Sophocles' Antigone: A New Translation for Today's Audiences and Readers

This new translation of Sophocles' Antigone, one of the cornerstones of Ancient Greek Tragedy, is meant to satisfy several parameters: (i) above all, to provide a text that can be immediately and easily understood and appreciated by a 21st century, English-speaking audience or reader, (ii) in so doing, to remain as faithful to the text and the spirit of the text as is possible, and (iii) neither to promote nor exclude flexibility in staging, choreography, and interpretation. The translator realizes that this is a task that is by its very nature impossible to perfect, and that usually the quality of any attempt is very much in the eye of the beholder. However, he strongly believes that there is an identifiable gap in affordable translations of Ancient Greek Theater, between those efforts that are virtually incomprehensible as a result of their antiquated vocabulary, awkward syntax, opaque idiom, and/or overwrought poetry, and those that take such liberty with the underlying text as to bear little relationship to the spirit of the original. Oliver Evans hopes to fill that gap, and that this translation will be enjoyed by audiences and readers alike. It is intended to be the first in a series of fresh translations of all the extant plays of Sophocles, perhaps to be followed by translations of Euripides and Aeschylus. Oliver Evans was educated at St. Paul's School, London, and Oxford University, where he graduated with a Double First and several awards in Classics. The play itself is, of course, the famous tragedy written by Sophocles (497-406BC) in or before 441BC. For more information on Antigone, the translator suggests starting with the entry in Wikipedia and following the references there. There is no introduction or interpretation in this edition.