The Role of Comic Perspectives in Shaping Homer's Tragic Vision
1990; Johns Hopkins University Press; Volume: 83; Issue: 4 Linguagem: Inglês
10.2307/4350635
ISSN1558-9234
Autores Tópico(s)Shakespeare, Adaptation, and Literary Criticism
ResumoComic elements play an important role in helping to shape the tragic vision of the Iliad, a work Aristotle regards as the prototype of tragedy.' Far from representing the mere discharge of accumulated tension, comic elements introduce or reinforce vital themes in the epic. Much of the comedy in the poem is cruel, reflecting both the harsh conditions of war and the injustice of a universe governed by arbitrary, childish gods. Recent criticism has taken increasing interest in comic incidents, motifs, and characters in Homeric epic, but the role of the comic in defining the nature of heroism in the Iliad has received relatively little attention.2 Throughout the poem Homer juxtaposes comic incidents with scenes of bravery and pathos, drawing contrasts which enhance the dignity and poignancy of the heroic choice. This paper will discuss the comic aspects of two characters, Thersites and Paris, as a basis for analyzing the role of comic elements in the Iliad as a whole. Thersites struts on stage in Iliad 2 to challenge Agamemnon, only to be humiliated and silenced a brief sixty or seventy lines later; references to Paris are spread throughout the poem, and although his abduction of Helen figures centrally in the heroic saga, his major roles in the poem, his single combat with Menelaus in Book 3 and reappearance in scenes at Troy in Book 6, comprise only a few hundred lines. Both Thersites and Paris, however, play a much more important role than their actual time on the stage of the Iliad might indicate. These apparently minor characters color our perceptions of the heroes, influencing our reading of the rest of the poem. Comic relief is of course part of the effect of the appearances of Thersites and Paris. Thersites' punishment distracts the Greeks (and the reader) from the foreboding Quarrel, while Paris' escapades provide a diversion from Hector's somber burdens. The comic effect of these two characters also stems from an incongruity between the posture they adopt and the deeds they accomplish. The Greeks laugh when Odysseus' blows reduce the brazen Thersites to whimpering; Paris' bold challenge to the Greek warriors in Book 3 is exposed as a sham when an angry Menelaus confronts him. As men who are worse than the average,3 both Thersites and Paris merit our contempt while sharpening our appreciation of the
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