Aristophanic Humour: Theory and Practice

Aristophanic Humour: Theory and Practice
Format
Paperback
Publisher
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Country
United Kingdom
Published
30 December 2021
Pages
296
ISBN
9781350194854

Aristophanic Humour: Theory and Practice

This volume sets out to discuss a crucial question for ancient comedy - what makes Aristophanes funny? Too often Aristophanes’ humour is taken for granted as merely a tool for the delivery of political and social commentary. But Greek Old Comedy was above all else designed to amuse people, to win the dramatic competition by making the audience laugh the hardest. Any discussion of Aristophanes therefore needs to take into account the ways in which his humour actually works.

This question is addressed in two ways. The first half of the volume offers an in-depth discussion of humour theory - a field heretofore largely overlooked by classicists and Aristophanists - examining various theoretical models within the specific context of Aristophanes’ eleven extant plays. In the second half, contributors explore Aristophanic humour more practically, examining how specific linguistic techniques and performative choices affect the reception of humour, and exploring the range of subjects Aristophanes tackles as vectors for his comedy. A focus on performance shapes the narrative, since humour lives or dies on the stage - it is never wholly comprehensible on the page alone.

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