Recent symposium on Aeschylus’ Seven Against Thebes gathers variety of perspectives on the relevance of such discussions today

Notre Dame’s Classics Department invited speakers from a variety of fields to a discussion as part of its conference: “War, Trauma, Religion: Contemporary Perspectives on Aeschylus’ Seven Against Thebes.  Experts from a variety of fields including ancient siege warfare, the current war in Iraq, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) sought to provide an analysis of the ancient play with a newly broad scope and discuss its relevance in the modern day.

Written during the era of the Greeks’ victories against the Persians in the fifth century B.C., Seven Against Thebes is set against the backdrop of the mythical invasion of Thebes.  The story takes place within the span of a single day and remains within the setting of the Greek city.  The play sets up an emotionally charged narrative which culminates in Eteocles’ own death as he kills Polynices, the enemy commander and his own brother.  By this tragic confrontation Aeschylus raises the issues of conflict and its effect upon the self.  He is also able to illustrate the psychological processes that people use to dehumanize each other, thereby perpetuating vicious cycles of bloodshed that we see even today.

Colonel Kristen Janowsky of U.S. Army opened the discussion remarking on the lack of practical military knowledge displayed by Eteocles.  She noted that much of Seven Against Thebes is dominated by a Theban spy’s descriptions of the seven enemy champions who are leading the attacks on the city’s seven gates and Eteocles’ descriptions of his own champions in response.

Reading this, she questioned, “Why wasn’t the city prepared?  If I was the commander I would have plans and backup plans to defend the seven gates.  I would not wait until the spy came.”

Janowsky also argued that, as a commander, Eteocles should never have been exposed to battle on the front lines since the chain of command would likely fall apart should he die.  His disregard for these basic tactical rules, in her opinion, only illustrated his ineptness as a leader.

These comments elicited a mixed reaction from the present faculty.  Some took Janowsky’s comments as yet another criticism of the utility of Classical Studies and so focused on finding common ground with her in regards to the psychological effects of warfare.  Others made the point that, in the warrior culture of ancient Greece, Eteocles would have looked odd for refusing to fight on the front lines.  In this way they sought to engage Janowsky more directly in the question of the military tactics displayed in the play.  This attempt to bridge the gap between perspectives was a common theme throughout the length of the conference and eventually led to the topic of self-progression in war.

In this regard academic opinion was entirely in line with Janowsky, who remarked that in war “there is a progression of yourself as a warrior.”  In many ways this is a fundamental theme of the play and leads to the question of why that progression ended for Eteocles in the killing of his brother.

Professor Mark Griffith of the University of California Berkeley noted in a later interview, “[Janowsky’s] points tied very well with our interest in the experience of being in battle and inflicting damage and how psychological affecting it is.”

Griffith also raised the question, “How are veterans affected by their own memories and what do noncombatants feel when they see [the play]?”  In other words, what effect does war have when viewed vicariously, or from a less personal perspective?

According to Janowsky, some soldiers are able to reintegrate back into society with some therapy and return to normal civilian life.  Others never heal completely and continue to be negatively affected by their experience of war throughout life.

Eteocles shares the characteristics of PTSD victims such as mood swings and erratic behavior, which culminates in his decision to face his brother in combat, resulting in his own death.  In this regard the symposium’s rereading of Seven Against Thebes makes clear that the play carries an enormous weight of meaning regarding our current understanding of war, even as it seeks to look at the past through the lens of our present.

Although sought after extensively by numerous Notre Dame sports teams, sophomore Jack Kessler declined in order to focus on his studies in philosophy and mathematics and from a desire to “not make all our athletes look bad.”  Contact him at jkessle3@nd.edu.