Aeschylus

E. D. A. Morshead

Aeschylus is one of the 3 most famous ancient Greek playwrights, along with Sophocles and Euripides, and together, they all but established and invented Western drama. As the Father of Tragedy, Aeschylus was famous even among the ancient Greeks, including Aristotle, and his plays made other Greeks famous, like Orestes. Aeschylus authored dozens if not hundreds of plays, but only a few survive today, including The Oresteia (a trilogy of the plays Agamemnon, The Libation Bearers and The Eumenides). Other surviving works include The Persians (the oldest surviving tragedy in history), The Suppliant Maidens, and Seven Against Thebes. He's also recognized as the author of Prometheus Bound, though scholars still debate that. The first in the Oresteia trilogy, Agamemnon, is about the famous Greek king of the Trojan War, and how he returns home only to be murdered by his wife. The second play, The Libation Bearers, reunites Orestes and his sister Electra, with the two plotting revenge for their father's murder. The final play in the trilogy, The Eumenides, tells the story of Orestes getting his revenge, but then subsequently being consumed by the Furies and having to face charges of murder.

E. D. A. Morshead

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