Sophocles, a celebrated playwright for more than 50 years, was born in 496 BC just outside Athens, Greece. Sophocles began his writing career in 468 BC, when he took first prize in the Dionysia theatre competition over Aeschylus, the current reigning master of Athenian drama. During his writing career, Sophocles wrote a total of 123 plays, but only sven have survived. Sophocles changed many aspects of drama, most importantly by developing his characters more than earlier playwrights, and by adding a third actor. Sophocles died in 406 BC, at the age of ninety, and left behind a large influence on the development of drama. Sophocles is credited with the quote, “There is no witness so terrible, no accuser so powerful as conscience which