Persians

By: Aeschylus, Mark Will

Narrated by: Guy Bethell

Aeschylus’ historical tragedy Persians, with its dire warnings against the hubris of imperialist overreach, is as relevant today as it was when first presented to an Athenian audience in 472 BC. This new edition of the classic drama features a literal translation by Mark Will (translator of Fernando Pessoa’s Message) which reconstructs in contemporary English verse the epic cadences of the original Greek.

©2018 Mark Will and Cadmus & Harmony Media (P)2019 Mark Will and Cadmus & Harmony Media

persians, big fans of zeus

didnt know Darius the Great was such a big fan of Zeus. bad ass he learned the ways of the Force Ghost before he croaked thou

An ancient classic that remains relevant today

I thoroughly enjoyed this edition of Persians by Aeschylus, translated by Mark Will. This ancient Greek tragedy tells of the Persian King Xerxes' expedition against the Greeks, and his army's catastrophic loss against the enemy. In this play, Aeschylus warns against the hubris of imperial over-reach, which I must say has been relevant throughout the history of man. I also got the paperback copy and it includes some extra materials: a very helpful preface on the historical context of the play, relevant maps of the time, and some very interesting details regarding the author. There are also very helpful end notes which include explanations of terms and context, and production suggestions. Mark Will points out in the preface the continued relevance of this work by Aeschylus, despite the time that has lapsed since he wrote it, especially with the US-Middle East conflict in the recent years. He draws political parallels between the ancient and modern forms of imperialism. Will does an excellent job with this translation, being a poet himself. The lyrical verses flowed so well I read the entire text in one sitting. Thoroughly recommended.

Greeks writing about Persians?!

This was about as informative as Shahs of Sunset. What a surprise that a Greek from 500 BCE would make Xerxes look bad! The ‘300’ movie sound familiar? At least when he wrote Agamemnon there was some drama. This was as boooooring as non Basmati rice.

insightful classic play/ out of place narration

I opted to physically read this ancient greek tragedy, rather than listen to it. The narrator is a quick, mellow, smoothly spoken, British man- which feels VERY out of place for the content, which highlights strong emotions of mourning, crying, and sadness- I felt it needed bold, dramatic, Shakespearian narration. Love the content, but needs a different narration style.