Anonymous Comedies of the DoriansἈνώνυμοι Δωρικαὶ Κωμῳδίαι
Comic Fragments Anonymous II Anonymous Comedies of the Dorians PDF
The Anonymous Comedies of the Dorians is a modern scholarly title for a collection of eight fragmentary passages attributed to unknown comic poets from the Doric-speaking regions of the ancient Greek world. These fragments are classified under the designation "Comic Fragments Anonymous II" in standard reference works such as Poetae Comici Graeci. The title reflects both the comic genre and the works' geographical and linguistic origin, distinct from the more fully documented tradition of Attic comedy centered in Athens.
The content of these fragments points to the vibrant tradition of Dorian comedy, a regional precursor and contemporary to Attic Old Comedy, which flourished in areas like Syracuse and the Peloponnese. While the surviving text is highly lacunose, the pieces suggest characteristic themes of the genre, including mythological parody, scenes from daily life featuring stock characters, and satire employing physical humor and farce. A defining feature is their composition in the Doric dialect, which would have infused the performances with local color and specific cultural references. The text survives not through direct manuscript tradition but entirely through indirect transmission, having been quoted by later ancient authors and scholars, such as Athenaeus, primarily for the purpose of illustrating peculiarities of dialect, meter, or rare vocabulary. Consequently, their preservation is accidental and highly selective, compiled in modern editions from these secondary sources.
The significance of these anonymous fragments lies in the crucial, albeit limited, evidence they provide for the diversity of early Greek comic performance outside the Athenian sphere. They offer a valuable glimpse into the popular performance traditions that contributed to the broader development of Greek comedy, informing both Attic and later Roman comedic forms. Furthermore, they serve as an important linguistic resource for the study of the Doric dialect as used in literary and performative contexts.
| book 223.1 | ....]ζεται .[...]ο̣ντοc αι μεν̣..[ ....]αν γιγαν[τ. π]ροcπεcὼν |
| book 223.2 | πανν̣[...]α̣ι ...]α̣ι̣δενει̣[.. c]υμμίγηcαγ̣ γ̣υν̣.[..]. ...]ντι |
| book 223.3 | φρα[....]ρκεcιν ν̣ο̣c̣.....[..].[ln_5]...].δε κλ̣ιθ̣[....]c̣c̣α κ̣α̣ὶ χ..[...]π̣..ο̣c .].[..]ε̣ξε.[....]τ̣α̣ν̣cο̣..υ̣..[.]α̣ν̣[...]c πνιγεὺc πλ̣α̣[.....].c [ἀ]νδρὸc ἀ̣ρχ̣[..]ο̣ι cταθμόc, ἔνθ’ ἄρτι κοίταν ἐγλιπὼν ἑωθινὸc χθιζὰν λαπάccων δαῖτα |
| book 223.4 | του....[.]μ̣ατι[ln_10]η̣....τ.ν̣.....τ̣.....ν̣ου...[.]νόμουc[ln_10]— — — — — — — — — — — — — — —[ln_10]και̣ δι̣[ |
| book 223 | [ln_11][spk_—]‵—′ κρατὺν δὲ κρα[δίαν Λερνᾶτ[ι]ν ὕδραν[ βαρὺν δι’ Ἥραc ζᾶ[λον τὸν ἑcπέρο̣υ̣ τ’ ἀν.[[ln_15]Λίβυccαν ηc̣μ̣εν.[ ὤφθηcαν ἀλλ[ γλώccαc ἀμοιβὰ[ν τὸν δ’ ἀφ̣...ιc̣ιν̣[ ‵—′οὗτοc, cὲ φ̣λ̣αcμ̣ὸ̣ν[[ln_20]βάλ’ ἐκποδὼν ἀγ̣[ ἐμᾶc χερὸc κατ’ ἀ[[ln_21]— — — — — — — |
| book 224 | — — — —[ln_1]]ην.μω̣[ ]διέπλεκον[ [para]]νεφιλεοι[ π]οιηcεῖc ἰδώ[ν[ln_5]π]ολὺν ἤδη [ ]....ιcτ[ ]εν.[ ].τοι.[[ln_8]— — — — — —[ln_9]].[ |
| book 224.1 | [ln_10][spk_—]]νοc. — [ [para]]λλωτ[ π]ω ’c τὸ γῆ[ραc [para]]c̣ τὺ γῆραc̣ [....]..ω̣[ ]ρη |
| book 224.2 | πωc τοῦτο. — τη[[ln_15]]cί. — πο̣[ῖοc;] — ὅντιν’ α.[ — — —[ln_16]].μ̣[ ].γαρτ’[`̣ ]εραν[ ].ηνο[[ln_20]]αιτιπ[[ln_20]— — — — — —[ln_21]]εcτι.[ ]πολλο.[[ln_22]— — — — — — —[ln_23]]μ̣ε.[ ]γ̣ιcυ̣[[ln_25]]...[[ln_25]— — — — —[ln_26]]ε.[ ]ε̣ν· .[ ].ιc̣δ[[ln_28]— — — — —[ln_29]]α[ln_30]].των[ ]νω[[ln_31]— — — |