The Persians

Aeschylus’s The Persians celebrates the Greek victory at Salamis, but the tragedy is set entirely in the Persian court at Susa. Why did Aeschylus compose his tragedy this way? How does the mourning of the Persians underscore the magnitude of the Greek victory over them? Do you think that Aeschylus is sympathetic towards the Persians?

Teaching Suggestion: The question of how to interpret Aeschylus’s sympathy for the Persian characters of his play remains important among classical scholars, though it is generally agreed that the characters and events of this play say more about Aeschylus and his Greek audience than about the historical Persians. Students should be encouraged to think deeply about the ways in which Aeschylus uses the Persians and their “otherness” to construct Greek values. After students compose an initial response, they might find pieces of evidence in the form of dialogue or description in the play, then meet briefly with a partner to share and compare responses and evidence.

Differentiation Suggestion: English learners, students with dyslexia, and those with attentional or executive function learning differences might benefit from time-saving strategies when seeking text evidence. A prepared list of scenes or line ranges might be helpful for students to pinpoint the most relevant sections of text to limit the amount they need to review.