1. Aristophanes’ Frogs Drama to the Rescue…

2. Agenda Drama in Performance 1 –Frog Chorus (pp. 106 ff.) Aristophanes’ Frogs –Background, Structure, Themes, etc. Drama in Performance 2: “To Hit or not to Hit…” –A Serious Side to Drubbing? Or, What Would Plato Say?

3. Drama in Performance 1 Frog Chorus (pp. 106 ff.)

4. Frog Chorus … the Point?? add to setting Charon says frogs help him to row making d mad interact – have say in what’s going on let us sing! –thematically significant – foreshadowing »forbidding frogs invading frogs home –trespasser serious place –comic relief satire –makes fun of dio every chances gets not frightening –yet threaten d

5. Aristophanes’ Frogs Background, Structure, Themes, etc.

6. Background Historical Production –405 BCE –Lenaea (Jan/Feb) –1 st prize, crown, encore Politics etc. –413 Sicilian disaster –411 exile of oligarchs –405 »material pressures »military uncertainties »political tension –404 »final defeat »democracy dissolved Religious Dionysian festival mystery (Eleusinian) evocations –Demeter, Persephone, Iacchos-Dionysos –ritual insult –Chorus of Initiates »us??? Dramatic Aischylos, Sophokles, Euripides, Agathon dead Dionysos “yearning” Athens bereft, desperate

7. Analysis prologue (pp. 90 ff.) –Xanthias, Dionysus, Herakles, Corpse, Charon choral dialogue 1 (106) –Frog Chorus (off-stage), Dionysus scene (109) –Charon, D, X (Empusa) parodos (114) –lyric, chanting, dialogue. Mystic Chorus of initiates, D, X. hymn D, sex, personal abuse scene (119) –D, X, Aiakos, Maid. Door comedy scene (124) –dialogue, lyric. Chorus, D. Persephone’s invite to “Herakles.” –Barmaid, Plathane, X, D. Deadbeat “Herakles” scene (cont.) –lyric dialogues. Chorus, D, X. Warning, fear, etc. –Aiakos, D, X. Drubbing scene parabasis (133) –advice to the city scene (135) –Pluto’s servant, X. Slave dialogue: trouble in Hades choral ode (140) –tragic parody: consternation over poetic quarrel. (agōn prelude) AGŌNES (141-175) –Euripides v. Aischylos. Chorus, Pluto. Contest in tragic poetry exodos –Pluto, Aischylos, Chorus. Farewell

8. “Are You Serious?”: “Comic Formula” & (serio?)-Comic Theme Plot contours –Return of Hephaestus –Aristophanes’ Frogs Return of Hephaestus

9. “To Hit or not to Hit…” A Serious Side to Drubbing? Or, What Would Plato Say?

10. Drubbing Scene (pp. 127 ff.) Aiakos –gatekeeper of Hades Dionysus –god of drama Xanthias –Dio’s slave The Three Stooges

11. What Would Plato Say? Positive Herakles is getting his just deserts the punishment of an imposter!! –of impious impersonation Negative gods should not be seen in lesser form threat to the social structure Hubristic ambiguity –issue with the forms »glorification of masks/costumes