Euripides was born on the island of Salamis in Ancient Greece. His life coincided with a period of great cultural and political effervescence in Classical Athens, although he himself was not Athenian by birth. He dedicated himself to writing tragedies, distinguishing himself from his predecessors by his more skeptical and humanist approach to myths. His characters are often portrayed with psychological depth, questioning the gods, justice, and human nature. Plays such as "Medea", "The Bacchae", "The Trojan Women", and "The Cyclops" (the only complete satyr play to have survived from Ancient Greece) exemplify his style and concerns. "Medea", in particular, is famous for its raw depiction of revenge and passion. Euripides is considered a precursor to modern drama for his psychological analysis and his critical approach to traditional narratives. He died in Pella, Macedonia.
Poems List
When good men die their goodness does not perish, But lives though they are gone. As for the bad, All that was theirs dies and is buried with them.
2
What is wisdom? What gift of the gods is held in glory like this: to hold your hand victorious over the heads of those you hate? Glory is precious forever.
3
Humility, a sense of reverence before the sons of heaven— of all the prizes that a mortal man might win, these, I say, are wisest; these are best.
2
To friends, or lead a sick man back to health With ease and plenty. Else small aid is wealth For daily gladness; once a man be done With hunger, rich and poor are all as one.
3
I would win my way to the coast, apple-bearing Hesperian coast of which the minstrels sing, where the Lord of the Ocean denies the voyager further sailing, and fixes the solemn limit of Heaven which giant Atlas upholds. There the streams flow with ambrosia by Zeus’s bed of love, and holy Earth, the giver of life, yields to the gods rich blessedness. 6
3
Would that I were under the cliffs, in the secret hiding-places of the rocks, that Zeus might change me to a winged bird.
2
Love distills desire upon the eyes, love brings bewitching grace into the heart of those he would destroy. I pray that love may never come to me with murderous intent, in rhythms measureless and wild. Not fire nor stars have stronger bolts than those of Aphrodite sent by the hand of Eros, Zeus’s child.
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