Hera Transformed on Stage
A fragment of a lost play by Aeschylus (fr. 168) has been paid little attention despite the fact that it presents Hera on stage, and this is something unique in Greek tragedy. This appearance takes place in what seems to be the story of Zeus and Semele and the birth of Dionysus. This text is importa...
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| Veröffentlicht in: | URI:https://journals.openedition.org/kernos, |
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| 1. Verfasser: | |
| Format: | Article ou chapitre numérique |
| Sprache: | Anglais |
| Veröffentlicht: |
Kernos
2011
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| Online Zugang: | Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM Accès Université d'Orléans et IFPM |
| Zusammenfassung: | A fragment of a lost play by Aeschylus (fr. 168) has been paid little attention despite the fact that it presents Hera on stage, and this is something unique in Greek tragedy. This appearance takes place in what seems to be the story of Zeus and Semele and the birth of Dionysus. This text is important for an additional reason; the goddess is transformed into a mortal and this could be the first transformation of a god on stage. The transformation of a god, which is rare in tragedy, could point to the divine transformations found in the Iliad as the source of inspiration for Aeschylus. Furthermore, this hypothesis allows the possibility that this scene became a model for later poets, perhaps Euripides in Bacchae. |
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