Aeschylus
Aeschylus
Aeschyluswas an ancient Greek tragedian. His plays, alongside those of Sophocles and Euripides, are the only works of Classical Greek literature to have survived. He is often described as the father of tragedy: critics and scholars' knowledge of the genre begins with his work, and understanding of earlier tragedies is largely based on inferences from his surviving plays. According to Aristotle, he expanded the number of characters in theater to allow conflict among them, whereas characters previously had interacted only...
NationalityGreek
ProfessionPoet
pain lifetime length
Who apart from the gods is without pain for his whole lifetime's length?
pain forever without-pain
Who, except the gods, can live time through forever without any pain?
cheer believe fate
My friends, whoever has had experience of evils knows how whenever a flood of ills comes upon mortals, a man fears everything; but whenever a divine force cheers on our voyage, then we believe that the same fate will always blow fair.
men shadow wipe
Alas for the affairs of men! When they are fortunate you might compare them to a shadow; and if they are unfortunate, a wet sponge with one dash wipes the picture away.
men evil suffering
If a man suffers ill, let it be without shame; for this is the only profit when we are dead. You will never say a good word about deeds that are evil and disgraceful.
tongue
A great ox stands on my tongue.
friendship trust no-friends
For somehow this is tyranny's disease, to trust no friends.
long scruples wells
We spoil ourselves with scruples long as things go well.
suffering
Suffering brings experience.
agamemnon rumours
Rumours voiced by women come to nothing.
clever fire honor
[Hermes addresses Prometheus :] To you, the clever and crafty, bitter beyond all bitterness, who has sinned against the gods in bestowing honors upon creatures of a day--to you, thief of fire, I speak.
party men two-sides
ATHENA: There are two sides to this dispute. I've heard only one half the argument. (...) So you two parties, summon your witnesses, set out your proofs, with sworn evidence to back your stories. Once I've picked the finest men in Athens, I'll return. They'll rule fairly in this case, bound by a sworn oath to act with justice.
home men battle
They sent forth men to battle, But no such men return; And home, to claim their welcome, Come ashes in an urn
mother fall air
On me the tempest falls. It does not make me tremble. O holy Mother Earth, O air and sun, behold me. I am wronged.