Narrative in Sophocles A cognitive-narratological approach

Narrative in tragedy is a frequent yet underexplained phenomenon. This dissertation revolves around narratives in Sophocles’ Ajax, Philoctetes and Trachiniae. Alongside interpreting these plays, it explores how narratives could have entertained the spectators. Unlike readers, spectators are unable to leaf forward through the text. Spectators process the plot linearly and are driven by a desire to know the outcome. The book focuses on the possible effects these narratives exerted on spectators. Using a cognitive-narratological approach, it analyzes narrative techniques and contextualizes the narratives within the plots. Running commentaries demonstrate how the narratives trigger cognitive processes and direct the audience's attention to various levels: to the narrative world, the world depicted on stage, the characters’ thoughts, and to theatricality. Narratives furthermore trigger the activation of foreknowledge about the myths and about earlier events, and they invite the audience to formulate expectations about what will follow. In Ajax, Philoctetes and Trachiniae, Sophocles never uses narratives in the same way – they are a ground of experimentation for him. Yet, the analyses display several recurrent characteristics. Narratives contribute to characterization, heighten curiosity and suspense, anchor mythological innovations and add to the thematization of the uncertainty of knowledge. They also invite the spectators to zoom out from the narrative itself to the plot as a whole, and then zoom back in again. Narratives in Sophocles’ plays thus strengthen plot unity. Sustaining ambiguity, they keep open multiple interpretations in the spectators’ minds. For Sophocles, narrative is a source of dramatic possibilities that enables him to endlessly entertain and engage his audience.