The Fragments of Pherecrates

This thesis comprises a linguistic, metrical and literary commentary on the fragments of Pherecrates, as collected in the latest edition of R. Kassel and C. Austin Poetae Comici Graeci vol. VII pp. 102-220 Berlin/New York 1989, and a general introduct ion. The commentary of the 288 fragments is the main bulk of the work. Generally each play is treated according to the following scheme: first of all, I provide an 'introductory note' in which I discuss different questions regarding authorship, date, plot and contents; secondly, a commentary on each fragment. The individual fragments are handled in a similar fashion: I deal first with metre, contents and interpretations and then with the problems in specific lines and words. Perhaps the most remarkable passages in the commentary are from the play Agammarhotiotaoiota, Korhoiotaalphanunuo (above all fr. 73-76), Krhoalphapialphataualphalambdaoiota, Mepsilontaualphalambdalambdaetazeta (fr. 113), piepsilonrhosigmaalphaiota, Xepsiloniotarhoonu (fr. 155), and, from the "Incertarum fabularum fragmenta", fr. 193 and 197. In the introduction I synthesize the information from the commentary, in order to give a general view of Pherecrates' work and style of comedy. First, I consider the testimonies about his life and works, above all those related to the dates and the question of the number of plays. Through the references to later scholars given by the sources of these fragments, I suggest the view of Hellenistic scholars about this playwright. The historical view of Pherecrates is completed by a description of the textual tradition for the sources of the fragments. Secondly, I deal with the following subjects: metre (I Include a list of the metrical schemes and the fragments where they are used); language (the words are grouped in three levels of language: colloquial, technical and poetical), style and humour (where special reference is made to the obscene humour). I also speak about the elements of dramatic structure and the passages which yield some parallels to Aristophanes' plays. Next, I outline the plots of the comedies and I attempt to establish different types of comedy either from external evidence or by means of speculation from the titles or the content of the fragments. Further, the topics and motives of the fragments are divided into food, music, moral decadence and kappaomuodeltaoupsilonmuepsilonnuoiota. Finally, I compare Pherecrates with Crates and Aristophanes in order to provide a possible background for the style which I aim to describe