Nature, Culture, and the Origins of Greek Comedy

A Study of Animal Choruses

By: Kenneth S. Rothwell, Jr

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Hardcover | 23 October 2006

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Hardcover
350 Pages

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22.86 x 15.24 x 2.06

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Aristophanes' Birds, Wasps, and Frogs offer the best-known examples of the animal choruses of Greek comedy of the fifth century BC, but sixth-century vase-paintings of men costumed as cocks, bulls, and horses indicated that comedies were only the last phase of a longer tradition. This book suggests that although the earlier masquerades may have had ritual origins, they should also be seen as products of the culture of the archaic aristocratic symposium. The animal choruses of the late fifth century may have been conscious revivals of an earlier tradition. Moreover, the animals of comedy were not the predators found in other literary genres; they were, instead, social animals who showed that nature and culture could co-exist. The Birds, which tells the story of a city foundation, also parodies fifth-century philosophical accounts of the origins of human civilization. Also discussed are the Wasps, Frogs, and fragments of lost comedies.

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' ... a needed contribution to the study of ancient drama ... a complex -and entertaining - perspective of the relationship between culture and nature.' BMCR

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List of Illustrations	p. ix
Abbreviations	p. xi
Acknowledgments	p. xiii
Introduction	p. 1
Komos, Symposium, and Performance	p. 6
Animal Choruses: The Evidence of Vase-Painting	p. 36
Animals and Satyrs in Classical Greece: An Excursus	p. 81
The Literary Fragments and Aristophanes' Knights, Wasps, and Frogs	p. 102
Aristophanes' Birds and the Rise of Civilization	p. 151
Conclusion	p. 183
Testimonia and Fragments of Lost Comedies	p. 187
Miscellaneous Depictions of Animal Costumes	p. 207
Notes	p. 213
Bibliography	p. 283
Index	p. 317
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

Nature, Culture, and the Origins of Greek Comedy

A Study of Animal Choruses

At a Glance

Hardcover

Industry Reviews

Shipping

How to return your order

Defective items

You Can Find This Book In

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