Konnor Drewen
2/17/011
Explain how the origins of theatre in Athens are tied to both religion and politics.
The origins of theatre tie into religion and politics because of some reasons. For one the ancient Athenian theaters were open air theaters. We believe that this has to do with religion and politics because all political events and all religious events took place outside of temples or palaces. This seemed natural to the audience after being out-doors for formal events. People also believe that Athenian religion and theater were inter-related. It also has to do with politics because Thespis, being a winner of the first theatrical contest held at Athens; he became the leader of the dithyrambs performed in and around Attica, especially at the rural Dionysia. Dithyramb was an ancient Greek hymn sung and danced in honor of Dionysus, the god of wine and fertility; the term was also used as an epithet of the god. That is also another way that religion ties into theater because some plays and shows were to honor their gods. So because he was the winner of an acting contest he became the leader of the dithyrambs, which was an important position. Plato said “You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation.” I think that this could have been what other ancient Athenians thought. If the saw a person in a play and he was strong, determined, and brave then they thought that he/she would be good for a role in a political office.
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ReplyDeleteI thought this daily response was particularly interesting. I am very interested in theater and acting and it was intriguing to read about how something like theater can be connected to cultural aspects such as politics and religion. Very higher-level thinking response! Also, I thought that this was a great opportunity to appreciate the other things that Athens had to offer, as we only studied the political, democratic, and naval power of Athens. Great response!
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