Download Lysias, Against Eratosthenes, 1-36

AS Greek
• Unit G1: Greek Language (1.5 hrs)
• Unit G2: Greek Verse and Prose
Literature (1.5 hrs)
– Homer, Iliad 16
– Lysias, Against Eratosthenes, 1-36
Lysias: The Exam
You will be presented with a passage (or passages)
of the text:
• Translation question
– c. 5 lines
– Worth 30% marks
– Needs to be accurate and fast
• Literary evaluation questions
• Mini-essay
– 10 marks
– Approx. 15 mins
• Knowledge of context/factual background to the
text
– 1 mark questions
Key Skills
• Ability to translate the text accurately and
quickly
• Ability to offer literary evaluation of short
passages
• Ability to write mini-essays on whole-text
issues e.g. how Lysias makes his speech
dramatic and engaging, the importance of
characterisation to his case
• You also need to know the historical context
of the speech
Lysias
Lysias:
Against Eratosthenes
• Lysias was one of the canon of ancient
orators
• Against Eratosthenes is one of the most
famous speeches surviving from ancient
Greece
• A forensic (legal) speech delivered in Athens
• Highly emotionally charged: Lysias is
prosecuting someone for the murder of his
brother
Upheaval
Peloponnesian
war
Athens vs.
Sparta
The Case
Sparta wins & sets
up new
government in
Athens = the
Thirty Tyrants
Bitter feelings,
old grievances
‘Thirty’ killed metics
and citizens to
gain wealth and
secure their
regime
Lysias’ brother (a
metic) killed,
Lysias escapes
Factions,
power struggles
404-402 BC
Rapid change
‘Thirty’ defeated in
battle by rebel
Athenians
Democracy restored
Amnesty for all actions
during Thirty’s
reign – but Thirty
had to undergo
public scrutiny
Lysias prosecutes E
Problem 1: This is a public
prosecution
• The case is part of the public process of
‘euthunai’ – the scrutiny of the Thirty’s
actions
• This meant that Lysias could not focus
just on the personal issue of his
brother’s death
Problem 2: Eratosthenes
was a ‘moderate’ tyrant
• Supporter of the leading moderate
Theramenes
• Theramenes regarded by Athenian
public as a brave and heroic resister,
who died for his beliefs
• Eratosthenes did not actually kill Lysias’
brother – he only arrested him
Problem 3: Rhetoric and the
Courts
• What part does speech making play in
our lives today?
• When & where do we hear speeches?
• Who gives speeches?
Rhetoric was crucial to Athenian life
• Gorgias compared the art of persuasion to magic
• Demosthenes called democracy a ‘constitution of speechmaking’
• Athens was a radical democracy – i.e. decisions made by the
people in the agora on the basis of speeches
• Large citizen juries in the law courts
• ‘Display’ speeches (epideictic oratory)
• Rhetoric crucial to tragedy and comedy (performance crucial)
Rhetoric was crucial to power and a way of
asserting power and freedom
Rhetoric was a high-prestige art form (as well as
serving a practical function)
The Courts
• Very large juries – 201-2001 people
• Jury very powerful
– Decided the verdict
– Might decide the penalty
– Not bound by precedent
• Limited time
• Very noisy
• Litigants had to present their own cases – no
lawyers to do it for them
What tactics do you think
would bring success in these
conditions?
As a speaker, how would you
approach your task?
Two Rhetorical Styles
‘Gorgianic’ style
• Poetic language
• Grand and elaborate
sentences
construction
• Rhyming and word
patterns
• Balance, antithesis
• Metaphor
• Rhythm
‘Pure’ style
• Closer to everyday
speech
• Less contrived
sentence structure
• Less elevated
vocabulary
• Avoidance of elaborate
rhetorical effects e.g.
prose rhythm, rhyming,
word patterns
Lysias’ Style
• Purity of expression: current vs. archaic vocab
• Everyday language: absence of metaphor, figurative
language and poetic words
• Lucid
• Brevity of expression, ideas reduced to their essentials
• Artlessness, making what is said appear true to life
• Vivid descriptions of actions and characters
• Strong characterisation (ethopoiia) NB this is dramatic
character – it may not be true to real character
• Charm, good timing
• Also: antithesis – a more Gorgianic feature
Structure of the Speech
•
•
•
•
Proem
Narrative
Proofs
Epilogue
• We read up to mid-way through the
proofs section of Against Eratosthenes
Proem
• Important for establishing first impressions on jury
• Tailored to the individual circumstances, but full of usual rhetorical themes
Narrative
•
•
•
•
Needs to convince jury that litigant is speaking the truth
Needs to paint a clear, consistent and credible version of events
Needs to covey powerfully the client’s view of the case
Vivid, exciting, emotionally engaging
Proofs
• Inartificial proofs (ατεχνοι): evidence of witnesses, slaves, contracts, law
and oaths (but placing of these within the speech is important)
• Artificial proofs (εντεχνοι): moral character, emotional effect produced in
the listener, and argument (generally from probability). Lysias links these
closely with what has emerged during the narrative, adding to their
plausibility.
Narrative: Key functions
• Needs to convince jury that litigant is speaking the truth
• Needs to paint a clear, consistent and credible version of
events
• Needs to covey powerfully the client’s view of the case
• Vivid, exciting, emotionally engaging
Assessment Objectives
• AO1 Demonstrate Knowledge and
Understanding
– Recall and deploy relevant knowledge and
understanding of literary, cultural, material or historical
sources or linguistic forms, in their appropriate
contexts
• AO2 Analysis, Evaluation and Presentation
– Analyse, evaluate and respond to classical sources
as appropriate
– Select, organise and present relevant information and
argument in a clear, logical, accurate and appropriate
form
AO1 - Knowledge
AO2 - Analysis
AS Unit G1
50%
50%
AS Unit G2
50%
50%
A2 Unit G3
40%
60%
A2 Unit G4
40%
60%
Candidates should be able to:
• Demonstrate knowledge, an understanding and
an appreciation of Greek texts within their literary,
social and historical contexts as appropriate. This
includes translation of the Greek text into English
• Demonstrate an understanding of Greek literary
techniques
• Evaluate evidence and draw conclusions using
appropriate reference or quotation
• Produce personal responses to Greek literature
showing an understanding of the Greek text
Quality of Written
Communication
• Ensure that writing is legible, and that
spelling, punctuation and grammar are
accurate so that meaning is clear
• Select and use a form and style of writing
appropriate to the purpose and to the
complex subject matter
• Organise information clearly and coherently,
using specialist vocabulary where necessary