Description
This book argues that Old Comedy's parodic and non-parodic engagement with tragedy, satyr play, and contemporary lyric is geared to enhancing its own status as the preeminent discourse on Athenian art, politics and society. Donald Sells locates the enduring significance of parody in the specific cultural, social and political subtexts that often frame Old Comedy's bold experiments with other genres and drive its rapid evolution in the late fifth century. Close analysis of verbal, visual and narrative strategies reveals the importance of parody and literary appropriation to the particular cultural and political agendas of specific plays. This study's broader, more flexible definition of parody as a visual - not just verbal - and multi-coded performance represents an important new step in understanding a phenomenon whose richness and diversity exceeds the primarily textual and literary terms by which it is traditionally understood.
An exploration of Old Comedy's parody and literary appropriation of Greek tragedy, satyr play, and lyric in the plays of Aristophanes, his contemporaries, and theater-related vase painting.
About the Author
Donald Sells is Assistant Professor of Classical Studies at the University of Michigan, USA. He has published widely on ancient comedy.
Reviews
The book truly merits a close consideration. It makes some steps ... towards what will hopefully become the norm in the study of Greek comedy: considering the performative and visual aspect as a sine qua non. * Bryn Mawr Classical Review *
Enriches our understanding of how parody functions in the public sphere. * The Classical Review *
Sells' work provides a precise and valuable point on the forms of parody and literary appropriation in ancient comedy in general and in Aristophanes in particular. He has the merit of paying specific attention to iconography through the study of paintings of Attic vases and southern Italy ... The subject is always clear, richly documented, and, within each chapter, the analysis is firm and well conducted. * Revue des Etudes Anciennes (Bloomsbury Translation) *
Book Information
ISBN 9781350166288
Author Professor Donald Sells
Format Paperback
Page Count 304
Imprint Bloomsbury Academic
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Weight(grams) 426g
An exploration of Old Comedy's parody and literary appropriation of Greek tragedy, satyr play, and lyric in the plays of Aristophanes, his contemporaries, and theater-related vase painting.
About the Author
Donald Sells is Assistant Professor of Classical Studies at the University of Michigan, USA. He has published widely on ancient comedy.
Reviews
The book truly merits a close consideration. It makes some steps ... towards what will hopefully become the norm in the study of Greek comedy: considering the performative and visual aspect as a sine qua non. * Bryn Mawr Classical Review *
Enriches our understanding of how parody functions in the public sphere. * The Classical Review *
Sells' work provides a precise and valuable point on the forms of parody and literary appropriation in ancient comedy in general and in Aristophanes in particular. He has the merit of paying specific attention to iconography through the study of paintings of Attic vases and southern Italy ... The subject is always clear, richly documented, and, within each chapter, the analysis is firm and well conducted. * Revue des Etudes Anciennes (Bloomsbury Translation) *
Book Information
ISBN 9781350166288
Author Professor Donald Sells
Format Paperback
Page Count 304
Imprint Bloomsbury Academic
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Weight(grams) 426g
Details
Imprint: |
Bloomsbury Academic |
