2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fine copy by an excellent author/editor, September 17, 2011
This review is from: Aeschylus, II, Oresteia: Agamemnon. Libation-Bearers. Eumenides (Loeb Classical Library) (Hardcover)
This is a Loeb edition. Those of you familiar with the concept will appreciate this new edition from Alan Somerstein. Updated from the previous (Smyth) edition, this copy of the Oresteia includes emendations based on decisions made by editors in the past eighty years. The introduction by the author to the trilogy is succinct, accurate, and includes a helpful bibliography. Furthermore, the author's running notes throughout the text will be useful for readers desiring a further perspective in commentary. Denniston and Page, Fraenkel, and Sommerstein will be a comprehensive series of Aeschylus scholars to consult in your exploration of this 5th century Athenian play. As with all Loeb editions, the text is bound firmly and yields well to use. The pages are crisp and clean and have a smooth finish. The facing translation, included with the notes Sommerstein provides, is accurate and will help a new generation of classics students grapple with the meaning of Aeschlean syntax. This will compliment your library very nicely, whether you are a student of Greek, or not. Enjoy.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Surviving Trilogy, November 21, 2010
This review is from: Aeschylus, II, Oresteia: Agamemnon. Libation-Bearers. Eumenides (Loeb Classical Library) (Hardcover)
"The Oresteia" is the only remaining example of a complete trilogy of Greek tragic plays. Sadly, the tetralogy is not complete because the satyr play "Proteus" has not survived. "The Oresteia", along with "Proteus" was probably Aeschylus' last production at Athens, and though missing some lines and other corrupted, the Oresteia is close to complete. This copy of "The Oresteia" is the Loeb Classical Library's Aeschylus II, number 146 in the series and was updated in 2008, edited and translated by Alan H. Sommerstein. It replaces the Herbert Weir Smyth edition which was more than 80 years old, though the Smyth edition did receive an additional appendix in 1957.
In the preface, Mr. Sommerstein discusses the history of the Loeb editions of Aescylus and. This is followed by a thorough introduction which discusses Aeschylus, his life, his works, Greek Theatre, and what happened to the plays in history to bring them to the point they are now at. This is followed by the standard Bibliography, Sigla, and Abbreviations which one expects from a Loeb edition, and that brings us to the plays themselves.
Unlike the Aeschylus I volume, the discussion of the three tragic plays contained with "The Oresteia" is completely contained in the introduction, thus the plays themselves are provided without a further more specific introduction. As with every Loeb reproduction that I have ever seen, there are extensive footnotes throughout the translations of the plays, and information about the decisions made in the translation are covered as well as information about where passages may have been corrupt, and more exact wording of idioms used in the play. The translations themselves are excellent.
The three plays deal with different parts of the story of Orestes. The first play is referred to as "Agamemnon", and not surprisingly it is about the return of Orestes' father Agamemnon from the Trojan War, and the murder of Agamemnon by his wife and Orestes' mother Clytaemestra and her lover Aegisthus. Neither Orestes, nor his sister Electra appear in this play, but its events lead to the actions that Orestes will take in the second and third plays. The play opens with a watchman slave of Agamemnon's giving a monologue about waiting for the signal that the war has ended, and alluding to the situation in the palace and the coming betrayal. Agamemnon brings back Cassandra, the daughter of the Priam, the king of Troy, as Agamemnon's slave from the war, and she too is to be killed as part of the plot. The Chorus is the elders of Argos.
The second play is referred to as "The Libation Bearers". This play opens with Orestes returning from exile to avenge the death of his father. He has been sent by Apollo. Electra has been living in the palace of Clytaemestra and Aegisthus, but wanting to get revenge as well. The Chorus are the servants of the palace. Orestes first meets with Electra, and after revealing who he is, she tells him the details of the plot which murdered their father. Orestes then poses as a traveler from Daulia, bringing word of Orestes death from Phocis where he was passing through. After Orestes kills Aegisthus, Clytaemestra pleads with him for her life, but to no avail. The play ends with Orestes fleeing from the Furies.
The third play is known by the name "Eumenides". This play opens with Orestes at the temple of Apollo at Delphi, being pursued by the Furies. The prophetess Pythia opens the play with a monologue which sets the scene. After Pythia departs, Orestes speaks with Apollo, who assures Orestes that he will not betray him. He sends Orestes on his way with Hermes to guide him to the city of Pallas (Athens) to resolve his misery. After Orestes leaves, the ghost of Clytaemestra appears and tries to wake the Furies. The Chorus in this play are the Furies, who eventually chase Orestes. The scene changes to the temple of Pallas. There is a secondary Chorus who represent the priestess of Athena and her assistants. Athena is the judge, and the Furies state their case, while Apollo represents Orestes for the defense. The decision is split, which means that Orestes is free. The Furies are mad, but are then placated by Athena who gives them respect, and a sanctuary in Attica.
This is another excellent edition of the Loeb library, and the new translations of these plays make them more accessible to modern readers. Aeschylus gets 5 stars, but so does Alan Sommerstein.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
On The Loeb Classical Library, November 6, 2010
This review is from: Aeschylus, II, Oresteia: Agamemnon. Libation-Bearers. Eumenides (Loeb Classical Library) (Hardcover)
Aeschylus wrote beautifully, without doubt!
Thanks to Harvard University Press and their (James) Loeb Classical series,
'original' texts can be seen and read by the common man,
and this service gives translation its new old face and so much more meaning.
The books are beautiful; I'am indebted and learn much, I think.
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