Thread 24612683

Getting filtered by the Chorus in Agamemnon... What do I do?

>>24612683 (OP)
The Chorus is dense but don't let it bog you down. Just get the general vibe as to what it represents (i.e. how sins are passed down; the cicular nature of justice; the devestation of war) without having to fixate on every thing they say as a first time reader.

>>24612683 (OP)
ask an AI to explain it to you and never post again.

>>24612705
Thanks. Perhaps I need to reread the Iliad, as it's been quite a long time.
>>24612706
>just read, anon!!!
>noooo not like that!!!

>>24612683 (OP)
I remember reading the chorus in Bob Dylan's 1960s singing voice for whatever reason (I'm good at accents and somewhat retarded)

I don't understand what you mean by filtered though? Perhaps you should watch the 1980s production of it on youtube which is pretty good to understand it better

Aeschylus is up there with shakespeare for me

>>24612683 (OP)
As an ESL, I hate the translation "The Libation Bearers"

>>24612683 (OP)
Have you read Catalogues of Ships?

>>24612683 (OP)
Post excerpts of what you are struggling with and we will be able to help you.

“The chorus in Agamemnon” is quite a large part. Narrow it down a bit.

>>24613463
I struggled with the Old Men Chrous, although I've reread it and realised it's more to set the scene and atmosphere of a post-war society and I don't need to be autistic about it. The second Agamemnon appears I understand what's happening. Going to finish it tonight.
>>24612986
Yes and I quite enjoy it, despite people thinking it's the worst part of the Iliad. There's something endearing about the monotony of it.

>>24613463
>>24613650
It's worth noting this is my first Greek play.

>>24613650
>>24613656
Aeschylus may be the most difficult of the playwrights to read since he is the first and his style is far more primitive than in later writers. Sophocles and Euripides both diminished the importance of the chorus whereas Aeschylus makes heavy use of it- far more prominence is given to the chorus and just as well, many ideas are more directly communicated in the chorus rather than merely commenting on what is going on around them as in Sophocles for example.

It’s regarded as a plebeian opinion to hold but Aeschylus is my least favorite of the playwrights though this is entirely on my end- I admit that his antiquated style merely doesn’t do much for me. The problem with my enjoyment is I don’t like how he relies on the chorus so heavily and the actual actions of the play end up being a bit drab as in Prometheus Bound where it’s pretty much just Prometheus chained to a rock the entire time, entirely static scene with little going on.

>>24614169
Thanks for the effort post, anon. On Libations Bearers now. I'm no longer filtered. Going to read Sophocles next, once I'm done with the Oriestia.

Are anglo translations of tragedies even terriblier than those of Homer? Or is this the Bleak House syndrome? There's nothing to be filtered by

>>24615817
I dunno, but if you think "terriblier" is an actual word, then the problem is probably your lack of understanding of the english language and not any particular english translation you were reading. In this case, Robert Fagles is an excellent translator and his Oresteia is generally seen as one of the best translations of the text.

>>24615817
That's why I'm waiting for Emily Wilson's translation

>>24615902
I was just puzzled by op's apparent struggle with the text.
Have not been reading English translations, I'm not an anglo native, but checked nearly all of Homer's translations and found most either dull or awkward. Sure, it's not the easiest poetry to read, but at least reading in one's native language shouldn't be hard.
Yes, terriblier is an actual word, I just willed it into existence, and it has already been used 3 times in this thread.

>>24615930
I'm not an anglo myself either, I speak fluent french and german and I always go for english translations of the greeks. In my experience, english translations of the ancient classics have much higher quality standards than both german and french translations would have. I can imagine when it comes to latin, italians probably have the best translations, but I can't speak italian, so english is my go-to for anything latin and greek.

>>24615956
>In my experience, english translations of the ancient classics have much higher quality standards than both german
I can't even conceive this, thinking how Germans are the biggest greek fanboys, and they even have cases too.

>>24615930
OP here.
I was struggling with the abscract Chorus, which makes up the first half. Everything else is clear and I wasn't as filtered as I thought, just missed some subtext which I'll pick up on a reread. Anyway, /lit/ is an anglo board, so kindly see yourself out.

>>24616489
So I just read the prologue and parodos up to episode 1, and there is nothing abstract.
The elders lament that 10 years have passed, a bird analogy follows, elders are old and weak etc.
Black and white eagle story refers to Calhas' prophecy, the dying rabbit being the Troy. More references to Calhas follow, read the whole backstory in Iphigenia in Aulis by Euripides or watch this film, I cannot recommend it enough, it's amazing https://youtu.be/5jD-IuhwLmk
And that's the whole chorus intro. There's nothing inherently complicated, you just need to know the mythology to understand the references or have a good edition that explains them in footnotes.

>/lit/ is an anglo board, so kindly see yourself out
I will most certainly not. Total anglo death

>>24616553
That entire series of films by Michael Cacoyannis is perfect.

>>24616566
Starring:
>Irene Papas
>Irene Papas
>Irene Papas
>Irene Papas
>some random women and Irene Papas

>>24616621
Irene papas has played so many diverse roles. Think about it. She played

>both Clytemnestra AND Electra
>both Penelope AND queen Anticlea

Kind of weird to think about it.