Введение
Комедия греческого драматурга Аристофана V века до н.э.
«Thesmophoriazusae» (Θεσμοφοριαζούσαι), или «Женщины на Фесмофориях» (иногда также «Поэт и женщины»), – одна из одиннадцати сохранившихся комедий Аристофана. Пьеса была впервые поставлена в , вероятно, на Городской Дионисии. В центре внимания пьесы – подрывная роль женщин в патриархальном обществе, тщеславие современных поэтов, таких как трагические драматурги Еврипид и Агафон, и бесстыдная, предприимчивая вульгарность обычного афинянина, воплощенная в пьесе главным героем, Мнесилохом. Работа также примечательна свободной адаптацией Аристофаном ключевых структурных элементов Древней комедии и отсутствием антипопулистских и антивоенных высказываний, характерных для его более ранних произведений.
Исторический фон
Старая комедия – жанр, тесно связанный с современностью, и все пьесы Аристофана были написаны специально для их первоначальных постановок либо в Ленае, либо на Городской Дионисии. Значимые даты и события, которые могли повлиять на написание «Тесмофориазус» включают: Аристофан получил первую премию на Ленае со своей третьей пьесой «Ахарняне». В этой пьесе персонаж Еврипид одалживает главному герою Дикеополису театральные костюмы из своих пьес. В «Тесмофориязусах», напротив, персонаж Еврипид одевает Мнесилоха в костюм, взятый у Агатона. : Была поставлена пьеса Еврипида «Паламид». Она пародируется в «Тесмофориязусах». : Афиняне и их союзники потерпели катастрофическое поражение в Сицилийской экспедиции – поворотный момент в долгой Пелопоннесской войне. Среди погибших в сицилийской кампании был Ламах, высмеянный в «Ахарнянах» как безумный воинствующий подстрекатель. В «Тесмофориязусах» он упоминается кратко, но с уважением, как военный герой, чья мать заслуживает публичного почитания. Были поставлены пьесы Еврипида «Елена» и «Андромеда». Обе пьесы подвергаются продолжительной пародии в «Тесмофориязусах». : Были поставлены и «Тесмофориязусы», и «Лизистрата»; олигархическая революция (одно из последствий сицилийского бедствия) оказалась кратковременно успешной, а демагог Гипербол (частая мишень в более ранних пьесах) был убит олигархическими заговорщиками в Самосе. Гипербол получает краткое, уничижительное упоминание в «Тесмофориязусах» как человек, чья мать не заслуживает сидеть за одним столом с почитаемой матерью Ламаха. Литературные традиции и мода, а также поэты, связанные с ними, становятся предметом комментариев и пародии во всех пьесах Аристофана. В этой пьесе Еврипид – главная цель. Другие: Агатон: современник Аристофана и успешный трагик, он представлен в этой пьесе как клоунский эстет, верящий, что красивые люди пишут красиво. Фриник: знаменитый трагик старшего поколения (начало V века до н.э.), он благосклонно упоминается Агатоном как красивый человек (калос), который красиво одевался и писал красивые пьесы (кала драмата). Ибик, Анакреон и Алкей: лирические поэты, благосклонно упомянутые Агатоном как примеры поэтов, которые одевались и вели себя столь же вычурно, как и он сам. Филокл, Ксенокл и Феогнис: драматические поэты и современники Аристофана, часто высмеиваемые в других пьесах, они также получают уничижительное, хотя и краткое упоминание здесь.
: Aristophanes won first prize at the Lenaia with his third play The Acharnians. In that play, the character Euripides lends the protagonist, Dicaiopolis, some theatrical costumes from his plays. In Thesmophoria, on the other hand, the character Euripides dresses Mnesilochus in a costume borrowed from Agathon. : Euripides' play Palamedes was produced. It is parodied in Thesmophoria. : The Athenians and their allies suffered a catastrophic defeat in the Sicilian Expedition, a turning point in the long running Peloponnesian War. Among those who died in the Sicilian campaign was Lamachus, satirized in The Acharnians as a maniacal war monger. In 'Thesmophoriazusae' he is mentioned briefly but with respect as a war hero whose mother deserves to be publicly feted. : Euripides' plays Helen and Andromeda were produced. Both plays are parodied at length in Thesmophoriazusae. : Both Thesmophoriazusae and Lysistrata were produced; an oligarchic revolution (one of the consequences of the Sicilian disaster) proved briefly successful and the demagogue Hyperbolus (a frequent target of the earlier plays) was assassinated by oligarchic conspirators in Samos. Hyperbolus receives a brief, derogatory mention in Thesmophoriazusae as someone whose mother does not deserve to share a table with the honoured mother of Lamachus. Literary traditions and fashions, and the poets identified with them, are subject to comment and parody in all of Aristophanes' plays. In this play, Euripides is the main target. Others:
Agathon: A contemporary of Aristophanes and a successful tragedian, he is represented in this play as a clownish aesthete who believes that beautiful people write beautifully. Phrynicus: A celebrated tragedian of an older generation (early ), he is mentioned favourably by Agathon as a beautiful man (kalos) who dressed beautifully and who wrote beautiful plays (kal' dramata). Ibycus, Anacreon and Alcaeus: lyrical poets, mentioned favourably by Agathon as examples of poets who dressed and behaved as effetely as himself. Philocles, Xenocles, and Theognis: Dramatic poets and contemporaries of Aristophanes, frequently lampooned in other plays, they receive a derogatory though brief mention here too.
Обсуждение
"Поэт и женщины" примечателен переворотом сексуальных стереотипов: мужчины предстают в образе женщин, а женщины – равными мужчинам, особенно в имитации экклесии, или демократического собрания (на самом деле, открытие женского собрания глашатаем с воплем, напоминающим пеан, рассматривается как свидетельство того, что сама экклесия могла начинаться с пеана). Однако трагические и комические поэты в классических Афинах укрепляли сексуальные стереотипы, даже демонстрируя сочувствие к женской доле, и женщины обычно считались иррациональными существами, нуждающимися в защите от себя и от других. Виноградная шкура с младенцем у Мики – демонстрация иррациональности и деструктивности женской природы, но женское собрание тоже таковой является – оно представляет собой государство в государстве, а его предполагаемая юрисдикция над Еврипидом фактически незаконна. Переворот сексуальных ролей можно понимать как имеющий широкое политическое значение. Противостояние воинского духа старшего поколения и бесплодного интеллектуализма молодого – это дебаты, или агон, которые в различных формах повторяются в пьесах Аристофана. Например, в "Жабах" агон разворачивается между Эсхилом, ценящим Гомера за воинский дух, который он прививает аудитории, и Еврипидом, ценящим интеллектуальные и философские споры в легалистическом обществе. В "Жабах" побеждает Эсхил, и он возвращается из мертвых, чтобы реформировать полис своей назидательной поэзией. В "Тесмофориях" хор женщин утверждает, что они лучше мужчин, поскольку сохранили свое наследие (символизируемое ткацким челноком, корзиной для шерсти и зонтиком), в то время как мужчины потеряли копья и щиты. Потеря щита выражается хором метафорически и презрительно как "зонтик брошен" (erriptai to skiadeion) – отсылка к слову "rhipsaspis" (кидающий щит), уничижительному термину, использование которого в Афинах считалось клеветой, влекущей за собой юридическую ответственность. Таким образом, смысл переворота сексуальных ролей в "Тесмофориях" не в том, что женщины равны мужчинам, а в том, что нынешнее поколение мужчин ведет себя не лучше женщин (тот же посыл звучит и в "Лисистрате"). Бессмысленность войны со Спартой, преступные мотивы, стоящие за ней, и стремление к миру – основные темы в ранних пьесах Аристофана. Пелопоннесская война почти не упоминается в этой пьесе, но мир, который Еврипид легко заключает с женщинами в конце (после провала всех его воинственных планов), можно истолковать как призыв к миру.
Тесмофориазуза и старая комедия
Аристофан соблюдал традиции Старой комедии в своих ранних пьесах и постепенно отказался от них в пользу более простого подхода, тенденция, которая была продолжена другими драматургами, пока не достигла своего завершения в Новой комедии Менандра. В «Тесмофориазусах» вариации от канонов Старой комедии включают:
Parodos: In Old Comedy, the parodos or entry of the Chorus was an important element in the entertainment, accomplished with music, dance and extravagant spectacle. In this play, there are two Choruses – one appears briefly while accompanying Agathon in a song outside his house, and later the Chorus proper enters the stage as the women of the festival. The Women enter quietly, performing devotional tasks in which Mnesilochus, disguised as a woman, participates. This quiet entry is uncharacteristic of a parodos. The doubling of the Chorus is a phenomenon that is repeated in The Frogs, where the Chorus briefly assumes the identity of frogs before it takes on its main role as The Blessed. In Lysistrata, produced at the same time as Thesmophoriazusae, there are also two choruses (Old Men and Old Women) but they appear on stage together after entering separately. Parabasis: In a parabasis the Chorus directly addresses the audience. Typically there are two parabases in a play and, during the first, the Chorus speaks out of character, acting as a mouthpiece for the author. In Thesmophoria however the Chorus never speaks out of character, the first parabasis is shortened and there is no second parabasis. Agon: A debate or argument between protagonist and antagonist is another important element in Old Comedy. Usually it is conducted in long verses of anapests divided into two symmetrical sections (epirrhema and antepirrhema) and the protagonist is triumphant, as for example in The Knights, The Clouds and The Wasps. In Thesmophoriazusae, there is no such agon. There is a formal debate between Mnesilochus and Mica but it is conducted in shorter lines of ordinary dialogue (iambic trimeter). It has something of the symmetrical structure typical of a conventional agon, with a long speech (by Mica), a long reply (by Mnesilochus) and a pair of symmetrical songs from the Chorus, but a small speech by a third party (the myrtle vendor) is inserted in the middle, along with another song, and this disturbs the symmetry. Unlike a conventional agon, the debate doesn't produce a victor and it is followed by a heated argument in long, iambic verses between Mnesilochus and Mica. Concluding episodes: In Old Comedy, dramatic tension is sacrificed quite early in the play with the protagonist's victory in the agon and thereafter the action is simply a celebration or affirmation of that victory in a loose series of farcical episodes in which "unwanted visitors" are driven off. In this play tension is maintained until the very end, when Euripides negotiates a peace and Mnesilochus is released from his bonds, yet the play is still typical of an Old Comedy in its introduction of 'unwanted visitors' in the latter part of the play – here they include Menelaus, Perseus and Echo i. e. Euripides disguized as characters from his own plays. This use of the 'unwanted visitors' convention is anticipated in The Knights, where Paphlagonian (i. e. Cleon) is defeated by the protagonist in a variety of roles. Exodos: Old Comedy conventionally ends with a celebration of the protagonist's victory and it features a sexual conquest, as represented for example by the flute girl in The Wasps and the Muse of Euripides in The Frogs. In Thesmophoriazusae, female entertainment is supplied by a dancing girl but it is not the protagonist who wins her favours – that pleasure falls into the lap of the Scythian archer. Euripides and Mnesilochus are too busy making good their escape to have time for a proper exodus (a joke that would not have been lost on the original audience).
Парод: В Старой комедии парод, или выход хора, был важным элементом зрелища, достигавшимся с помощью музыки, танцев и пышного оформления. В этой пьесе представлено два хора: один появляется ненадолго, сопровождая Агатона в песне у его дома, а затем на сцену выходит настоящий хор в образе женщин, участвующих в празднестве. Женщины входят тихо, совершая религиозные обряды, в которых участвует Мнесилох, замаскированный под женщину. Такой сдержанный выход нехарактерен для пародоса. Удвоение хора – явление, повторяющееся в «Лягушках», где хор ненадолго принимает облик лягушек, прежде чем исполнить свою главную роль Блаженных. В «Лисистрате», созданной одновременно с «Тесмофориазусами», также есть два хора (старики и старухи), но они появляются на сцене вместе после раздельного входа.
Parodos: In Old Comedy, the parodos or entry of the Chorus was an important element in the entertainment, accomplished with music, dance and extravagant spectacle. In this play, there are two Choruses – one appears briefly while accompanying Agathon in a song outside his house, and later the Chorus proper enters the stage as the women of the festival. The Women enter quietly, performing devotional tasks in which Mnesilochus, disguised as a woman, participates. This quiet entry is uncharacteristic of a parodos. The doubling of the Chorus is a phenomenon that is repeated in The Frogs, where the Chorus briefly assumes the identity of frogs before it takes on its main role as The Blessed. In Lysistrata, produced at the same time as Thesmophoriazusae, there are also two choruses (Old Men and Old Women) but they appear on stage together after entering separately. Parabasis: In a parabasis the Chorus directly addresses the audience. Typically there are two parabases in a play and, during the first, the Chorus speaks out of character, acting as a mouthpiece for the author. In Thesmophoria however the Chorus never speaks out of character, the first parabasis is shortened and there is no second parabasis. Agon: A debate or argument between protagonist and antagonist is another important element in Old Comedy. Usually it is conducted in long verses of anapests divided into two symmetrical sections (epirrhema and antepirrhema) and the protagonist is triumphant, as for example in The Knights, The Clouds and The Wasps. In Thesmophoriazusae, there is no such agon. There is a formal debate between Mnesilochus and Mica but it is conducted in shorter lines of ordinary dialogue (iambic trimeter). It has something of the symmetrical structure typical of a conventional agon, with a long speech (by Mica), a long reply (by Mnesilochus) and a pair of symmetrical songs from the Chorus, but a small speech by a third party (the myrtle vendor) is inserted in the middle, along with another song, and this disturbs the symmetry. Unlike a conventional agon, the debate doesn't produce a victor and it is followed by a heated argument in long, iambic verses between Mnesilochus and Mica. Concluding episodes: In Old Comedy, dramatic tension is sacrificed quite early in the play with the protagonist's victory in the agon and thereafter the action is simply a celebration or affirmation of that victory in a loose series of farcical episodes in which "unwanted visitors" are driven off. In this play tension is maintained until the very end, when Euripides negotiates a peace and Mnesilochus is released from his bonds, yet the play is still typical of an Old Comedy in its introduction of 'unwanted visitors' in the latter part of the play – here they include Menelaus, Perseus and Echo i. e. Euripides disguized as characters from his own plays. This use of the 'unwanted visitors' convention is anticipated in The Knights, where Paphlagonian (i. e. Cleon) is defeated by the protagonist in a variety of roles. Exodos: Old Comedy conventionally ends with a celebration of the protagonist's victory and it features a sexual conquest, as represented for example by the flute girl in The Wasps and the Muse of Euripides in The Frogs. In Thesmophoriazusae, female entertainment is supplied by a dancing girl but it is not the protagonist who wins her favours – that pleasure falls into the lap of the Scythian archer. Euripides and Mnesilochus are too busy making good their escape to have time for a proper exodus (a joke that would not have been lost on the original audience).
Парабазис: В парабазисе хор обращается непосредственно к зрителям. Обычно в пьесе их две, и во время первой хор выходит из образа, выступая в качестве рупора автора. Однако в «Тесмофории» хор никогда не отходит от своего образа, первый парабазис сокращен, а второго нет.
Parodos: In Old Comedy, the parodos or entry of the Chorus was an important element in the entertainment, accomplished with music, dance and extravagant spectacle. In this play, there are two Choruses – one appears briefly while accompanying Agathon in a song outside his house, and later the Chorus proper enters the stage as the women of the festival. The Women enter quietly, performing devotional tasks in which Mnesilochus, disguised as a woman, participates. This quiet entry is uncharacteristic of a parodos. The doubling of the Chorus is a phenomenon that is repeated in The Frogs, where the Chorus briefly assumes the identity of frogs before it takes on its main role as The Blessed. In Lysistrata, produced at the same time as Thesmophoriazusae, there are also two choruses (Old Men and Old Women) but they appear on stage together after entering separately. Parabasis: In a parabasis the Chorus directly addresses the audience. Typically there are two parabases in a play and, during the first, the Chorus speaks out of character, acting as a mouthpiece for the author. In Thesmophoria however the Chorus never speaks out of character, the first parabasis is shortened and there is no second parabasis. Agon: A debate or argument between protagonist and antagonist is another important element in Old Comedy. Usually it is conducted in long verses of anapests divided into two symmetrical sections (epirrhema and antepirrhema) and the protagonist is triumphant, as for example in The Knights, The Clouds and The Wasps. In Thesmophoriazusae, there is no such agon. There is a formal debate between Mnesilochus and Mica but it is conducted in shorter lines of ordinary dialogue (iambic trimeter). It has something of the symmetrical structure typical of a conventional agon, with a long speech (by Mica), a long reply (by Mnesilochus) and a pair of symmetrical songs from the Chorus, but a small speech by a third party (the myrtle vendor) is inserted in the middle, along with another song, and this disturbs the symmetry. Unlike a conventional agon, the debate doesn't produce a victor and it is followed by a heated argument in long, iambic verses between Mnesilochus and Mica. Concluding episodes: In Old Comedy, dramatic tension is sacrificed quite early in the play with the protagonist's victory in the agon and thereafter the action is simply a celebration or affirmation of that victory in a loose series of farcical episodes in which "unwanted visitors" are driven off. In this play tension is maintained until the very end, when Euripides negotiates a peace and Mnesilochus is released from his bonds, yet the play is still typical of an Old Comedy in its introduction of 'unwanted visitors' in the latter part of the play – here they include Menelaus, Perseus and Echo i. e. Euripides disguized as characters from his own plays. This use of the 'unwanted visitors' convention is anticipated in The Knights, where Paphlagonian (i. e. Cleon) is defeated by the protagonist in a variety of roles. Exodos: Old Comedy conventionally ends with a celebration of the protagonist's victory and it features a sexual conquest, as represented for example by the flute girl in The Wasps and the Muse of Euripides in The Frogs. In Thesmophoriazusae, female entertainment is supplied by a dancing girl but it is not the protagonist who wins her favours – that pleasure falls into the lap of the Scythian archer. Euripides and Mnesilochus are too busy making good their escape to have time for a proper exodus (a joke that would not have been lost on the original audience).
Агон: Дискуссия или спор между главным героем и антагонистом – еще один важный элемент Старой комедии. Обычно она ведется длинными анапестами, разделенными на две симметричные части (эпиррему и антепиррему), и главный герой одерживает победу, как, например, в «Рыцарях», «Облаках» и «Осах». В «Тесмофориазусах» такого агона нет. Между Мнесилохом и Микой происходит формальная дискуссия, но она ведется короткими строками обычного диалога (иамбическим триметром). Она сохраняет некоторую симметричную структуру, свойственную традиционному агону: длинная речь Мики, длинный ответ Мнесилоха и пара симметричных песен хора. Однако небольшая речь третьего лица (продавца мирты) и еще одна песня, вставленные в середину, нарушают эту симметрию. В отличие от традиционного агона, дискуссия не выявляет победителя и за ней следует ожесточенный спор в длинных иамбических стихах между Мнесилохом и Микой.
Parodos: In Old Comedy, the parodos or entry of the Chorus was an important element in the entertainment, accomplished with music, dance and extravagant spectacle. In this play, there are two Choruses – one appears briefly while accompanying Agathon in a song outside his house, and later the Chorus proper enters the stage as the women of the festival. The Women enter quietly, performing devotional tasks in which Mnesilochus, disguised as a woman, participates. This quiet entry is uncharacteristic of a parodos. The doubling of the Chorus is a phenomenon that is repeated in The Frogs, where the Chorus briefly assumes the identity of frogs before it takes on its main role as The Blessed. In Lysistrata, produced at the same time as Thesmophoriazusae, there are also two choruses (Old Men and Old Women) but they appear on stage together after entering separately. Parabasis: In a parabasis the Chorus directly addresses the audience. Typically there are two parabases in a play and, during the first, the Chorus speaks out of character, acting as a mouthpiece for the author. In Thesmophoria however the Chorus never speaks out of character, the first parabasis is shortened and there is no second parabasis. Agon: A debate or argument between protagonist and antagonist is another important element in Old Comedy. Usually it is conducted in long verses of anapests divided into two symmetrical sections (epirrhema and antepirrhema) and the protagonist is triumphant, as for example in The Knights, The Clouds and The Wasps. In Thesmophoriazusae, there is no such agon. There is a formal debate between Mnesilochus and Mica but it is conducted in shorter lines of ordinary dialogue (iambic trimeter). It has something of the symmetrical structure typical of a conventional agon, with a long speech (by Mica), a long reply (by Mnesilochus) and a pair of symmetrical songs from the Chorus, but a small speech by a third party (the myrtle vendor) is inserted in the middle, along with another song, and this disturbs the symmetry. Unlike a conventional agon, the debate doesn't produce a victor and it is followed by a heated argument in long, iambic verses between Mnesilochus and Mica. Concluding episodes: In Old Comedy, dramatic tension is sacrificed quite early in the play with the protagonist's victory in the agon and thereafter the action is simply a celebration or affirmation of that victory in a loose series of farcical episodes in which "unwanted visitors" are driven off. In this play tension is maintained until the very end, when Euripides negotiates a peace and Mnesilochus is released from his bonds, yet the play is still typical of an Old Comedy in its introduction of 'unwanted visitors' in the latter part of the play – here they include Menelaus, Perseus and Echo i. e. Euripides disguized as characters from his own plays. This use of the 'unwanted visitors' convention is anticipated in The Knights, where Paphlagonian (i. e. Cleon) is defeated by the protagonist in a variety of roles. Exodos: Old Comedy conventionally ends with a celebration of the protagonist's victory and it features a sexual conquest, as represented for example by the flute girl in The Wasps and the Muse of Euripides in The Frogs. In Thesmophoriazusae, female entertainment is supplied by a dancing girl but it is not the protagonist who wins her favours – that pleasure falls into the lap of the Scythian archer. Euripides and Mnesilochus are too busy making good their escape to have time for a proper exodus (a joke that would not have been lost on the original audience).
Заключительные эпизоды: В Старой комедии драматическое напряжение обычно спадает в начале пьесы после победы главного героя в агоне, а дальнейшее действие представляет собой просто празднование или утверждение этой победы в череде фарсовых эпизодов, в которых прогоняются «нежелательные гости». В этой пьесе напряжение сохраняется до самого конца, когда Еврипид ведет переговоры о мире, и Мнесилох освобождается от пут, однако пьеса все еще типична для Старой комедии введением «нежелательных гостей» в ее заключительной части – здесь это Менелай, Персей и Эхо, то есть Еврипид, замаскированный под персонажей из своих пьес. Такое использование конвенции «нежелательных гостей» предвосхищается в «Рыцарях», где Пафлагонец (то есть Клеон) побеждается главным героем в различных ролях.
Parodos: In Old Comedy, the parodos or entry of the Chorus was an important element in the entertainment, accomplished with music, dance and extravagant spectacle. In this play, there are two Choruses – one appears briefly while accompanying Agathon in a song outside his house, and later the Chorus proper enters the stage as the women of the festival. The Women enter quietly, performing devotional tasks in which Mnesilochus, disguised as a woman, participates. This quiet entry is uncharacteristic of a parodos. The doubling of the Chorus is a phenomenon that is repeated in The Frogs, where the Chorus briefly assumes the identity of frogs before it takes on its main role as The Blessed. In Lysistrata, produced at the same time as Thesmophoriazusae, there are also two choruses (Old Men and Old Women) but they appear on stage together after entering separately. Parabasis: In a parabasis the Chorus directly addresses the audience. Typically there are two parabases in a play and, during the first, the Chorus speaks out of character, acting as a mouthpiece for the author. In Thesmophoria however the Chorus never speaks out of character, the first parabasis is shortened and there is no second parabasis. Agon: A debate or argument between protagonist and antagonist is another important element in Old Comedy. Usually it is conducted in long verses of anapests divided into two symmetrical sections (epirrhema and antepirrhema) and the protagonist is triumphant, as for example in The Knights, The Clouds and The Wasps. In Thesmophoriazusae, there is no such agon. There is a formal debate between Mnesilochus and Mica but it is conducted in shorter lines of ordinary dialogue (iambic trimeter). It has something of the symmetrical structure typical of a conventional agon, with a long speech (by Mica), a long reply (by Mnesilochus) and a pair of symmetrical songs from the Chorus, but a small speech by a third party (the myrtle vendor) is inserted in the middle, along with another song, and this disturbs the symmetry. Unlike a conventional agon, the debate doesn't produce a victor and it is followed by a heated argument in long, iambic verses between Mnesilochus and Mica. Concluding episodes: In Old Comedy, dramatic tension is sacrificed quite early in the play with the protagonist's victory in the agon and thereafter the action is simply a celebration or affirmation of that victory in a loose series of farcical episodes in which "unwanted visitors" are driven off. In this play tension is maintained until the very end, when Euripides negotiates a peace and Mnesilochus is released from his bonds, yet the play is still typical of an Old Comedy in its introduction of 'unwanted visitors' in the latter part of the play – here they include Menelaus, Perseus and Echo i. e. Euripides disguized as characters from his own plays. This use of the 'unwanted visitors' convention is anticipated in The Knights, where Paphlagonian (i. e. Cleon) is defeated by the protagonist in a variety of roles. Exodos: Old Comedy conventionally ends with a celebration of the protagonist's victory and it features a sexual conquest, as represented for example by the flute girl in The Wasps and the Muse of Euripides in The Frogs. In Thesmophoriazusae, female entertainment is supplied by a dancing girl but it is not the protagonist who wins her favours – that pleasure falls into the lap of the Scythian archer. Euripides and Mnesilochus are too busy making good their escape to have time for a proper exodus (a joke that would not have been lost on the original audience).
Экзод: Старая комедия обычно завершается празднованием победы главного героя и включает в себя любовную победу, как, например, игра на флейте в «Осах» и Муза Еврипида в «Лягушках». В «Тесмофориазусах» женское развлечение обеспечивает танцовщица, но ее благосклонность получает не главный герой, а скифский лучник. Еврипид и Мнесилох слишком заняты бегством, чтобы позволить себе полноценный экзод (шутка, которая не осталась бы незамеченной оригинальной аудиторией).
Parodos: In Old Comedy, the parodos or entry of the Chorus was an important element in the entertainment, accomplished with music, dance and extravagant spectacle. In this play, there are two Choruses – one appears briefly while accompanying Agathon in a song outside his house, and later the Chorus proper enters the stage as the women of the festival. The Women enter quietly, performing devotional tasks in which Mnesilochus, disguised as a woman, participates. This quiet entry is uncharacteristic of a parodos. The doubling of the Chorus is a phenomenon that is repeated in The Frogs, where the Chorus briefly assumes the identity of frogs before it takes on its main role as The Blessed. In Lysistrata, produced at the same time as Thesmophoriazusae, there are also two choruses (Old Men and Old Women) but they appear on stage together after entering separately. Parabasis: In a parabasis the Chorus directly addresses the audience. Typically there are two parabases in a play and, during the first, the Chorus speaks out of character, acting as a mouthpiece for the author. In Thesmophoria however the Chorus never speaks out of character, the first parabasis is shortened and there is no second parabasis. Agon: A debate or argument between protagonist and antagonist is another important element in Old Comedy. Usually it is conducted in long verses of anapests divided into two symmetrical sections (epirrhema and antepirrhema) and the protagonist is triumphant, as for example in The Knights, The Clouds and The Wasps. In Thesmophoriazusae, there is no such agon. There is a formal debate between Mnesilochus and Mica but it is conducted in shorter lines of ordinary dialogue (iambic trimeter). It has something of the symmetrical structure typical of a conventional agon, with a long speech (by Mica), a long reply (by Mnesilochus) and a pair of symmetrical songs from the Chorus, but a small speech by a third party (the myrtle vendor) is inserted in the middle, along with another song, and this disturbs the symmetry. Unlike a conventional agon, the debate doesn't produce a victor and it is followed by a heated argument in long, iambic verses between Mnesilochus and Mica. Concluding episodes: In Old Comedy, dramatic tension is sacrificed quite early in the play with the protagonist's victory in the agon and thereafter the action is simply a celebration or affirmation of that victory in a loose series of farcical episodes in which "unwanted visitors" are driven off. In this play tension is maintained until the very end, when Euripides negotiates a peace and Mnesilochus is released from his bonds, yet the play is still typical of an Old Comedy in its introduction of 'unwanted visitors' in the latter part of the play – here they include Menelaus, Perseus and Echo i. e. Euripides disguized as characters from his own plays. This use of the 'unwanted visitors' convention is anticipated in The Knights, where Paphlagonian (i. e. Cleon) is defeated by the protagonist in a variety of roles. Exodos: Old Comedy conventionally ends with a celebration of the protagonist's victory and it features a sexual conquest, as represented for example by the flute girl in The Wasps and the Muse of Euripides in The Frogs. In Thesmophoriazusae, female entertainment is supplied by a dancing girl but it is not the protagonist who wins her favours – that pleasure falls into the lap of the Scythian archer. Euripides and Mnesilochus are too busy making good their escape to have time for a proper exodus (a joke that would not have been lost on the original audience).