The Physicality of Justice in Aristophanes’ Wasps: Bodies, Objects and the Material Staging of Athenian Law. Akten der Gesellschaft für Griechische und Hellenistische Rechtsgeschichte|(28) Symposion 2019 Akten der Gesellschaft für griechische und hellenistische Rechtsgeschichte Band 28|

The aim of this paper is to study legal references in Aristophanes’ Waspsfrom a perspective based on the importance of the bodies and objects involved inlitigation. Since comedy as a genre is pervaded by bodily contact and sensoryexperiences, I am interested in exploring the materiality of subjects and things, theirrelationship and the potentiality of human and non-human contact when legalactivities are performed on stage. All these physical displays suggest that a study ofgestures and expressive actions in the play may contribute to a more comprehensiveunderstanding of the non-verbal dynamics involved in the Athenian judicialmachinery