Saint Gregory Palamas belonged among the greatest fathers of Eastern Church of the 14th century. His intellectual and spiritual potential was cultivated already when he was a student, as he received elaborate education in Constantinople. The intense use of philosophers, among whom Aristotle and Plato were mostly used, and of classical writers, mostly Homer, Sophocles etc., in the writings of Palamas comes as no surprise. In this study, we present an outline of Saint Gregory’s classical education with indicative examples drawn from his writings. Through these examples we aim to analyse Palama’s method of development and promotion of the national literature ideals to the extent that it led to the definition of true faith, to the knowledge of God and human salvation.
All new receptions of ancient theme, whether in the arts or social action, provide a new perspective of understanding of relation between an ancient Greek and a man of today. The paper examines the interpretation of the character of Antigone from Sophocles's tragedy by contemporary French female troupe Les Antigones, which uses her as a symbol of their activities and thus gives her new – current meaning. The paper is based on the assumption that tradition and reality are the main factors influencing dramatic interpretation of the text and interpretation itself - the aspects of time have impact directly on content as well as formal analysis. The paper brings more transparency into the traditions of interpretation that directly or indirectly determines the reception of Antigone's character as a representative of the Les Antigones activities and focuses on the non-artistic context, which determined the formation of this troupe.
The staging of Sophocles' tragedy Oedipus the King has a long tradition on the Czech stage. It was staged for the first time in 1898, and up today information about 60 productions has been collated in the database of Czech productions of ancient plays (see www.olympos.cz). In the last few years, the figure of Oedipus has gained new features in Czech theatres (especially in Prague). The turnaround began, in particular, in Miroslav Krobot's production at the National Theatre (premiere 22 February 1996). Another untypical Oedipus was staged at Prague's Divadlo pod Palmovkou (Under Palmovka Theater) on 22 May 2002 under the directorship of Lucie Belohradska. A further level in a certain disparaging of the figure of Oedipus was introduced by Jan Novotny's production at the Strasnicky Theater (premiere 22 June 2008). In these three cases we are able to see a gradual degradation of the complex figure of Oedipus, and perhaps we are not far from the truth when we say that Oedipus is being gradually demythologized on the Prague stage and is drawing nearer to today's unflattering form of political representatives with all their arrogance and incompetence.
The first stasimon of Sophocles' Antigone often called an Ode on Man is considered to be a praise of human's power. In this ode the dramatist joins in the discussion about the cultural progress and the development of human life, his abilities and political skills, which was held by the great poets and philosophers in Athens at that time. In the human achievements and success in many fields presented in this ode in a different way from this made by Hesiod in his Works and Days, and especially in organization of the ordered society maintained by laws, we can easily perceive the resemblances between this ode and the myth put in Protagoras' mouth in Plato's dialogue. Considering that this improvement is due entirely to man's own efforts, unaided either by divine intervention or by a superhuman teacher, the issues of the proper education and upbringing of a good citizen were very current. And both Sophocles as well as Protagoras take the floor on this issue and touch on the subject of aretē and the question, what the man should be, how he should behave or which standards and principles he should obey in his life, especially in his civil life. For Sophocles as well as for Protagoras, the peak of human achievements is the foundation of polis and the appearance of a man, who is above all a citizen. It seems, that the dramatist and the philosopher wanted to pay attention to necessity of obedience of certain principles, which are binding for everyone in the society and by which everyone should be guided in his life. However, emphasizing the importance of human reason, art and ingenuity, it depends solely on a man and his beliefs, to what degree he would put the principles of aretē into effect in his life.
The first Czech outdoor performance of a Greek tragedy (Oedipus the King) was produced by Vaclav Krska, in the South Bohemian village in 1936. There was no permanent natural theatre with a solid stage construction and auditorium there. The actors (and their friends) built a corresponding venue for each performance in the forest. Krska's actors were recruited from among the local villagers, and naturally there were amateurs with great theatre experience. Some of them had been a part of the company for many years, they had been systematically educated, and collaboration with professionals meant a lot to them (the role of Oedipus was played by Eduard Kohout, star of the National theatre). Krska's interpretation of the play was more or less Winckelman-like. The performance, which was attended by spectators from the distant surroundings, was very successful. Prestigious actors from Prague even came to the rehearsal and the premiere was attended by a well-known journalist from Prague who wrote about the performance for a national newspaper.
The thorough analysis of the language, metrics and content of the poetic quotation in the Favorinus’ De exilio (col. VII,44–46) suggests its attribution to a Greek tragedian (perhaps Euripides – the Andromeda or a tragedy in connection with the Perseus’ myth, such as Danae or Dictys) rather than to Pindar.
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