The Oresteia Book Trailer

GREEK LITERATURE & CULTURE

Greek Literature and the Tragic Vision

Ian Johnston explores how Greek ideas of justice, divine power, and human freedom shaped the heroic and tragic vision of ancient Greek literature.

Introduction to Ancient Greece

A concise guide to the geography, history, political life, and cultural development of ancient Greece, from the Bronze Age civilizations of Crete and Mycenae through the rise of the city-states, Classical Athens and Sparta, and the age of Alexander the Great.

GREEK MYTH & TRAGEDY

The House of Atreus - A Note on the Mythological Background to the Oresteia

Ian Johnston traces the violent history of the House of Atreus, from Tantalus and Pelops through the rivalry of Atreus and Thyestes to Agamemnon, Clytaemnestra, Orestes, and Electra, providing the mythological background to some of the most important stories of Greek tragedy.