The List of the War Dead in Aeschylus' "Persians"

Abstract

T HE Messenger's speech of Aeschylus' Persians reveals a connection to a form of language not usually associated with tragedy. The long catalogue of the Persian war dead in the Messenger's speech (Persians 302-330) is similar in form to what is known to epigraphers as the Athenian casualty lists. As a burial honor, the Athenian casualty lists belong to one type of civic discourse about death in war. In the Persians, however, such a list is surprisingly used for the barbarian enemy dead. Although the listing here retains the conventional features of the Athenian casualty list, the framing discourse of tragedy changes the meaning conveyed by the form: instead of a roster designating those celebrated in a special grave, it becomes a disturbing listing of war dead who are not honored and not even buried.