Aristophanes and His Tragic Muse: Comedy, Tragedy and the Polis in 5th Century Athens

395 Pages·2016·1.96 MB·English

by  Stephanie Nelson

AristophanesandHisTragicMuse
Mnemosyne
Supplements
monographs on greek and
latin language and literature
ExecutiveEditor
G.J.Boter(vuUniversityAmsterdam)
EditorialBoard
A.Chaniotis(Oxford)
K.M.Coleman(Harvard)
I.J.F.deJong(UniversityofAmsterdam)
T.Reinhardt(Oxford)
volume390
Thetitlespublishedinthisseriesarelistedatbrill.com/mns
Aristophanes
and His Tragic Muse
Comedy,TragedyandthePolisin5thCenturyAthens
By
StephanieNelson
leiden | boston
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Names:Nelson,Stephanie,author.
Title:Aristophanesandhistragicmuse:comedy,tragedyandthepolisin5thcenturyAthens/byStephanie
Nelson.
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Subjects:LCSH:Aristophanes–Criticismandinterpretation.|Greekdrama–Historyandcriticism.
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∵

Contents
Acknowledgements ix
Introduction 1
1 TheFestivalsandGenre 1
2 TheComicandtheSerious 7
3 Overview:ADevelopmentalStudy 14
1 ComedyandTragedyinAthens 22
1 TheDevelopmentofComedyandTragedy 22
2 Masks,Costumes,Choruses,Language,andProps 39
2.1 Masks 39
2.2 Costume 46
2.3 Chorus 51
2.4 LanguageandProps 54
3 Comedy,Tragedy,andEuripides 64
2 SatyrDramaandtheCyclops:WhereTragedyandComedyMeet 74
1 ComicSatyrs/TragicTales 74
2 SatyrPlay:Net-Draggers,Festival-Goers,Trackers 84
2.1 BacktotheBeginning:TheTragicTetralogy 84
2.2 FreedomandSlavery,SatyrsandCities 90
3 TheCyclops 96
3.1 TheCyclopsasSatyrPlay 96
3.2 EuripidestheIconoclast 99
3 TheAcharniansandtheParadoxoftheCity 106
1 Tragedy,Comedy,andPolitics 106
2 TheOresteiaandtheBacchae:TheCityinaGreaterWhole 112
2.1 TheOresteia:TheDivine,theHuman,andtheCity 112
2.2 TheBacchae:TheGod’sChallengetoThebes 117
3 TheDoubleVisionoftheAcharnians 121
3.1 DikaiopolisFairandFoulorAbsurdityandtheCity 125
3.2 Dikaiopolis,Telephus,andAristophanes:Dressingupas
Yourself 132
4 TheWasps:ComicHeroes/TragicHeroes 141
1 ComicandTragicConsistency 141
viii contents
2 AjaxandMedea:AFocusonIdentity 146
2.1 Ajax:TheRefusaltoYield 148
2.2 MedeaandMedea:APersonalNecessity 154
3 Wasps:TheHeroasChameleon 160
3.1 FromJurortoFreeSpirit 161
3.2 Philocleon’sMetatheatricalFreedom 165
4 AristophanesandtheThreeStooges:PityingYourBetters,Envying
InferiorMen 171
5 OedipusTyrannosandtheKnights:Oracles,DivineandHuman 177
1 OedipusTyrannos:HumanandDivineMeaning 181
2 TheHumanOraclesoftheKnights 184
3 HiddenMeaningsandtheRejuvenationofDemos 191
4 ComedyandCarnivalorTragedyUpsideDown 199
6 Persians,Peace,andBirds:GodandManinWartime 204
1 ThePersians:War,Empire,andtheDivine 208
2 ThePeace:FindingaGodforAthens 219
3 TheBirds:AnAthenianonOlympus 230
7 WomenattheThesmophoriaandFrogs:AristophanesonTragedyand
Comedy 241
1 Parody,Metatheater,andDialogue 241
2 WomenattheThesmophoria:ComedyandTragedyTalk 248
2.1 TheMarriageofComedyandTragedy:GenderandGenre,Once
More,withFeeling 251
2.2 TragedyTakesOver:AConfrontation 257
3 Frogs:Comedy—andTragedy—SavetheCity 261
3.1 TheDescentintoHadesorKickinginOpenDoors 261
3.2 InitiationandPolaritiesorDiscoveringTragedy 267
3.3 TheIndividualandthePolis:AnalysisandEmotion 271
Conclusion:TheDionysia’sManyVoices 285
Synopses 295
Glossary 309
Bibliography 315
Index 367
Acknowledgements
Iowemanypeopleprofoundthanksfortheirhelpindevelopingthisbook.Iam
verygratefultotheBostonUniversityCenterfortheHumanitiesforaleavethat
helpedmecomeupwiththeidea,andtointensiveandchallengingconversa-
tionsfollowinglecturesatSt.John’sCollegeinbothAnnapolisandSantaFe.I
amalsodeeplygratefultomycolleaguesintheClassicsDepartmentandthe
CoreCurriculumatBostonUniversityfortheirconstantencouragementand
toMikeWheelerandKateHurleyfortheirhelpwiththemanuscript.Conver-
sationswithmanyfriends,includingHannahHintze,HerbGolder,JaySamons
andJonTuckhavehelpedimmensely,andtothosewhohavebeenkindenough
toreadandcommentontheentirework,NickyGrene,BrianJorgensen,David
RoochnikandChrisWalsh,Ioweanimmenseamount.FinallyIwouldliketo
thanknotonlymybrother,James,asinmydedication,butalsomyentirefamily
fortheircontinualandunwaveringloveandsupport.Iamluckytohaveyou.