dithyramb (dĭth`ĭrăm), in ancient Greece, hymn to the god Dionysus, choral lyric with exchanges between the leader and the chorus. It arose, probably, in the extemporaneous songs of the Dionysiac festivals and was developed (according to tradition, by Arion Arion (ərĭ`ən), Greek poet, inventor of the dithyramb.
..... Click the link for more information. ) into the literary form to be found, for example, in the dithyrambs of Bacchylides Bacchylides (băkĭl`ĭdēz), fl. c.470 B.C., Greek lyric poet, b. Ceos; nephew of Simonides of Ceos.
..... Click the link for more information. . In its later development by such poets as Philoxenus and Timotheus Timotheus (tĭmō`thēəs), c.450–c.357 B.C., Greek poet and musician of Miletus.
..... Click the link for more information. it became freer in its meter and more musical. The tragedy tragedy, form of drama that depicts the suffering of a heroic individual who is often overcome by the very obstacles he is struggling to remove. The protagonist may be brought low by a character flaw or, as Hegel stated, caught in a "collision of equally justified
..... Click the link for more information. seems to have come out of the dithyramb, but the dithyramb was also cultivated after tragedy was invented.

Bibliography

See A. W. Pickard-Cambridge, Dithyramb, Tragedy, and Comedy (1927, repr. 1962).

dithyramb

Choric poem, chant, or hymn of ancient Greece. Dithyrambs were sung by revelers at the festival in honour of Dionysus. The form originated about the 7th century BC in extemporaneous songs of banqueters; it was a recognized literary genre by the end of the 6th century BC. Dithyrambs were composed by Arion and Pindar, among others. By c. 450 BC the form was in decline; most dithyrambs were bombastic and turgid.

dithyramb

1. (in ancient Greece) a passionate choral hymn in honour of Dionysus; the forerunner of Greek drama

2. any utterance or a piece of writing that resembles this

dithyramb (redirected from dithyrambs)

Bibliography

dithyramb

dithyramb
(redirected from dithyrambs)