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Seneca’s Thyestes Tragic Exploration or Lurid Fascination? Saturn Devouring his Children, Goya.

Published byAdolfo Elvington Modified over 9 years ago

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Presentation on theme: "Seneca’s Thyestes Tragic Exploration or Lurid Fascination? Saturn Devouring his Children, Goya."— Presentation transcript:

1 Seneca’s Thyestes Tragic Exploration or Lurid Fascination? Saturn Devouring his Children, Goya

2 “The content of Roman tragedy is not ‘tragic.’ ” Brill’s on Roman Tragedy

3 Agenda Recap and Update Senecan Tragedy as Tragic? Tragedy Performed + Discussion “This monstrous (but tragic??) banquet!” pp. 87- 90 1-Dec-11 Seneca Thyestes 3

4 Recap and Update Senecan Tragedy as Tragic?

5 Tragedy, Greek-to-Senecan? Greek Tragic formula koros hubris ate dike Tragic cycle Aristotelian elements recognition, reversal catharsis Senecan Senecan formula Cloud of evil Defeat of reason Explosion of evil Rhetorical elements sententia perverse exaggeration Ethical-political dimension 1-Dec-115 Seneca Thyestes

6 House of Tantalus TantalusPelopsAtreus Agamem- non MenelausThyestes Tantalus Junior Plisthenes[third son]

7 Thyestes: Plot and Theme (“Senecan Formula”) Thematic StructureDramatic Structure CLOUD OF EVILACT 1. Fury incites Tantalus’ ghost. Choral ode. Prayer against tragic cycle. DEFEAT OF REASON BY PASSION ACT 2. Atreus and Minister. Debate, portrait in tyranny. ACT 3. Thyestes and sons. Retirement v. return. EXPLOSION OF EVILACT 3 cont. Atreus & Thyestes – “reconciliation.” ACT 4. Messenger. Sacrifice, locus horridus. ACT 5. Atreus, Thyestes. Recognition & reversal.

8 Senecan Tragedy, Senecan Rhetoric Perverse exaggeration “The fire seems loath to touch the roasting flesh.... The liver on the spits was heard to squeal” (Messenger, p. 79) Sententia “Men compelled by fear / to praise, may be by fear compelled to hate” (Minister to Atreus, p. 54) Compare “Let them hate so long as they fear” (Atreus in Accius Atreus) 1-Dec-118 Seneca Thyestes

9 Tragedy Performed + Discussion “This monstrous (but tragic??) banquet!” pp. 87-90

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