Sophocles Influence On Greek Mythology

Ancient Greece was a time when mythology thrived the most. Influenced by the folklore of his own birthplace, Sophocles was one of the many contributors to the writings of Greek mythology. Not only was he influenced by his home, Sophocles’ works were also greatly impacted by his time in public office. His loyalty to his birthplace was the reason he never left and even held public office. A well educated dramatist and loyalist from Colonus in Athens, Greece, Sophocles was known for his innovative, theatrical plays before his death. Born Colonus stands in Athens, Greece, to an armor manufacturer, Sophilus (Buller; Mastin). According to Buller, his father’s wealth contributed to Sophocles’ high education. He excelled in school, especially wrestling and creative subjects including writing (Sienkewicz). Not too long after his birth, his city sparked conflict with Persia, which first ignited patriotism in young Sophocles (Sienkewicz).

For example, Colonus became the setting for many of Sophocles’ known plays (Mastin). Even the community’s legend of Oedipus, a Theban king, became the main character for Sophocles’ tragedies (Buller). As stated by Sienkewicz, “It may be attributable to the well known patriotism of Sophocles, who did not follow the example of many contemporary artists, including Aeschylus and Euripides, in leaven Athens for the court of a foreign patron.” By this he means that Sophocles’ love for Athens was the reason he never left his home, even if another kingdom offered him more money. Another of Sophocles’ muses that he looked up to was Aeschylus, a dramatist that lived before him. In Mastin’s, “Ancient Greece- Sophocles”, he states that Sophocles respected Aeschylus so much that he went as far as to imitate his work and style until he developed his own. Sophocles was not a man of many muses, but his inspirations impacted his work