Carcinus () was an

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...

tragedian from Thoricus, the son of the playwright

Xenocles Xenocles () was an ancient Greek tragedian. He won a victory at the Dionysia in 415 BC with the plays ''Oedipus'', ''Lycaon'', and ''Bacchae'' with the satyr play ''Athamas''. Other plays by Xenocles include ''Licymnius'', parodied by Aristopha ...

and grandson of Carcinus. Another Xenocles, mentioned by a scholiast on

Aristophanes Aristophanes (; ; ) was an Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek Ancient Greek comedy, comic playwright from Classical Athens, Athens. He wrote in total forty plays, of which eleven survive virtually complete today. The majority of his surviving play ...

' ''

Frogs A frog is any member of a diverse and largely semiaquatic group of short-bodied, tailless amphibian vertebrates composing the order Anura (coming from the Ancient Greek , literally 'without tail'). Frog species with rough skin texture due to ...

'', may have been Carcinus' son. The ''

Suda The ''Suda'' or ''Souda'' (; ; ) is a large 10th-century Byzantine Empire, Byzantine encyclopedia of the History of the Mediterranean region, ancient Mediterranean world, formerly attributed to an author called Soudas () or Souidas (). It is an ...

'' records that he wrote one hundred and sixty plays. He won eleven victories at the ''

Dionysia The Dionysia (; Greek: Διονύσια) was a large festival in ancient Athens in honor of the god Dionysus, the central events of which were processions and sacrifices in honor of Dionysus, the theatrical performances of dramatic tragedies an ...

''. His exact dates are uncertain, though he was certainly active in the 370s BC. According to the ''Suda'', his

floruit ''Floruit'' ( ; usually abbreviated fl. or occasionally flor.; from Latin for 'flourished') denotes a date or period during which a person was known to have been alive or active. In English, the unabbreviated word may also be used as a noun indic ...

was in the 100th Olympiad (380–377 BC); and his first victory at the Dionysia can be dated to before 372. Dionysius II of Syracuse was a patron of Carcinus. Nine or ten titles of his plays are known: ''Aerope'', ''Ajax'', ''Alope'', ''Amphiaraus'', ''Medea'', ''Oedipus'', ''Orestes'', ''Semele'', ''Thyestes'', and possibly ''Tyro''. His work survives only in fragments. Carcinus is mentioned briefly by

Aristotle Aristotle (; 384–322 BC) was an Ancient Greek philosophy, Ancient Greek philosopher and polymath. His writings cover a broad range of subjects spanning the natural sciences, philosophy, linguistics, economics, politics, psychology, a ...

. In the ''

Poetics Poetics is the study or theory of poetry, specifically the study or theory of device, structure, form, type, and effect with regards to poetry, though usage of the term can also refer to literature broadly. Poetics is distinguished from hermeneu ...

'', Chapter 17 (1455a lines 22 to 29), Aristotle discusses the necessity for a playwright to see the composition on the stage, rather than just in print, in order to weed out any inconsistencies. Aristotle points to an unnamed play of Carcinus which had a character, Amphiaraus, exit a temple. For some reason this seemed outrageously inconsistent when viewed on the stage, and the audience "hissed" the actors right off the stage. In 2004, Annie Bélis published a fragment of a musical papyrus written by Carcinus that contains parts of his ''Medea'' (

Louvre The Louvre ( ), or the Louvre Museum ( ), is a national art museum in Paris, France, and one of the most famous museums in the world. It is located on the Rive Droite, Right Bank of the Seine in the city's 1st arrondissement of Paris, 1st arron ...

E 10534). It was identified thanks to a quote by

. It contains two ''arias'', one by

Medea In Greek mythology, Medea (; ; ) is the daughter of Aeëtes, King Aeëtes of Colchis. Medea is known in most stories as a sorceress, an accomplished "wiktionary:φαρμακεία, pharmakeía" (medicinal magic), and is often depicted as a high- ...

and one by

Jason Jason ( ; ) was an ancient Greek mythological hero and leader of the Argonauts, whose quest for the Golden Fleece is featured in Greek literature. He was the son of Aeson, the rightful king of Iolcos. He was married to the sorceress Med ...

. In this version, Medea did not kill her children, but is unable to prove it.

References

Ancient Acragantines Ancient Greek tragic poets Poets of Magna Graecia Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown 4th-century BC Greek poets {{AncientGreece-writer-stub