Author! Author!

[Gumtree]

Traude: No, our author lived a long and productive life but sadly has now left us.

PatH You're right about the optimism - I live in hope.

Roshanarose No, not Mr Chips - this one is a PLAY

[Gumtree]

AUTHOR:1. I wrote short stories, a novel, non fiction work, essays, filmscripts and of course my own autobiography however I am chiefly regarded as one of the leading playwrights of my time.

2. My life and work placed me inthe limelight and for decades I moved among some of the great figures on the world scene.
I have had a lifelong commitment to human rights and worked to alleviate the suffering of writers who were victims of repressive regimes.

PLAY:  1.This play is perhaps the most popular and enduring of my author's work.

2. This play is generally considered to be the author's masterpiece. It won the Pulitzer and did a lot to consolidate his reputation as a significant dramatist.

CHARACTER: 1. I am an ordinary man, fairly inarticulate and perhaps a little unimaginative - never quite able to express my real thoughts and feelings. I guess I have never quite discovered just who I am.

2. My life and my family have become hollow and false by the very things I need to live by in order to survive. Success is very important to me but yet eludes me.


Haven't yet given up hope of a 'flurry' - C'mon, it's easy.

[JoanK]

ROSE: I'll bet you're right!!

[Frybabe]

re: Washington Square

What a coincidence. I discovered one of the channels was running it last night, so I watched. I really loved the women's costumes. Now I am going to have to read the book. Project Gutenberg has James's books and stories listed, so I don't have to go find a book.

I am afraid to hazard a guess on this one, although I have someone and his play in mind. The playwright I have in mind died just five years ago.

[straudetwo]

Regarding the new challenge:  my first thought  yesterday was of Clifford Odets, but then we don't know whether we are looking for an American.  Also, I'm not satisfied he "matches" all the clues.  Back to puzzling.

Re Washington Square: Frybabe,  I'm glad you saw The Heiress.  The Oscar recipients all did a magnificent job, especially Olivia de Havilland IMHO.  Edith Head was awarded an Oscar for designing those gorgeous costumes.  
For the sake of accuracy, there were four Oscars (not 7) and seven Nominations.

[roshanarose]

Death of a Salesman

[roshanarose]

Can't recall who the playwright is.  Arthur Miller?

[Frybabe]

That's who I had in mind Roshanarose.

[Gumtree]

Traude - no, not Clifford Odets but I did consider him as a subject.

YIPPEE!  HOORAY!   BINGO! 

ROSHANAROSE HAS IT - YOU LITTLE BEWDY !

Glad you got it so quickly. 

Arthur Miller and Salesman are so well known that they're pretty hard to disguise. To my mind Miller wrote a couple of THE best modern tragedies with Salesman and The Crucible. His essay on the tragic form is well worth the read.


I'm so tempted to get Washington Square down from the shelves and read it again - but I feel I need to compose myself in order to read James.

[straudetwo]

Wonderful ! Well done, Roshanarose !

[JoanK]

GUM: that was a wonderful description of Willie Loman -- I like Miller a lot, too.

[roshanarose]

Oh Gosh!  Thanks for the very sound Congratulations, Gum.  Thanks others, too

Like you said about Lady Jane Grey, you handed me the clues on a platter.  "The Crucible" is a true work of art.  I love Miller.  I think Dustin Hoffman was in the movie of the play "Death of a Salesman".  To me he seemed just right.

Please give me a day or two.  I have in mind a biography, but need to streamline it a bit.

[Gumtree]

Yes I prefer Crucible to Salesman but it's comparing apples and oranges - both are truly superb and tragic in every sense of the word.
They also deal with a man's need to maintain his own 'good name' and the respect of his neighbours which was an issue close to Millers heart.

The Dustin Hoffman film version of Salesman was exceptional but so were the films by Lee J Cobb and Frederic March - doesn't get any better than that.

Daniel Day Lewis did a fairly recent film of The Crucible and I seem to remember one with Christopher Plummer - or maybe Paul Schofield.

[straudetwo]

Gumtree,  the choice of Arthur Miller was inspired.  What riches we share!

i never saw Frederic March in Death of a Salesman but at some point I did see Lee J. Cobb in the role of Willy Loman.   I remerber reading that Arthur Miller wrote the play in 1949 for Lee J. Cobb, who  starred in it on Broadway.  

Cobb was a magnificent, versatile actor, credible in every role he played,  from the serious to the comedic. For example,  he was one of the unnamed jurors in the movie 12 Angry Men, a classic with Henry Fonda, and equally persuasive (wonderful, in fact) as Frank Sinatra's father in Come Blow your Horn.And that goes also for Molly Picon as Sinatra's mother.

[roshanarose]

Daniel Day-Lewis is a very accomplished actor imho.  From the boy in "My Left Foot" to the charismatic and athletic Hawkeye in "The Last of the Mohicans" Day-Lewis is right up there with the best of them.  I am sure you know that he is married to Rebecca Miller, Arthur's daughter.  

I am scuffling around in my piles of history books.  Aha ...  my eye has alighted on the very one I am going to use to put my challenge together.  A hint already.  

Today my youngest grandson had his first Holy Communion.  All the beautiful little children waiting for God's hand.  It was a big day.  Harry was dressed in a perfectly tailored dark suit with a dove gray shirt and satin tie.... he is 9.  I told him that if he didn't grow anymore he could wear it to his wedding.  He thought that was a hoot.  Ahhhh ... the gift of children. 

I gave Harry a book about Ancient Greek for his Communion and taught him to say "Thank You" in Greek.  The word Eucharist was on the front cover of our singing book for the event and he enjoyed the connection I told him between the word in English and its meaning in Greek.  I will make a Greek scholar of him yet 

[Gumtree]

Gumtree,  the choice of Arthur Miller was inspired.  What riches we share!

Cobb was a magnificent, versatile actor, credible in every role he played,  from the serious to the comedic.

Traude Thank you. Riches indeed.

I think I became a lifelong fan of Lee J Cobb after seeing him in Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse sometime in the early 1960s. I must see if that's on DVD these days.

[Gumtree]

GUM: that was a wonderful description of Willie Loman -- I like Miller a lot, too.

JoanK:  Willie is heartbreaking.  I've been a fan of Miller almost ever since he hit his straps. He is so insightful.  His so-called  'lesser' plays have plenty to say too.

Roshanarose Sounds like a lovely day with your Grandson. A memory to be treasured.

I'm a fan of the Day-Lewises (father and son) and knew about Daniel and Rebecca Miller. The father, Cecil Day-Lewis was British Poet Laureate and also wrote mysteries under the pseudonym of Nicholas Blake. He also translated Virgil - Aeneid and Georgics and I don't know what else. A talented family I believe.

[roshanarose]

Author:

Our historian was born in Chaeronea, Boeotia in Greece c.AD45.

Character:

The protagonist is from Ancient Greek history.  I won’t give a date yet, but see if you can identify him by his deeds.  Don't be confused by the DOB of the historian,  he was a secondary source.

His father was Athenian, his mother an alien.  Although our protagonist was not pure blood Athenian this did not stop him from rising to the highest echelons of Greek government and politics.

[Gumtree]

Well, I guess we all know who the historian was - now to think of the protagonist ...

[Gumtree]

Yep! got the protagonist too   -   I'll keep my mouth shut this time.

[JoanK]

You're to smart for us, Gum.

I just bought an anthology of the Classical historians, but haven't read more than a few pages. Should I go look him up?

[straudetwo]

A great challenge!

I have a clear idea of the author. But the protagonist is identified only by his parentage. His  "deeds" are unspecified.

[roshanarose]

Straude - Patience, my sweet.  His deeds are coming.  I couldn't tell u all of them in the first question. :-)

I thought you would get it Gum.  I thoroughly enjoyed researching this one.  Greece is my passion, as most know, but I always discover something new about my passion when researching.  That makes me very happy.

Author:

Our author became recognised in Rome for his work and acquired equestrian status.  Later in life under Trajan and Hadrian he received the honour of ornamenta consularia.

Our author is easier to read than the great histrionic sophists of the age, he projected a more "humane personality".  In addition, he sought to expound the vices and virtues of his characters.

Character:

Our protagonist was rapidly becoming a tall poppy.  The Athenians had their own unique way of dealing with tall poppies as our protagonist was to discover later at his cost.

When the next attack of the "enemy" seemed imminent the Athenians were still arguing about who would be the next Commander.  Many men did not want the post as the enemy was too strong.  Our protagonist, although not appreciated by his peers was admired by the populace.  He was chosen to command.

Ground warfare was not achieving anything against the enemy and part of the reason our protagonist was chosen was his idea of using the Athenian naval fleet.  Unfortunately, the citizens of Athens had to be evacuated as the enemy neared the city.  The city was left defenceless. The enemy marched into Athens and destroyed as much as they could of the city.   

[Gumtree]

Roshanarose: Long ago I had a love affair with the ancient world - I'm surprised sometimes at the odd things I remember.

[roshanarose]

The words "love affair" are particularly apt, Gum.  I read about Greek myths and heroes at a very early age and it spurred me onto a career in Greekness.  Every day in some way I reacquaint myself with my love affair.  Unlike love affairs with men, mine with Greece is sustaining, satisfying, eternal and fascinating, I never feel used and there is no regret.  I can look at pix I took in Greece and in an instant I am back there - no disappointment, just the purest love. "The Greeks have a word for it" ... and they certainly do in my case.  The word is Ξενιτϊα - Xenitia, which means enforced exile from Greece.  Those Greeks who were ostracised, like our protagonist here, never really recovered from their Xenitia.

[JoanK]

Ok, the author is Plutarch. I feel very stupid for not knowing who commanded the Athenians (I assume against Sparta) but it's been many decades since I read anything Greek. I also read Greek myths, heros and drama very young, but have gotten away from it.

[roshanarose]

No, No Joan K.  It is not a matter of stupidity, but merely that you "have gotten away from it", as you say with the history of Greece.  I am probably being a bit selfish in my choice.  My apologies for that.

The enemy is not Sparta in this case.  This enemy came from overseas.  The invasion was so serious that the Spartans actually helped Athens and the rest of Greece by fighting at Thermopylae.

It occurs to me that perhaps not everyone is interested in the Classics.  But if time allows a look through Plutarch's "The Rise and Fall of Athens" may be fruitful.

You have guessed the author, JoanK.  Well done.  

Now the character/protagonist:

The protagonist was appointed Admiral of the fleet, and Commander of the Battle.  

The protagonist and the Athenians were appalled to see the size of the enemy's fleet as it sailed towards Athens.  The enemy had won at Thermopylae, a pass which was defended by Leonidas, commander of the Spartans.  Leonidas had slowed their ground approach, but not stopped it, and the complete enemy fleet was on its way southward, to Athens.  

The Athenians had earlier consulted the oracle of Delphi who, in her usual cryptic manner, advised the only thing that would save the Athenians was "A wall of wood".  Our protagonist interpreted this omen as encouraging  The wall of wood was the Athenian Navy.

[straudetwo]

Roshanarose,  It's been a long time since I studied Latin in the humanistic gymnasium, as it was then called.  I loved Latin, as well as Greek and Roman mythology and the long history of Greece and Rome. 

The limb of memory may not be as strong any more, but I will climb out on it any way, hoping not to fall off, and guess  that the protagonist is Themistocles, an Athenian politician and general.

The Greek fleet was vastly outnumbered when the Persians attacked for a second time, but the Greeks emerged as victors in the battle of Salamis by virtue of a stratagem.

Plutarch left a large volume of work, among them Lives, and one of the lives he chronicled was that of Themistocles.

[Frybabe]

Well, now I learned something already today, and it is only into the new day by a half hour. The only Plutarch I was aware of is his Lives. The only Athenian I can think of around the time of the conflicts with Sparta is Pericles.

[roshanarose]

Pretty good guess Straudetwo from your "limb of memory".  It is Themistocles.  Well done!
Also well done to JoanK who climbed out on her "limb of memory" by recalling Plutarch.

The copy of Plutarch I have is a Penguin Classic translated by Ian Scott-Kilvery.  His translation was first issued in 1960.  I am reading the 1980 version.  As to the title it is "The Rise and Fall of Athens" subtitled Nine Greek Lives.  My apologies for any confusion.

Frybabe - It was not Pericles and the Spartans, but Themistocles and Persia.

[Gumtree]

Terrific Traude You've done it again! Isn't it amazing the fruits our 'limbs of memory' yield however shaky they may be.

Roshanarose You gave me the answer for the historian with mention of Boeotia and the date AD45 which are indelibly imprinted on my mind.  The protagonist was harder at that stage but then the words 'alien mother' worked in my subconscious so that some time later Thermistocles surfaced as well when his mother's epitaph floated across my mind -

Abrotonon is my name
A woman of Thrace, yet famous among the Greeks:
I was the mother of Themistocles

I remember my old Professor talking about the Battle of Salamis and his own impressions upon first looking down on the straits where the battle had been fought. Prof was visibly emotional as he talked about it - he sure knew how to teach and inspire his students.

[Frybabe]

Oops! Ah, yes, the Battle of Salamis. I remember seeing something about that several years ago on TV. I'd have never thought of it.

[PatH]

That was an excellent puzzle.  (In spite of the fact I didn't get it.)

[straudetwo]

PatH,  I agree.
 
Roshanarose, thank you for this marvelous puzzle. How wonderful to detect a mutual passion for  the ancient Greeks!  You gave great clues.  I didn't mean to "burst forth" so suddenly, but the pieces of the mosaic fit so perfectly.

After the Persian defeat at Salamis,  the mighty king Xerxes never attacked Greece again.  But if Greece had lost, its history and that of western civilization might have been quite different.  Thus the spirit of Greece lives.

JoanK,  would you like to post the new challenge?  You named Plutarch, and I just had a turn.  It's entirely up to ou, naturally.

[roshanarose]

Thank you for your compliments. 

Salamis as I said does not appear to have the mystique it had, but if one genuinely loves Greece and its history and leans to the intuitive, the "spirit of place" is everywhere.  I felt it very strongly in Cape Sounion where Theseus' father waited for him to return from Crete; I felt it driving along a road looking down on the Gulf of Corinth, where in my mind's eye I saw a beautiful trireme with amber coloured sails; I felt it very strongly as I sat high in the theatre at Delphi and looked out across the Temple of Apollo; so many many places that are alive with atmosphere, mystique and magic in Greece.  I would go again but now I can't afford it anymore and it is a very long way. I still dream though.

I have a poem to post, if I may, from one of Greece's greatest modern poets, Constantine Cavafy.  I will also post this poem on the Poetry discussion board.  The man Cavafy writes about is Themistocles.

[roshanarose]

I suppose it was inevitable that Themistocles was ostracised.  I saw two of his ostraka in the Agora museum in Athens.  Cavafy writes about how Cavafy finds himself in the court of Artaxerxes, Xerxes' son in Persia.  It is easy to imagine how Themistocles must be feeling from Cavafy's poem. 

Enjoy -

THE SATRAPY

What a calamity that you who are made
for beautiful achievements and renowned,
should always be, through your hard fate, denied
occasion and success; that you should always
be hindered by the mean observances,
the pettiness, and indifference.
And how unblest the day when you give in
(when you have lost yourself, and you give in),
and you depart, a wayfarer for Susa,
and come before the monarch Artaxerxes
who welcomes you with favour at his Court,
offering you satrapies and things akin.
And you, despairing, you accept those honours,
those that are not the honours you desire.
Your soul is hungering for other things:
the praises of the Demos and the Sophists, —
the difficult, invaluable “Well done”;
the Agora, the Theatre, the garlands.
These — how should Artaxerxes ever give,
how should you ever find in satrapies;
and what a life will yours be now, without them.

I could have posted my translation, which I prefer, but this one was on Cavafy's website.  I have made a few changes to it.

If anyone would like me to post the original Greek of this poem, just ask.  :-)

Good luck to the next challenger.

[JoanK]

Oh my, that's wonderful.

Traude: if you want the next turn, please take it!

[PatH]

If anyone would like me to post the original Greek of this poem, just ask.  :-)

I wish I knew Greek and could read it!  But I would dearly love to see your translation.  Different versions have different feels; the one I have (Edmund Keeley and Philip Sherrard) has a different tone:

THE SATRAPY

Too bad that, cut out as you are
for grand and and noble acts,
this unfair fate of yours
never helps you out, always prevents your success;
that cheap habits get in your way,
pettiness, or indifference.
And how terrible the day you give in
(the day you let go and give in)
and take the road for Susa
to find King Ataxerxes,
who, propitiously, gives you a place at his court
and offers you satrapies and things like that—
things you don’t want at all,
though, in despair, you accept them just the same.

You’re longing for something else, aching for other things:
Praise from the Demos and the Sophists,
that hard-won, that priceless acclaim—
the Agora, the Theatre, the Crowns of Laurel.
You can’t get any of these from Ataxerxes,
you’ll never find any of these in the satrapy,
and without them what kind of life will you live?

[PatH]

roshanarose, I posted this here because you haven't put the poem in Poetry yet, but if you want it there, I'l re-post.

The poet I'd really like to be able to read in Greek is George Seferis.  Do you like him?

[straudetwo]

In re the new challenge:  To be candid, I feel uncomfortable proposing it yet again because I just had a turn.  It would be more equitable if someone else stepped forward.

Might Jude be back from the wedding and visit(s), I wonder?

Roshanarose,  I relished the details of your visit and enjoyed our literary excursion to ancient Greece.  The story of Themistocles is  very human one - fall and exile after soaring heights. His fame and privilege must have caused envy. Had he  become "too tall a poppy", as you said in an early clue?   Rumors of actual treason may have been mere speculation - though we'll never know for sure.  And he was (only) 65 when he died in exile ...