Epigenes of Sicyon
Encyclopedia
Epigenes of Sicyon
was an Ancient Greek
tragic poet
. He has been confounded by some with his namesake
the comic poet.
He is mentioned by Suidas as the most ancient writer of tragedy. By the word "tragedy" here we can understand only the old dithyrambic and satyrical
tragôidia, into which it is possible that Epigenes may have been the first to introduce other subjects than the original one of the fortunes of origin, if at least we may trust the account which we find in Apostolius
, Photius, and Suidas, of the origin of the proverb ouden pros ton Dtonuson. This would clearly be one of the earliest steps in the gradual transformation of the old dithyrambic performance into the dramatic tragedy of later times, and may tend to justify the statement which ascribes the invention of tragedy to the Sicyonians.
We do not know the period at which Epigenes flourished, and the point was a doubtful one in the time of Suidas, who says that, according to some, he was the 16th before Thespis
, while, according to others, he almost immediately preceded him.
Sicyon
Sikyon was an ancient Greek city situated in the northern Peloponnesus between Corinth and Achaea on the territory of the present-day prefecture of Corinthia...
was an Ancient Greek
Ancient Greece
Ancient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...
tragic poet
Tragedy
Tragedy is a form of art based on human suffering that offers its audience pleasure. While most cultures have developed forms that provoke this paradoxical response, tragedy refers to a specific tradition of drama that has played a unique and important role historically in the self-definition of...
. He has been confounded by some with his namesake
Epigenes of Athens
Epigenes was an Athenian comic poet of the middle comedy.Pollux indeed speaks of him as neôn tis kômikôn, but the terms "middle" and "new," as Clinton remarks, are not always very carefully applied...
the comic poet.
He is mentioned by Suidas as the most ancient writer of tragedy. By the word "tragedy" here we can understand only the old dithyrambic and satyrical
Satyr play
Satyr plays were an ancient Greek form of tragicomedy, similar in spirit to burlesque. They featured choruses of satyrs, were based on Greek mythology, and were rife with mock drunkenness, brazen sexuality , pranks, sight gags, and general merriment.Satyric drama was one of the three varieties of...
tragôidia, into which it is possible that Epigenes may have been the first to introduce other subjects than the original one of the fortunes of origin, if at least we may trust the account which we find in Apostolius
Apostolius
Apostolius may refer to the following people:* Michael Apostolius , a Greek theologian and rhetorician of the 15th century.* Aristobulus Apostolius, one of Michael Apostolius's sons, Archdeacon of Rome and editor of the Galeomyomachia ....
, Photius, and Suidas, of the origin of the proverb ouden pros ton Dtonuson. This would clearly be one of the earliest steps in the gradual transformation of the old dithyrambic performance into the dramatic tragedy of later times, and may tend to justify the statement which ascribes the invention of tragedy to the Sicyonians.
We do not know the period at which Epigenes flourished, and the point was a doubtful one in the time of Suidas, who says that, according to some, he was the 16th before Thespis
Thespis
Thespis of Icaria , according to certain Ancient Greek sources and especially Aristotle, was the first person ever to appear on stage as an actor playing a character in a play...
, while, according to others, he almost immediately preceded him.