Sophocles

He distinguished himself at an early age: At the Athenian celebration of the victory at Salamis (480 B.C.), the 16-year-old Sophocles was the leader of the chorus of dancing and singing naked boys.

A long line of scholars, beginning with Aristotle, considered Sophocles to be the greatest playwright among the ancients. He also won the Festival of Dionysus[?], an ancient dramatic festival, more times than any other.

His most famous works are his tragedies about Oedipus, known collectively, due to their setting, as the three Theban plays:

• Oedipus the King (also known as Oedipus Rex)
• Oedipus at Colonus
• Antigone

Only four more of his many dozens of original works survive today:

• Ajax[?]
• Electra
• Philoctetes
• The Trachiniae[?]