©Damen,
2021
Classical Drama
and Theatre
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Comparison between how many times Aristophanes
cites or quotes Euripides and his references to the other tragedians demonstrates
well his fixation on Euripides. Sophocles, for instance, is cited by name in Aristophanes'
comedies only about ten times, and while Aeschylus' name occurs more than thirty
times, it is usually in some favorable way, most often as one of the great "old-time
playwrights." On the other hand, Aristophanes uses Euripides' name, most
often in vain, no fewer than fifty-four times—more than the other two combined!—and
in most of the eleven surviving comedies. In other words, to judge from what survives
of Aristophanes' corpus, he could hardly bear to stage a play without at some
point using—or more precisely abusing—Euripides by name.
In addition, Euripides appears on stage as an actual, speaking character in three
of Aristophanes' extant plays. So it is really no exaggeration to say that Aristophanes
was obsessed with the infamous tragedian and his edgy, modern theatre, no doubt,
a reflection of the wider Athenian public's fascination.
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