Theology and Existentialism in Aeschylus revivifies the complex question of fate and freedom in the tragedies of the famous Greek playwright. In this book, author Ric Rader demonstrates that few understood the importance of these questions better than the tragedians, whose literature dealt with a central theological concern: What is a god? And how does god affect, impinge upon, or even enable human freedom? Perhaps more importantly: If god is dead, is everything possible, or nothing? Tragedy holds the preeminent position with regard to these questions, and Aeschylus, our earliest surviving tragedian, is the best witness to these complex theological issues.

Richard Rader teaches Latin and Greek at Montgomery Bell Academy, USA. He was Visiting Assistant Professor in the Department of Classics at the University of California at Santa Barbara, USA. Prior to UCSB he held a Mellon Postdoctoral Teaching Fellowship at USC. He is co-editor of The Enigmatic Context: Approaches to Greek Drama (2013).

Introduction: Written in the Cosmos 1. The Radical Theology of Prometheus Bound or On Prometheus' God Problem 2. The Curse of Inherited Guilt in Seven against Thebes 3. The Necessity of Agamemnon 4. Fatal Aftermaths: Libation-Bearers and Eumenides