INTRODUCTION of the KONSTANTINOS ATH.

OIKONOMOUS BOOK : Protesilaus

A. Protesilaus in the Greek Mythology

In the Trojan Cycle of the Greek Mythology, Protesilaus is referred to as king of Thessaly, son of Iphicles and Astiochia. His kingdom is located between the limits of todays province of Almyros, that is, from the area of Nea Achialos up to the area of Achillion of the town of Pteleos. The main cities of his dominion were Pyrasos (the port), Phylaki (the capital), Andron, Pteleos, Alos, Larissa Kremasti and others, while his kingdoms dominion reached Thaumaki and the lake Ksyniada. His kingdom bordered to the north that of Pelasgi and Iolkos, to the west that of Fthia- Myrmidons (area of Farsala) or Fthiotis Tetras and Thessaliotis, and to the south Malis (Lamia) and Dolopia. Finally, to the east there was the Bay of Pagasitikos. Protesilaus was one of tens of Greek kings candidate spouses of the famous Helen of Troy. Just before her choice of the Spartan, Menelaus, as her husband, her suitors, --among whom were Antilochus, Ajax son of Oileus, Ajax son of Telamon, Menelaus, Diomedes, Polypoetes, Elpinor, Eumelus, Podalirius, Ideas, Leonteas, Philoktetes* and otherswere put under oath in the presence of Agamemnon, and the brothers of HelenCastor and Polydeukes, known as Dioskouriand the parents of Helen, that they ( her suitors ) would always stand as guarantors of the marriage of Helen whoever would be selected to this much enviable position. So, after Paris abducted Helen, Protesilaus was obliged to take part in this campaign for the punishment of Paris, which became known as The Trojan War. It was an unfortunate coincidence that only the day before he had wedded Laodamia*, daughter to the king of Iolkos, Akastus. Because of his rush to leave for Troy, it is said that he forgot the customary sacrifices in honour of the Goddess Artemis. According to Homer,

Protesilaus took part in the campaign with 40 ships. In Troy he was the first victim of the Greeks. His death, as they say, is due to a prophecy-oracle of the Goddess Thetis. Thetis foretold that the first Greek to set foot on Trojan ground would be killed instantly. Despite knowing the oracle, Protesilaus was so full of enthusiasm that he disembarked first. There, having killed many of his opponents, he received a fatal blow by Hector, who was guided by Artemis, the Goddess sister of the God patron of Troy, Apollo. Protesilaus went to the under world, but he was inconsolable for his misfortune. Wishing a temporary return, he addressed Pluto and asked to be permitted to ascend to the upper world. When Pluto consents, Protesilaus returns to his home and meets Laodamia. His wife is in depression because of his absence and fools herself by an image-likeness of her beloved. Having realized the death of Protesilaus, Laodamia wishes to follow him by committing suicide. Our sources as for Protesilaus are very limited. Our hero is mentioned in the Iliad, Rhapsody B, where there is the enumeration of all those Greeks who took part in the campaign (B 698-710). The Original Text of the Iliad .. .. After the fall of Troy, the Greeks erected a monument outside the walls of the burnt-down city to honour the dead Thessalian king. B. Worshiping Protesilaus After his death this great hero was worshiped as a demigod in the town of Eleouda, East Thrace, where his grave was said to be. Historical sources mention that his grave was looted in the beginning of the 5th century B.C., by a Persian Satrap who was later arrested and executed by the Greeks

while the treasures of the grave were taken back. Arrianus wrote that Alexandre the Great, in the beginning of his famous campaign, offered sacrifices over the grave of Protesilaus in the hope that he wouldnt have the destiny of the hero when stepping Asia. Philostratus (3rd century A.D.) mentions that in Eleouda there is a statue of the hero. It stood on a base which showed the bow of a ship. In the same area, coins were cut with a similar representation. Plinius ( 34.76) mentions that in his era there was a statue of Protesilaus crafted by the sculptor Dinomenes. Today, in the Art Museum of New York and the corresponding British Museum, two copies of a lost bronze statue are saved, representing the Thessalian hero. Surely our knowledge of the hero would be much more, had Euripides tragedy Protesilaus been saved. Unfortunately, only few fragments of 10-12 verses are saved. Another version of the myth says that Laodamia, after the confirmation of her husbands death, killed herself by throwing herself into the fire where, previously, her father Acastus had thrown the likeness of Protesilaus his daughter kept. Even someone younger than Homer, that is Hesiod, presents Protesilaus as son of Actor and uncle of Podarkes. His younger still, Eustathius, claims that the real name of the hero was Iolaus and that the name Protesilaus was given to him post-mortem. The Latin, Yginus, A.D. writer, refers to Diomedia as mother of the hero*. Many modern scholars see behind this legendary story a hidden vampirism, which can be observed in other peoples folk tales as well. That is, the dead man returns scary and eerie and makes Laodamia follow him. The author rejected this point of view, preferring the version which presents Laodamia taking her decision deliberately and consciously and thus following her beloved one to the Underworld. This version is shared by most indirect sources. After all, a love story like this, even nowadays with the marginalization of pure feelings and the glorification of unrestrained hedonism, (this love story) can become a model of pure and selfless love. Protesilaus is also the central character in an unusual

dialogue by Philostratus (3 rd century A.D.), under the title Heroic. This dialogue is between a winegrower from Thrace and Protesilaus. In the dialogue, the Thessalian king recounts the events of the Trojan War in a different way than Homer does. Finally, Lucian in two of his Dialogis Funus (funeral dialogues), deals with Protesilaus. The second one of these (which is quoted on their whole below) was practically the only source for this play. . . A Song by M. Plessas. Lyrics by Kostas Virros Let me, Charon, move on, to find the one I love I want to kiss her sweetly, to tell her a few words I found and drank the blur bitter water of oblivion Would I be able to get her out of my poor heart? But from my moist sight, not a minute could she be erased W hat if you my Charon, throw me down the deepest darkness Let me just for a night go to see and to be seen (by her) To sweeten her every sorrow and, and maybe, bring her down here. It is worth noting, that in 1973, the asteroid of the Trojan Group 3540, was named after Protesilaus. C. The Structure of the Drama By the way the ancient tragedies (with a corresponding content) are developed, the author has kept (as far as possible) the poetic expression of the fifteen-syllable verse,

art times with a lyric and at others with a poetic form. The author has avoided the development of the classical era, keeping eclectically some of the characteristics that resemble it. Thus, fro example, in the tragedy he introduces the Chorus, which consists of spirits of dead people from Hades, and only in the 3rd and 5th Act he introduces the angelic sayings dialogues through which someone can indirectly transfer major incidents that would otherwise be difficult to be described or dramatized on stage. Through a dialogue between Agamemnon-Odysseus-Hector, the audience is informed of the tragic end of Protesilaus (2nd Act), while in the narration of the maid we learn of the episodic meeting between Laodamia and her father (4th Act). Another characteristic of the ancient drama maintained in the present play is the appearance of the so-called Deus ex Machina. In this case it is Artemis who by intervening brings redemption to the loving couple. As for the division of the play in Scenes, the author was based upon the western (European) theatre (Shakespeare). Thus, it is divided into 5 Acts-units, which are in turn divided into 3 Scenes. The first act shows the wedding preparations and the announcement of the extremely urgent call of Protesilaus to take part in the Trojan War. In the second act the events in Troy are presented, along with the introduction to the drama of Philoctetes, as well as the death of Protesilaus. In the third act, the main character-hero appears as a spirit in Hades, where, with the intervention of Hecate and the appearance of Admetus, Alkestis and Erysichthon, he manages to be heard by the king and queen of the U underworld. In the fourth act the audience is transported to the dead kings palace and witnesses the plight of Laodamia, the aversion of the divineto a point of hubris-- by the dead kings mother and the reactions of Laodamias parents and her father-in-laws. The fifth act also takes place in the palace of Phylaki, where the tragic hero meets his beloved wife. With the guidance of Hermes and

the intervention of Artemis (the goddess gives the best possible solution) the couple is led to the Elysian Fields.