Aeschylus

Biography

Aeschylus (c. 525–456 BC) was an ancient Greek tragedian, often called the father of tragedy. Born at Eleusis near Athens, he fought at the Battle of Marathon and possibly Salamis. He transformed Greek drama from simple choral performances into complex theatrical works by introducing a second actor, creating dialogue, and developing the trilogy format. Of the roughly seventy to ninety plays he wrote, only seven survive complete, including the Oresteia—the only surviving complete Greek tragic trilogy. His works grapple with fundamental questions of justice, divine will, and human suffering on a cosmic scale.