How long does it take to read Electra?
Electra by Euripides takes about 2 hours 8 minutes to read at 250 words a minute.
About 2 hours 8 minutes
An evening's read
First published 1780. 116 pages, about 31,900 words.
5 days at 30 minutes a day
Estimate based on 275 words per page.
At other speeds
| Slow, 150 words a minute | 3 hours 33 minutes |
| Average, 250 words a minute | 2 hours 8 minutes |
| Fast, 400 words a minute | 1 hour 20 minutes |
The page count is the median across 48 editions, so your copy may differ. How we calculate.
About the book
Based on the conviction that only translators who write poetry themselves can properly recreate the celebrated and timeless tragedies of Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides, the Greek Tragedy in New Translations series offers new translations that go beyond the literal meaning of the Greek in order to evoke the poetry of the originals. Under the general editorship of Herbert Golder and the late William Arrowsmith, each volume includes a critical introduction, commentary on the text, full stage directions, and a glossary of the mythical and geographical references in the plays. This vital translation of Euripides' Electra recreates the prize-winning excitement of the original play. Electra, obsessed by dreams of avenging her father's murder, impatiently awaits the return of her exiled brother Orestes. After his arrival Electra uses Orestes as her instrument of vengeance, killing their mother's husband, then their mother herself - and only afterward do they see the evil inherent in these seemingly just acts. But in his usual fashion, Euripides has imbued myth with the reality of human experience, counterposing suspense and horror with comic realism and down-to-earth comments on life.
Subjects: Drama, Electra (Greek mythology), Ancient greek & roman drama
