by David Seale
University of Chicago Press, 1982
Cloth: 978-0-226-74404-9 | Paper: 978-0-226-18174-5
Library of Congress Classification PA4417.S45 1982
Dewey Decimal Classification 882.01

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ABOUT THIS BOOK
In this study, David Seale argues that Sophocles’s use of stagecraft, which has thus far received little attention, was as sophisticated as that of Aeschylus or Euripides. His discussions of the physical and visual elements of Sophocles's seven plays center around the theme of sight; he demonstrates that each play is staged to maximize the implications and effects of “seeing” and not “seeing,” of knowledge and ignorance. This emphasis on visual perception, Seale maintains, harmonizes with Sophocles’s use of verbal and thematic techniques to create dramatic movements from delusion to truth, culminating in climaxes that are revelations—moments when things are truly “seen” by both audience and characters.