Persians

Persians (Gk. Persai, Lat. Persae), Greek tragedy by Aeschylus, produced in 472 BC. Pericles was choregos.

The chorus of Persian elders express their anxiety for the fate of Xerxēs' expedition of 480 against Greece (see PERSIAN WARS), and Atossa, mother of Xerxes, tells of ominous dreams and portents. A messenger arrives and announces the disaster of Salamis, giving a vivid account of the battle and the destruction of the Persian fleet. The chorus call up the spirit of the dead Darius (father of Xerxes), who sees in the catastrophe the accomplishment of oracles and the punishment by the gods of excessive pride. He foretells the defeat at Plataea. Xerxes himself arrives and the play ends in general lamentations. The author displays a certain compassion for the vanquished, mingled with pride in the great victory of the Greeks.