Description
Drama. Poetry. Translated from the Greek by John Tipton. SEVEN AGAINST THEBES concerns a battle between the sons of Oedipus for control of Thebes. As the play opens, the seven captains of Polynices stand ready to storm the seven gates of the city, with the seven heroes of Eteocles opposing them. The drama that unfolds has the mysterious resonance of an ancient ceremony, as a messenger announces each warrior in turn, describing the device on his shield. Overshadowed by such archaic ritual and violence, the city awaits its destruction, weighing the lives of citizens and the responsibilities of kings. In his foreword, Peter Meineck writes, "There is a spiritual muscularity in the language of Aeschylus that Tipton has managed to capture... One gets the feeling that Tipton has heeded the advice of Aristotle and placed this play 'before his eyes,' speaking each line as it is created."
Author Bio
Aeschylus was born at Eleusis near Athens in 525 BCE and died in Sicily in 456 BCE. He took part in the Persian Wars and fought at Marathon. Considered the father of Greek tragedy, he wrote more than seventy plays, of which seven have survived.
John Tipton lives in Chicago. He is the author of a book of poetry, SURFACES (2004), as well as translations of Sophocles' AJAX (2008) and Aeschylus's SEVEN AGAINST THEBES (2015), all published by Flood Editions. He is also the publisher of Verge Books.
Author City: USA