Aristophanes: Frogs And Other Plays: A New Verse Translation, With
Introduction And Notes By Aristophanes (Paperback, 2016)

Product Description

Aristophanes is the only surviving representative of Greek Old Comedy an exuberant form of festival drama which flourished in Athens during the fifth century BC One of the most original playwrights in the entire Western tradition his comedies are remarkable for their brilliant combination of fantasy & satire their constantly inventive manipulation of language & their use of absurd characters & plots to expose his society's institutions & values to the bracing challenge of laughter This vibrant collection of verse translations of Aristophanes' works combines historical accuracy with a sensitive attempt to capture the rich dramatic & literary qualities of Aristophanic comedy The volume presents Clouds with its famous caricature of the philosopher Socrates; Women at the Thesmophoria (or Thesmophoriazusae) a work which mixes elaborate parody of tragedy with a great deal of transvestite burlesque; & Frogs in which the dead tragedians Aeschylus & Euripides engage in a vituperative contest of 'literary criticism' of each other's plays Featuring expansive introductions to each play & detailed explanatory notes the volume also

Includes:: an illuminating appendix which provides information & selected fragments from the lost plays of Aristophanes