Tragedy

Heracles is the central character in Sophocles’ Trachiniae and Euripides’ Heracles, and a secondary character in Euripides’ Alcestis and Sophocles’ Philoctetes. This chapter discusses these plays in detail, as well as summarizing references to Heracles in other surviving Greek tragedies and discussing what is known of his roles in lost plays. It also briefly discusses Seneca’s Hercules Furens and Hercules Oetaeus. It takes issue with Michael Silk’s argument that Heracles’ anomalous (god-man) status made him unsuitable for tragedy. The two great tragic moments in Heracles’ story were his madness and the end of his life. Euripides offers a comprehensive account of his career up to the killing of his family, while Sophocles’ focus on the sack of Oechalia and its consequences gave him the opportunity to portray another of the mighty but ambiguous heroes who feature in all his surviving plays.