Cambridge University Press, 1997. With Tragedy in Athens , Wiles extends and deepens his very thoughtful examination of the context of Greek tragic performance. This is a valuable and thought-provoking book, with many useful insights for those who consider ancient performance. Aggressively, perceptively, Taplin is established not as a paradigm for excessive concern for stage , but as a logocentric proponent of the page , since Taplin's criteria for determining stage action all ultimately need to be demonstrated in the text.
Wiles instead seeks to find meaning about performance from the theatrical space itself.
Some undergraduates will find this heavy going, which is a shame, because there is much here that could benefit them. Fair enough, perhaps. The book draws examples from all the extant tragedies, and some fragments, often with bold insight. Well over a dozen neat, tidy explanations appeared that I have filed away to share in the classroom. I agree with both of these conclusions, though the structure of the argument Wiles presents often involves interesting decisions.