Dictionary of Greek and Roman antiquities. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

TRAGOEDIA. TRAGOEDIA. 114S
presentation of the Dithyramb, itself a mixture of chaic tetrameter; as being better suited to the
recitative and choral song, the additional element satyrical and saltatorial nature of their pieces.
of the dialogue, written in Iambic verse, a measure But perhaps the truth is that in the early part of
suggested pe-haps by the gnomic poetry, and used his career Thespis retained the satyrical character
by Solon about the time of the origin of the dia- of the older tragedy, but afterwards inclined to
logue (Solon, Frag. 28, Gaisford), more especially more serious compositions, which would almost
as it is the most colloquial of all Greek metres oblige him to discard the Satyrs from his choruses.
(AXerrrlcbv) and that into which common conversa- That he did write serious dramas is intimated by
tion most readily falls. It is -indeed only a con- the titles of the plays ascribed to him, as well as
jecture that the dialogue or the Ionian element of by the character of the fragments of Iambic verse
Attic tragedy was connected with the rhapsodical quoted by Plutarch as his (Bentley, Phalur. p.
recitations, but it is confirmed by the fact that 214), and which even if they are forgeries of
Homeric rhapsodes were coanmen at Sicyon (HIerod. Heraclides Ponticus, at least prove what was the
v. 67), the cradle of the Dorian tragedy, and also opinion of a scholar of Aristotle on the subject.
at Brantron in Attica, where the worship of Diony- Besides the assertion that Sophocles (Suidas, ih
aus existed from ancient times. (H esych. s. s. vit.) wrote against the chorus of Thespis seems to
BpavpwvOtsr.) This however is certain, that the show that there was some similarity of character
union of the Iambic dialogue with the lyrical between the productions of the two poets. (Bode,
chorus took place at Athens under Peisistratus, and p. 47.) A summary of the arguments in favour
that it was attributed to Thespis, a native of of the serious character of the tragedy of Thespis
Icarns, one of the country demes or parishes of is given by Welcker (Nachtorctg, pp. 257-27,6)
Attica where the worship of Dionysuts had long The invention of the prologus and rhesis of tragedy
prevailed. The introduction of this worship into (an expression clearly in some measure identical
Attica, with its appropriate choruses, seems to have with the introduction of an actor) is also ascribed
been partly owing to the comnmands of the Dorian to Thespis by Aristotle. (The1mist. p. 382, ed.
oracle (Dem. c. MIid. p. 531), in very early times. Dind.) By the former word is meant the first
Thus it is stated (Plato, linios, p. 321; Plut. So/. speech of the actor (Aristot. Poet. 12), or the
29), that tragedy (i. ae. the old Dithyrambic and prooemitim with which he opened the piece-; the
Satyrical tragedy) was very ancient in Attica, and chorus then sang the first ode or 7rdpolos, after
did not originate with Thespis or his coternpora- which came the p'rots or dialogue between the
ries. This alter0ation made by him, and which actor and the principal chorei(tae. The invention
gave to the old tragedy (&pXogYirav T'rwv 7resl of this dialogue is also alluded to in the phrase
@scr-7rm/ ijFl r-dy TpayV8iav KiE'sv) a new and dla- AE'SEWF yievocs'erIS. (Id. 4.) It is evident that
ml.tic chaincter (imaking it an ilatzota trayicte the introduction of the dialogue must also have
eenus, Her. Ars. Poeti 275), was very simple but caused an alteration in the arrangement of the
very important. He introduced all actor, as it is chorus, which could not remain cyclic or circular,
recorded, for the sake of giving rest to the chorus but must have been drawn up in a rectangular
(Diog. Labrt. iii. 50) and independent of it, in form about the thymele or altar of Bacchus in
which capacity he probably appeared himself (Plut. front of the actor, who was elevated on a platform
Sol. 29), taking various parts in the same piece, or table (xAers), the forerunner of the stage. The
undcer various disguises, which he was enabled to statement in Pollux (iv. 123), that this was the
assnune by means of the linen masks, the invention case before Thespis seems incorrect. (W5elcker,
of which is attributed to him. Now as a chorus, VachtraSd, p. 268.) If we are right in our lnotion
by means of its leader, could maintain a dialogue of the general character of the Thespian drama,
with the actor, it is easy to see how with one the phrase oi'Sv 7rpbs AidvV(rov, which was ceractor only "a dramatic action might be introduced, tainly used in his time, was first applied to his
continued, and concluded, by the speeches between plays at AthenIs, as being unconnected with the
the choral songs expressive of the joy or sorrow of fortunes of Dionysus, and as deviations from the
the chorus at the various ev-ents of the drama." Iurpol uPOo1 al Aitfrs yeXoLa of his predecessors.
Thus Miiller observes that in the plky of Pentheus, Plutarch however (Sypos. i. 5) supposes that its
supposed to have been composed by Thespis, " a first application was later: he says "when Phryvnisingle actor might appear successively as Dionysus, chus and Aeschylus continued to elevate tragedy
Penthens, a messenger, Agave the mother of Pen- to legends and tales of sufferings (eis uW0ovs Kcal
theus, and in these characters express designs and 7rdr7 7rpoayd-vrcv), the people missing and regretintentions, or relate events which could not be re- ting the old Satyric chorus, said, " What is this to
presented, as the murder of Pentheus by his Bacchus?" Hence the expression was used to sigmother: by which means he would represent the nify what was mal-h-ptopos, or beside the quessubstance of the fable ais it appears in the Bacchae tion.
of Euripides." (Miiller, p. 29; Bode, p. 57.) The reader may have observed that we have not
With respect to the character of the drama of noticed the lines of Horace (Ar. Poet. 276):
Thespis there has been miuch doubt: some writers,, Dicitur et plaustris vexisse poemata Thespis,
and especially Bentley (Phalart. p. 218), have
an...p l.e y (... 3Quae canerent ageil6ntqfte peruncti faecibus ora.':
maintained that his plays were all satyrical and
ludicrous, i. e. the plot of them was some story of The fact is that they are founded on a misconcep3Bacchus, the chorus consisted principally of satyrs, tion of the origin of the Attic tragedy, and that the
and the argument was merry - an opinion indeed tale about the wagons of Thespis probably arose out
which is supported by the fact that in the early of a confusion of the wagon of the comedian Susarion
part of his time, the satyric drama had not ac- with the platform of theThespian actor. The first
quired a distinctive character. It may also appear representation of Thespis was in B. c. 535. His
to be confirmed by the statement (Aristot. Poet. 4) immediate successors were the Athenian Choerilas
that at first the Tragedians made use of the tro- and Phrynichus, the former of whom represented
4 4