Description
Book SynopsisFive comedies from Ancient Greece that freely blend satire and slapstickOffering a window into the world of ordinary Athenians, Aristophanes'
The Birds and Other Plays is a timeless set of comedies, combining witty satire and raucous slapstick to wonderful effect. The plays in this volume all contain Aristophanes' trademark bawdy comedy and dazzling verbal agility. In
The Birds, two cunning Athenians persuade the birds to build the utopian city of 'Much Cuckoo in the Clouds' in the sky, blockading the Olympian gods and installing themselves as new deities.
The Knights is a venomous satire on Cleon, a prominent Athenian demagogue, who vies with a humble sausage-seller for the approval of the people; while
The Assembly-Women deals with the battle of the sexes as the women of Athens infiltrate the all-male Assembly in disguise. The lengthy conflict with Sparta is the subject of
Peace, inspired by the hope of a settlement in 421 BC, and
Table of Contents
The Birds and Other PlaysAbout the Author7
Aristophanes in Antiquity9
Aristophanes, Comedian and Poet21
The Knights29
Peace91
The Birds147
The Assemblywoman215
Wealth265
Notes313
Select Bibliography336
