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3.87 AVERAGE
3.87 AVERAGE
challenging
funny
fast-paced
Edit, November 5th 2024: I named my pet snake after him.
If a man who lived a few thousand years before I was born can make me find something funny, it should be given to him as credit. If a man who lived a few thousand years before I was born gives better feminist rep then many authors of this current age, it should be given to him as credit. If a man makes Hermes beg a slave for food as a joke, it should be given to him as credit.
That is to say, Aristophanes is lauded for a reason.
If you can somehow get through the fact that you are reading a translated version of a play written twenty five hundred years ago, which I had a hard time doing in the first two plays (Acharnians and Knights), you'll find Aristophanes to be an amazing comedic play writer.
As Plato said (I know he said it because it is written on the back of this book, and all words written on the back of a book are law): "The Graces, seeking an imperishable sanctuary, found the soul of Aristophanes."
My favorite play was Frogs. My least favorite one is Acharnians for the sole reason that I could not understand a word of it.
If a man who lived a few thousand years before I was born can make me find something funny, it should be given to him as credit. If a man who lived a few thousand years before I was born gives better feminist rep then many authors of this current age, it should be given to him as credit. If a man makes Hermes beg a slave for food as a joke, it should be given to him as credit.
That is to say, Aristophanes is lauded for a reason.
If you can somehow get through the fact that you are reading a translated version of a play written twenty five hundred years ago, which I had a hard time doing in the first two plays (Acharnians and Knights), you'll find Aristophanes to be an amazing comedic play writer.
As Plato said (I know he said it because it is written on the back of this book, and all words written on the back of a book are law): "The Graces, seeking an imperishable sanctuary, found the soul of Aristophanes."
My favorite play was Frogs. My least favorite one is Acharnians for the sole reason that I could not understand a word of it.
challenging
funny
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
funny
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
I wondered when I read that Aristophenes was the first Greek playwright, and therefore possibly the oldest playwright in recorded history, why I didn't read him in high school. A few pages into Lysistrata and I figured it out. I am always surprised that I am continuously surprised by finding innuendo (if you can call it that in Aristophonenes) in the classics.
funny
relaxing
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This review is of the translation by Paul Roche.
Paul Roche's translation is HILARIOUS. Not necessarily the most accurate, no, but absolutely delightful.
Paul Roche's translation is HILARIOUS. Not necessarily the most accurate, no, but absolutely delightful.
I enjoyed these for the most part and can see the comic talent in them. There were a few parts that made me laugh out loud. I wonder if I might like a more modern translation more. Birds was my favorite, then Lysistrata, Frogs, and maybe Wasps.