首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
外语
DRAMA IN ANCIENT GREECE 1 Long before the ancient Greeks could read and write, they learned of their history and culture throu
DRAMA IN ANCIENT GREECE 1 Long before the ancient Greeks could read and write, they learned of their history and culture throu
admin
2012-01-14
32
问题
DRAMA IN ANCIENT GREECE
1 Long before the ancient Greeks could read and write, they learned of their history and culture through epic poetry chanted by bards or singers. The bards chanted stories in standard musical phrases that were accompanied by musical instruments such as the lyre, a general name for any of several stringed instruments favored by the bards. The greatest bard, Homer, was a poet, singer and master of the lyre. According to tradition, Homer was a wandering minstrel who traveled from place to place chanting stories of gods and heroes. Another famous poet, singer, and lyre player was Sappho, who started a school for girls, where she taught the arts of music, poetry, and dance.
2 Greek civilization reached a
golden
age during the fifth century BC, when politics, philosophy, art, architecture, and theater thrived, as they never had before. As the Greeks took new pride in human achievements, they developed ideals of beauty, order, balance, and moderation throughout their culture, including music and drama.
3 Early drama was associated with the worship of the god Dionysus and was an
outgrowth
of the choral songs and dances performed in honor of the god. The famous outdoor Theater of Dionysus in Athens showed the importance of drama to the Greeks. It was situated on a hillside to take advantage of the natural slope and light, and it could accommodate an audience of 30,000 people. A chorus of singers, dancers, and musicians, led by a singer who stood on steps above them, performed stories that educated and entertained the audience while honoring the god.
4 The crucial innovation that turned choral performance into drama is attributed to Thespis, a poet who is said to have originated tragedy. As the chorus sang the story of a hero or god, Thespis would enter the theater as a masked actor. Between songs, he recited verses as a character in the story, and these spoken verses changed what had been a choral monologue into a dialogue between the actor and the chorus. The
legacy
of Thespis can be seen in the term "thespian," which now describes anything relating to drama.
5 Actors of that time wore a large mask made of linen or cork, inside
which
was a device like a speaking trumpet to amplify the voice. When the actor recited, it was in an exalted monotone, often to the accompaniment of flutes. The chorus enhanced the tragedy with various dances and songs, generally accompanied by the lyre. The actor chanted the lines of the lead character, while the chorus sang the narrative passages.
Still, despite the attention the actor received, the Chorus and its music continued to dominate dramatic performances with the combined power of singing and dancing.
6 Like Thespis, the playwright Aeschylus acted in his own plays, but he added a second masked actor. Now audience attention could be directed to the interplay between the two actors—action and reaction, question and answer, conflict or cooperation—rather than between the actor and chorus. A later playwright, Sophocles, added a third actor. This made possible not only three-way dramatic scenes but also plays with a large cast of characters, since the masks allowed an actor to play more than one part in different scenes. The addition of actors shifted the focus of drama away from the chorus toward the action and dialogue of the characters.
7 Playwrights continued to introduce innovations, but essentially they
adhered to
prescribed conventions. One of these conventions limited the number of scenes in a play to five. The drama always took place in one location and within a short span of time, sometimes a single day. Another convention reflected the society’s sense of balance and order: bloody deeds rarely took place in front of the audience. Therefore, murders, suicides, and other acts of violence occurred offstage. The Greek concept of moderation is reflected in still another convention, in which any character who acted in an excess of passion was usually punished in the story.
Glossary:
choral: relating to a chorus, a group of singers or dancers who perform together
chorus: a group of singers or dancers who perform together
According to the passage, what did Homer and Sappho have in common?
选项
A、Both started a school of the arts.
B、Both lived in the same century.
C、Both were skilled lyre players.
D、Both acted in plays that they wrote.
答案
C
解析
Both Homer and Sappho were skilled lyre players. Clues: Homer, was a...master of the lyre; Another famous...lyre player was Sappho....(1.1)
转载请注明原文地址:https://jikaoti.com/ti/nIlYFFFM
0
托福(TOEFL)
相关试题推荐
Lookatthefollowingstatements(Questions6-9)andthelistofresearchersbelow.Matcheachstatementwiththecorrectresear
Youshouldspendabout20minutesonQuestions27-40whicharebasedonReadingPassage3below.Helium’sFutureUpintheAirA
Youshouldspendabout20minutesonQuestions27-40whicharebasedonReadingPassage3below.Helium’sFutureUpintheAirA
Inthelastdecadearevolutionhasoccurredinthewaythatscientiststhinkaboutthebrain.Wenowknowthatthedecisionshu
ThePearlA.Thepearlhasalwayshadaspecialstatusintherichandpowerfulallthroughthehistory.Forinstance,women
Lookatthefollowingopinionsordeedsandthelistofpeoplebelow.Matcheachopinionordeedwiththecorrectperson,A,
CompanyInnovationA.InashabbyofficeindowntownManhattan,agroupof30AI(artificialintelligence)programmersfrom
Tiktaalikrosaeisconsideredtobeanevolutionary______.【34】
Theprofessorsaysthatsuperhighways______.【27】
ChooseTWOletters,A-E.WhichTWOpossibleobjectionstoaroofgardenarediscussed?AproblemsofaccessBthecostofconstr
随机试题
肺胀痰浊壅肺证的治法是
我国国民经济和社会发展系统中最重要的一对关系是()。
无风险利率与期权的价值呈正相关关系。()
某企业2005年末现金余额为10万元;2005年实现销售收入1000万元,2006年预计销售收入1500万元,该公司每年实现的销售收入在当年收现60%,第二年收现40%,2006年预计其他现金收入80万元;2005年末应付账款余额120万元,2006年预
下列各项,会影响企业资本公积总额的有()。
东林公司是一家民营高科技企业,专门研发、生产和销售户外LED屏幕。经过多年的发展,公司产品在本省占有率达到40%,控股子公司有8个,总经理由职业经理人担任。公司的实际控制人张某深感内部控制制度的建立健全对公司可持续发展的重要性。公司给办公大楼都安装了24小
被苏轼赞为“诗中有画,画中有诗”的唐代诗人是()。
根据下列资料,回答问题。2014年3月,全国居民消费价格总水平同比上涨2.4%,其中,城市上涨2.5%,农村上涨2.1%,食品价格上涨4.1%,非食品价格上涨1.5%。消费品价格上涨2.2%,服务价格上涨2.81%。1—3月平均,全国居民消费价格
作风建设的核心是()
关于派生类的说法,不正确的是()。
最新回复
(
0
)