The Complete Euripides Volume V: Medea and Other Plays

by Euripides; Burian, Peter; Shapiro, Alan

• ISBN13: 9780195388718
• ISBN10: 0195388712
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2011-01-04
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

Based on the conviction that only translators who write poetry themselves can properly re-create the celebrated and timeless tragedies of Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides, the Greek Tragedy in New Translations series offers new translations that go beyond the literal meaning of the Greek in order to evoke the poetry of the originals. This volume collects Euipides' Alcestis (translated by William Arrowsmith), a subtle drama about Alcestis and her husband Admetos, which is the oldest surviving work by the dramatist; Medea (Michael Collier and Georgia Machemer), a moving vengeance story and an excellent example of the prominence and complexity that Euripides gave to female characters; Helen (Peter Burian), a genre breaking play based on the myth of Helen in Egypt; and Cyclops (Heather McHugh and David Konstan), a highly lyrical drama based on a celebrated episode from the Odyssey. This volume retains the informative introductions and explanatory notes of the original editions and adds a single combined glossary and Greek line numbers.

Author Biography

Peter Burian is Professor of Classical and Comparative Literatures and Theater Studies at Duke University.

Alan Shapiro is Professor of English and Creative Writing at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. A winner of the prestigious Lila Wallace Reader's Digest award 1992-95, he is the author of several poetry collections, including Tantalus in Love, Song and Dance, and The Dead Alive Busy.

Table of Contents

Editors' Foreword
Alcestis the Late William Arrowsmith, foundor of the Greek Tragedy in New Translations series
Introduction
Alcestis
Notes
Medea, Michael Collier, University of Maryland; Georgia Machemer, Duke University
Introduction
Medea
Notes
Helen, Peter Burian
Introduction
Helen
Notes
Cyclops, Heather McHugh, University of Washington; David Konstan, Brown University
Introduction
Cyclops
Notes
Glossary
For Further Reading