Electra and Other Plays: Euripides (Penguin Classics) [Paperback]

Euripides (Author), Richard Rutherford (Editor, Introduction), John Davie (Translator)

Book Description

Series: Penguin Classics | Publication Date: January 1, 1999

Written during a period overshadowed by the fierce struggle for supremacy between Sparta and Euripides' native Athens, these five plays are haunted by the shadow of war - and in particular its impact on women. In "Electra" the children of Agamemnon take bloody revenge on their mother for murdering their father after his return from Troy, and "Suppliant Women" depicts the grieving mothers of those killed in battle. The other plays deal with the aftermath of the Trojan War for the defeated survivors, as "Andromache" shows Hector's widow as a trophy of war in the house of her Greek captor, and "Hecabe" portrays a defeated queen avenging the murder of her last-remaining son, while "Trojan Women" tells of the plight of the city's women in the hands of their victors.

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: Greek

About the Author

Euripides (c.485-406 BC) was already a controversial figure in his own lifetime, regarded as a 'clever' poet, associated with philosophers and intellectuals. He is thought to have written 92 plays, only 18 of which survive. John Davie was born in Glasgow in 1950, and educated at Glasgow University and Balliol College, Oxford. Dr Richard Rutherford was born in Edinburgh in 1956 and has been tutor in Greek & Latin Literature at Christ Church College, Oxford, since 1982.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Penguin Classics (January 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140446680
• ISBN-13: 978-0140446685
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.2 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #53,619 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #27 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Drama > Classical & Early
  • #42 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Drama > Continental European
  • #58 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Drama > Greek & Roman