From the surreal satire of Aristophanes to the situation comedy of Menander, this course investigates the nature and context of ancient Greek humour, relating it both to modern traditions of comedy and a range of theoretical perspectives.

This is one of the honours options in Classics and may not run every year. The options that are running this session are available on MyCampus. When running it will consist of :

Two seminars, weekly.
Seminar 1: discussion of ancient texts
Seminar 2: discussion of modern theories and/or comparative strategies
Follow-up discussion online (expectation of 2 substantive posts minimum weekly).

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The standard assessments for this course are: 

■ Essay (3,000 words) - 60%

■ Presentation (10 minutes) - 20% each

■ Contribution to online discussion (1,000 words) - 20%

If required, for instance where a disability prevents a student from undertaking a specific method of assessment, the following alternatives are available: 

■ There are no alternatives to the essay and contribution, but flexible deadlines can be offered as reasonable adjustment (Students should follow the usual process for extensions). 

■ Recorded Presentation or Written script of equivalent length or Power point with substantial notes as alternative to presentation.

Further reasonable adjustments may be provided where necessary. Students are encouraged to consult with the course convenor.  

It is the default expectation that all courses will offer opportunities for reassessment or deferred assessment. Where it is not possible to offer this in some assessment components, the grade achieved at the first attempt will be counted towards the final course grade, and any exceptions for this course are described below.

[No exceptions]

This course will provide the opportunity to:

■ study a selection of Greek comedy from synchronic and diachronic perspectives

■ discuss ancient humour within its original context

■ study a range of theories of humour and the comic in the Western tradition

■ relate ancient komoidia to modern categories of humour

By the end of this course students will be able to:

■ identify the formal characteristics of Greek comedy and compare its two main varians (Old and New Comedy).

■ relate the texts to their social, cultural and political context

■ recognise the principal theories of comedy, ancient and modern.

■ develop their own arguments about the nature of the comic, orally and in written form

■ use and critique comparative strategies in approaching ancient humour

■ evaluate critical approaches to humour and comedy through discussion of the set texts