Aeschylus
Father of tragedy — the Oresteia
Transformed choral performance into drama by adding a second actor and giving dialogue dramatic weight. The Oresteia trilogy — the only surviving trilogy from antiquity — traces justice from blood vengeance to the rule of law.
Key works
- Oresteia458 BC— Agamemnon, Libation Bearers, Eumenides
- Prometheus Bound~460 BC— Titan's defiance of Zeus
- The Persians472 BC— Earliest surviving play