ARISTOPHANES AND HIS AGE

The seminar will be an introduction to Aristophanes through a close reading of two plays (Thesmophoriasuzae and Frogs) and selected comic fragments (in part drawn from D. Olson’s forthcoming annotated edition). We will cover a variety of approaches to Aristophanes in particular and Old Comedy in general, but the emphasis will be on situating Aristophanes in the intellectual context of his age. Special attention will be paid to the "allegorical" imagination of Aristophanes and of Old Comedy.

Prerequisites: graduate standing or permission of instructor

Seminar-style format with in-class translations, possibly a mid-term test (we can discuss this), and a final research paper

Meets: MW 12:30-2:00 Classics Seminar Room

For updates to seminar contents over the summer, as well as (eventuallly) announcements, bibliography, and syllabus, visit the web site at CTools (course enrollment required for access)

Texts:

Thesmophoriasuzae, ed. Austin and Olson (OUP 2004)

Frogs, ed. Dover (OUP 1993)