Aeschylus was born in Eleusis, Greece, in 524 B.C. to a wealthy Athenian family. While working in a vineyard at a young age, he was inspired by the writings of Homer, and first began to write as a teenager. He was a soldier and fought at the Battle of Marthon, in which the Greeks stopped a Persian invasion force. During his lifetime, the constitution was reformed many times, eventually ending in the creation of a democracy. In 484 B.C. he won an annual writing competition in Athens, eventually winning it 13 times in his career. His plays gained wide attention and popularity during his life.
Aeschylus is considered the "father of tragedy." Of the 90 plays written by Aeschylus, only seven survive. His earliest surviving work is "The Suppliants," followed by "The Persians." Based on historical events, "The Persians" is told from the Persian point of view and attempts to demonstrate that a nation's pride can cause it to suffer. "Prometheus Bound" is the most well-known of Aeschylus's tragedies for his powerful depiction of Prometheus, chained to a mountain peak as punishment for defying Zeus and giving fire to mortals. His greatest masterpiece is the Oresteia which comprises the plays "Agamemnon," "The Choephori," and "The Eumenides." The theme of each is justice, though they are all independent dramas.
When Aeschylus wrote his first play, theatrical productions were very simple. They consisted of one actor wearing masks to portray different characters and a chorus performing poetry and dance. Aeschylus's primary contribution to Greek drama was adding a second actor to stage performances, which gave more attention and importance to the dialogue. He directed many performances of his own plays and critics marveled at the realism of his characters. Along with increasing the importance of dialogue, he reduced the size of the traditional chorus from 50 people to 12, reducing its role.
Aeschylus's other contributions to Greek drama involved the changes he made to the way spectacles were staged. He improved costumes and changed masks so that they were easier to use and more expressive, and he eliminated bloodshed from the productions.