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WorksheetsGreek Comedy - Assess It
Total questions: 6
Worksheet time: 30mins
Greek comedies allowed playwrights the chance to express their opinions. Which type of opinion is not one that was commonly expressed in Greek comedies?
opinions on Greek leaders
opinions on the Greek empire's wars
opinions on the common dietary practices of the Greeks
opinions on decisions that affected the Grecian population
Select the best definition for Greek comedy.
a play that celebrated the solving of a problem
a play in which most characters died
a play giving the account of a king's rule
a play that allows for characters to improvise some dialogue
Read the following excerpt from the opening scene of "The Frogs" by Aristophanes. In this scene, the god Dionysus and his slave Xanthias are on their way to meet Heracles for directions to Hades, the Underworld. Xanthias complains that he is not able to make the regular jokes of a character like him who is carrying the possessions of the two.
XANTHIAS: What! must I bear these burdens, and not make
One of the jokes of Ameipsias an Lycis
And Phrynichus, in every play they write,
Put in the mouths of all their burden-bearers?
DIONYSUS: Don't make them; no! I tell you when I see
Their plays, and hear those jokes, I come away
More than a twelvemonth older than I went.
Select the statement that does not accurately interpret the scene in the context of Greek culture.
Ameiphsias, Lycis, and Phrynichus were Greek playwrights.
Dionysus treats Xanthius as an equal.
It was common for slave characters to make jokes in Greek comedies.
Aristophanes likely did not think the common jokes in plays were funny.
Read the following excerpt from "The Frogs" by Aristophanes. Dionysus has met Heracles and told him of his intention to go to Hades to bring Euripides, a playwright, back from the dead. Other playwrights mentioned are Sophocles and his son Iophon, who both wrote tragedies.
DIONYSUS: And no one shall persuade me not to go after the man.
HERACLES: Do you mean below, to Hades?
DIONYSUS: And lower still, if there's a lower still.
HERACLES: What on earth for?
DIONYSUS: Well, he's the sole Good thing remaining, if even he is good.
For even of that I'm not exactly certain.
HERACLES: If go you must, there's Sophocles—he comes Before Euripides—why not take him?
DIONYSUS: Not till I've tried if Iophon's coin rings true
When he's alone, apart from Sophocles.
Besides, Euripides the crafty rogue,
Will find a thousand shifts to get away,
But he was easy here, is easy there.
Select the statement that accurately reflects the opinions given on playwrights in the scene.
Heracles prefers the plays of Euripides to those of Sophocles.
Dionysus has a negative opinion of the plays of Sophocles.
Heracles does not enjoy Iophon's plays.
Dionysus considers Euripides to be better than any living poet or playwright.
Which option is not something to consider when trying to discern the cultural message of a Greek comedy?
social elements of the play
the length of the play
stereotypes portrayed in the play
traits of the play's characters
Read the following scene from "The Frogs" by Aristophanes. This scene is set in Hades, the Underworld, where the god Dionysus has gone to retrieve the dead playwright Euripides. Euripides and Aeschylus both claim to be the greatest tragedian, so Dionysus and Pluto (god of the Underworld) must decide how to choose between the two playwrights. Xanthias, slave to Dionysus, discusses this with Aeacus, servant to Pluto.
XANTHIAS: And what does Pluto now propose to do?
AEACUS: He means to hold a tournament, and bring
Their tragedies to proof.
XANTHIAS: But Sophocles, How came he not to claim the tragic chair?
AEACUS: Claim it? Not he! When he came down, he kissed
With reverence Aeschylus, and clasped his hand,
And yielded willingly the chair to him.
But now he's going, says Cleidemides,
To sit third-man: and then if Aeschylus win,
He'll stay content: if not, for art's sake,
He'll fight to the death against Euripides.
XANTHIAS: Will it come off?
AEACUS: O yes, by Zeus, directly.
And then, I hear, will wonderful things be done,
The art poetic will be weighed in scales.
XANTHIAS: What! weigh out tragedy, like butcher's meat?
What common cultural event of ancient Greek society is reflected in this scene?
feasts honoring certain gods and goddesses
consulting an oracle to predict the future
yearly festivals at which plays were performed and judged
military training for soldiers
