The Suppliants: Translated by F L Light
Category: Books,Literature & Fiction,Classics
The Suppliants: Translated by F L Light Details
The fifty daughters of Danaos have with their father fled by ship from Egypt, escaping compulsatory marriage with their fifty cousins, the sons of Aegyptos. They arrive in Argos, where, by supplication to the king and people, they seek refuge from their cousins, who sailed in pursuit. Their devout abhorrence of the marriage is the weightiest theme of the play.
Reviews
This is the first play of a trilogy by Aeschylus (c. 525-456 B. C.), the other two being lost (Aeschylus wrote over seventy plays of which only seven are extant). It begins the story of the daughters of Danaus. The brothers Aegyptus and Danaus were descendents of Io. Aegyptus had fifty sons and Danaus had fifty daughters and the sons are determined to marry their cousins. The daughters flee to Argos, seeking sanctuary from Pelasgus, King of Argos. The play, which contains very little action, is really serving as a prologue to the other two missing members of the trilogy.