Love and lust; murder and madness; violence and vengeance; incest and incantations; witches and warriors; prophets and princes; gods, ghosts, and goddesses…ancient Greek tragedy has all this and more.

This course is a survey of ancient Greek tragedy and the society that produced it. Among the topics covered will be: the cultic origins of theatrical performances, the nature of Greek theaters and ancient theatrical production techniques, religion and drama, women in tragedy, tragic heroism, myth and tragedy, and the relation of tragedy to (ancient) contemporary politics.

Plays to be read include the Bacchae, Medea, Oedipus the King, and Antigone.