An Introduction to Aeschylus' Oresteia

Agamemnon: Lines 1 — 257

Aeschylus was the first great pioneer of drama in literature. Athenian tragedy, at its inception, was a poetic art. Choral odes, or dithyrambs, were sung by groups of youths, singing and dancing to a rhythm. A semi-mythical dramaturgist introduced the actor, or the protagonist (the first competitor), who could argue apposite the chorus. This is the birt…