Philoctetes
by Sophocles · Φιλοκτήτης
Assigned by 2 of the 9 reading lists, catalogue entry only
- Written
- 409 BCE
- Form
- Tragedy
- Language
- Greek
- Length
- Short · 60 ppunder 120 pages
- Difficulty
- Moderate2 of 5 for a first-year reader
We recommendSophocles II: Ajax, The Women of Trachis, Electra, Philoctetes, The Trackers, translated by David GreneUniversity of Chicago Press, 2013The Chicago Complete Greek Tragedies, third edition, with the other four surviving plays outside the Theban cycle.
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Ten years earlier the Greeks abandoned Philoctetes on the island of Lemnos because of his festering, stinking foot wound. Now a prophecy says Troy cannot fall without him and his bow. Odysseus brings Achilles' young son Neoptolemus to trick him into coming. Neoptolemus wins the sick man's trust, takes the bow, and then cannot go through with the deception. Only Heracles, appearing from the sky, persuades Philoctetes to sail to Troy and be healed.
No reading guide yet
The catalogue entry above is complete: the dates, the form, the themes and every program that assigns Philoctetes are verified against each program's published list.
What is missing is the part that takes real work: the summary, the key passages, and a recommended translation. The edition named below is the one most programs assign, so the buy links are useful already.
