How did audiences of ancient Greek comedy react to the spectacle of masters and slaves? If they were expected to laugh at a slave threatened with a beating by his master at one moment but laugh with him when they bantered familiarly at the next, what does this tell us about ancient Greek slavery? This volume presents ten essays by leading specialists in ancient Greek literature, culture and history, exploring the changing roles and representations of slaves in comic drama from Aristophanes at the height of the Athenian Empire to the New Comedy of Menander and the Hellenistic World. The contributors focus variously on individual comic dramas or on particular historical periods, analysing a wide range of textual, material-culture and comparative data for the practices of slavery and their representation on the ancient Greek comic stage.

Greek comedy offers a unique insight into the reality of life as a slave, giving this disenfranchised group a 'voice'.

About the Author
Ben Akrigg is Assistant Professor of Greek History at the University of Toronto. His principal research interest is the economic and social history of classical Greece. Rob Tordoff is Assistant Professor of Humanities at York University, Toronto. His research focuses on Aristophanes, literary theory, social and cultural history and the modern reception of ancient Greek literature.

Reviews
'... this volume will be useful for anyone interested in the representation of slaves and slavery as found in our sources for Greek comedy.' Madeleine M. Henry, Phoenix



Book Information
ISBN 9781107008557
Author Ben Akrigg
Format Hardback
Page Count 282
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Weight(grams) 560g
Dimensions(mm) 236mm * 160mm * 21mm