•2001

  Incluir item

• Is the Heraclidae Mutilated

  Open Access•G Zuntz•The Classical Quarterly•1947

  Incluir item

• The Young of Athens

  Open Access•John Wilkins•The Classical Quarterly•1990

  Incluir item

• Thucydides and the Ancient Simplicity

  Gregory Crane•Thucydides and the Ancient…•1998

  Incluir item

• Revenge in Attic and Later Tragedy

  Anthony J Podlecki, Anne Pippin Burnett•Revenge in Attic and Later Tragedy•1998

  Incluir item