Sophocles Soothes the Traumas of War
The NYTimes has a nice piece about how a few critically acclaimed actors in the acting troupe The Theater of War have been performing readings of Sophocles' Philoctetes and Ajax , for troops dealing with the traumas of war. November 12, 2009 The Anguish of War for Today’s Soldiers, Explored by Sophocles By PATRICK HEALY The ancient Greeks had a shorthand for the mental anguish of war, for post-traumatic stress disorder and even for outbursts of fratricidal bloodshed like last week’s shootings at Fort Hood. They would invoke the names of mythological military heroes who battled inner demons: Achilles, consumed by the deaths of his men; Philoctetes, hollowed out from betrayals by fellow officers; Ajax, warped with so much rage that he wanted to kill his comrades. Now officials at the Defense Department are turning to the Greeks to explore the psychic impact of war. The Pentagon has provided $3.7 million for an independent production company, Theater of War, to visit 50 military site...