What is Greek Literature?

Greek literature is that literature written in Greece and using its language , traditions and ways of thinking .

However, this term is often used as a synonym for the forms of poetic representation of Hellenic antiquity , that is, of Ancient Greece or Classical Greece (before 300 BC), since these were very influential in the formation of western artistic thought. Many of its great names endure and are read today.

This ancient literature would become the foundation of the current concept of literature and fine arts , since its works and achievements were transmitted to Latin and Roman culture, and then remained for centuries as an important reference in Western art, despite the fact that their motives were those of their specific religion and traditions.

Characteristics of Greek literature :

1. origins

The origins of Greek literature date back to at least 300 years before Christ , at the dawn of one of the most complete and admired civilizations in human history: Ancient Greece. It is unknown when this specific culture would have started to take place , and many of his first works would have been orally transmitted, as they were prior to writing as a support.

2. Poetry

Epic poetry contains tales of war or adventure in which myths are evoked.

The poetic genres of antiquity foreshadowed those that we know today and were, initially, two:

Epic poetry. Those literary representations of a narrative nature, written in verse and often accompanied by music , which were called epics . They used to contain tales of war or adventure, in which the myths and heroic tales of the culture were evoked .
Lyric poetry. Those literary representations destined to be sung and even danced (“lyrical” comes from their accompaniment with the lyre, a musical instrument) and that could be popular or cultured, according to the social class to which they were directed.

Note that by ” poetry ” the ancient Greeks did not refer to modern poetry, but to the literary task of everything.

3. Dramatic

Satire is a comic mockery of constituted powers.

In later stages, dramatic genres, that is, theatrical, were added to the poetic work, which were used in the civic formation of the polis, that is, of the Greek citizenship. There values were transmitted and the masses were politically educated. The dramatic genres are:

Tragedy. According to Aristotle , it consisted of the representation of men much greater and valuable than they were, and then moved the public with their fall. They used to take advantage of heroic myths and legends known to all.
Comedy. According to Aristotle, on the other hand, it consisted of representing men much lower than they are, in order to see their rise. Unfortunately Aristotelian considerations regarding this genre have been lost over the centuries.
Satire. It would come to be the humorous or burlesque representation, whose intention is the mockery and attack against the constituted powers.

4. Prose

Many prose authors have left an extensive nonfictional prose work.

Greek literature also featured prose works, derived from political oratory and the desire to make history , that is, to record the events that occur. In fact, thinkers like Plato and Aristotle, or historians like Herodotus, left behind an extensive non-fictional work (so to speak) that influenced future civilizations.

5. Oral transmission

Lyrical and epic poetry, unlike dramatic, show their oral origin, which is why they are often found in verse (as a form of memorization) . They were sung by reciters who composed their own songs (aedas) or who memorized epic fragments and recited them with the zither (rhapsodies).

6. Religiosity

Greek literature worshiped gods and deities that he recreated in his works.

The content of Greek literature used to be religious or mystical, to the extent that they took advantage of the stories and legends of their culture , which worshiped its various gods and deities daily, to recreate their works. Thus, the iconic characters of Greek literature, such as Oedipus, Achilles or Perseus, belong both to the popular imaginary of the time and to the different religious stories with which the tradition worshiped the gods.

7. Catharsis

A central concept in Greek literature and especially in drama, was catharsis : the purging of human passions through suffering , the suffering of emotions in a fictional environment. Thus, Greek citizens who attended the representation of a tragedy were returned to their homes much more at peace with their emotions and, thus, being able to respond better to them when the opportunity in real life presented itself.

8. Mythology

Greek mythology has motivated paintings, sculptures, stories and artistic works.

The Greek mythology , very present in his literary works, is one of the most vast and rich humanity . Their gods, demigods, deities and monsters have accompanied the West throughout the centuries and have motivated paintings, sculptures, stories and numerous artistic works in which they fulfill an archetypal function : very central symbols in our culture.

9. Best known works

Some of the best known works of Greek literature of the time are:

The Iliad.
The odyssey.
The theban cycle: Oedipus the King, Oedipus in Colonus, Seven against Thebes, Antigone, The supplicants, The Phoenicians.
The oresteia: Agamemnon, The coeforas, The eumenides.
The Works and days.
The Theogony.
The Homeric Hymns.

10. Great authors

Sophocles was one of the most important authors of Greek tragedy.

The great representatives of the Greek tradition are:

Homer. A supposedly blind rhapsodist, to whom the epic poems of the Iliad , the Odyssey, and an extensive set of Hymns (Homeric) are attributed .
Hesiod. Poet and first Greek philosopher, author of numerous essays and works of mythological inspiration.
Herodotus. Historian and author of the Greek cosmogony, he was one of the leading non-fiction authors of his time.
Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides. Most important dramatic authors of all Greek tragedy.
Plato and Aristotle. The great Greek philosophers Plato and Aristotle, creators of a work that will sustain future Western thought on their backs for centuries. Socrates should be next to them , but his thought was not recorded in writing.