Attic Theory and Thespis

The Attic theory of the origin of Greek tragedy connects tragedy to the famous tragedian Thespis by claiming that he was in fact the inventor. Thespis was an ancient Greek tragedian born in the small town of Icaria, which was located in the southern part of Attica, in the 6th century B.C. He is widely known as the first actor of ancient Greek theater. The word “thespian” used to describe actors in Greek theater was created in his honor. Besides being famous for being an actor, Thespis is also regarded as the person responsible for creating the chorus and having it directly involved with the plot. His contribution to not only Greek theater but Greek tragedy as a whole undoubtedly left a big impact. The Parian Marble which is a large stone column with inscriptions dating from 264 BC located in Attica Greece mentions Thespis and states that he may have been performing even before Greek theater competitions started to take place. This is not the only piece of ancient writing that declares Thespis as the first tragic poet as the poem Ars Poetica by Horace mentions Thespis as the original tragedian by stating, “We are told that Thespis invented tragic poetry, unknown before him,/ and that he carried his plays around in wagons…” (285-286) This quote hints that Greek tragedy started of as a new way of writing plays that Thespis shared with the villagers in his hometown and was not something that was widely shared or taught as it is today. Regardless of whether he did create Greek tragedy or not, Thespis undoubtedly had a big role in turning tragedy into one of the three genres of Greek theater and making it as popular as it is today.