Since I did not have the opportunity to watch the live performance of Sophocles' Electra, I listened to the BBC Radio dramatized version of Electra.I first began to read the text of the play, but I had difficulty following the action. To me, the language used is eloquent and pleasing to the ear. However, it is also old fashioned and unfamiliar to me, and eventually I became frustrated and disenchanted with the story. I decided to listen to the radio version while I read the text, and the combined effort gave me a much more satisfying experience. The modern language that flowed into my ears helped me keep up with what was going on, while simultaneously following the words on the page with my eyes still let me appreciate the originality of the ancient text.
What impressed me the most about listening to BBC Radio's dramatized version was how the delivery of the presentation kept me engaged in the story even though I couldn't visually observe the occurring action. Here are two of the observations I made about how the voice actress who played the role of Chrysothemis applied delivery, one of the "canons" of ancient rhetoric, to develop her character and enhance the overall presentation:
1.) She sounded like the young, innocent little sister. I got this impression not from the dialogue but from her voice. A few key moments that gave me this impression are, first, when she sounded scared to disappoint her mother, and second, when she excitedly announced her belief that Orestes is still alive after returning back from her father's grave. In both instances (she could have been saying anything) her voice painted a picture in my mind of a naive, youthful, adolescent female.
2.) The voice actress did a great job of adding in exasperated (but not over-the-top) sighs, whining, tears, and other expressions of emotion to add description to a story I couldn't see. She helped me feel what she was feeling just from her expressions of sadness and self-pity.
I would love to hear from those who had the chance to go to the play whether Chrysothemis was similarly represented, or if the live actress demonstrated a different Chrysothemis than I encountered.
I really liked that you were able to listen to it, even though you didn't get to see anything it allows you to paint your own picture of what people look like and where they were located. Also I thought that in the play Chrysothemis was not so much of an adolescent female, although she was more premature than Electra
ReplyDeleteThat's an interesting way to experience it. I felt the same way reading it, it all went over my head. The voices and actions in the play helped dumb it down for me. I didn't always know exactly what she was saying, but I could tell by her throwing her arms up and the tone of her voice that Electra was whining...the whole time
ReplyDeleteI felt that Chrysothemis was definitely the younger sister, but in my opinion, Electra was more immature than Chrysothemis. But maybe because I link any whining directly to immaturity. Overall, Chrysothemis felt like she was trying to please whomever she was with, whether it be her mother or her sister.
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