Synopses & Reviews
Available for the first time as an independent work, David Grenes legendary translation of
Oedipus the King renders Sophocles Greek into cogent, vivid, and poetic English for a new generation to savor. Over the years, Grene and Lattimores
Complete Greek Tragedies have been the preferred choice of millions of readers—for personal libraries, individual study, and classroom use. This new, stand-alone edition of Sophocles searing tale of jealousy, rage, and revenge will continue the tradition of the University of Chicago Presss classic series.
Praise for David Grene and Richmond Lattimores Complete Greek Tragedies
“This is it. No qualifications. Go out and buy it everybody.”—Kenneth Rexroth, Nation
“The translations deliberately avoid the highly wrought and affectedly poetic; their idiom is contemporary. . . . They have life and speed and suppleness of phrase.”—Times Education Supplement
Synopsis
Since it was first performed in Athens in the 420s BC, Oedipus the King has been widely regarded as Sophocles' greatest tragedy and one of the foundation stones of Western drama. Don Taylor's translation, accurate yet poetic, was made for a BBC TV production of the Theban plays in 1986, which he also directed.
About the Author
David Grene (1913-2002) taught classics for many years at the University of Chicago. He was a founding member of the Committee on Social Thought and coedited the University of Chicago Presss prestigious series The Complete Greek Tragedies.