The Master Of Tragedy

Essay by snake2004High School, 10th gradeA, April 2005

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So is Sophocles the greatest tragedian of the Greek period? No one could fully know this. Sophocles was an imaginative writer, and he is believed to have had a immense impact on play writing. If anyone were to read his Oedipus trilogy, they would be stunned on how amazing of a writer he was. His writing was simple and compact, yet it impacted so many lives. This is because of its brilliant nature. Sophocles was a writer who changed things. He is a man who changed the way men wrote and thought about any story. Sophocles was and is one of the greatest tragedians of all time. Sophocles was most definitely one of the greatest tragedians of all time. People may ask why, but it should be clear to anyone who would ask any professional about it.

So who was Sophocles? Did he just appear out of nowhere? Or did he come from a noble place? Sophocles was born around 496 B.C.

in a small town in Athens. This place is usually called Colonus Hippius. Sophocles' father, who was named Sophillus, was a rich man because of his successful armor making (Bates). One of these instances was his support of some uprisings. These must have put into his life a greater sense of character and virtue. While all of this made him more credible, it was of course his stories that made him famous.

Oedipus Rex and the following ideas and stories are obviously the effects that he is best known for. While people may believe that all of his plays are significant, and rightly so, Sophocles had a certain theme to his works. This was primarily his idea of tragedy, and this is why Sophocles is considered to be one of the most important play writes.