Aeschylus was the earliest of the great
tragic poets and
theater play writers of
Athens. He was the son of Euphorion and he was born in Eleusis in 525-524 B.C. He was the first to develop more characters in his plays and therefore create a plot by introducing dialogues among actors.
Aeschylus is the one that
transformed tragedy completely. He reduced the number of chorus members from fifty to twelve and he began using a second actor, creating this way a more flexible drama. He also invented the trilogy of plays on one theme. The topics of his tragedies were based on old myths to express fundamental questions of human life.
Aeschylus
won his first prize in 484 B.C., with an unknown trilogy, probably lost. Of the more than 80 known plays of Aeschylus, only seven of his plays have survived and give a good view of his development as a dramatist.
Persai, 472 B.C. (The Persians): This play is unique as the plot is not drawn from mythology but from recent history, the glorious victory of the Persian War. It is also believed that in this choice of topic played a very important role the fact that Aeschylus has fought in the Battle of Marathon and possibly at Salamis.
Hepta epi Thebes, 467 B.C. (Seven against Thebes): It is the story of the battle for the throne of Thebes between the two sons of Oedipus, Polynices and Eteocles, and the other six Theban champions who joined Polynices in his attempt to regain the throne.
Hiketides, 463 B.C. (The Suppliants): This play tells the story of the fifty daughters of Danaos who flee from the land of the Nile to Argos in order to escape from their unwanted marriage to their cousins.
Oresteia, 458 B.C.: This is the only trilogy that has survived telling the story of the last part of vengeance in the family of Atreus.
Prometheus Desmotis (Prometheus Bound): It tells the story of the torchure of the Titan Prometheus who gave the gift of fire to mankind.
Aeschylus visited Hiero, the king of Syracuse, to produce tragedies there and he died in Gela, Sicily in 456 – 455 B.C.