The Wasps
Questions
about the author:
Which kind
of author lies upon The wasps?
Aristophanes maybe considered as a political author,
because he talks about political issues, where is envolved the justice and the
courts. Also he may be one of the first ones to talk about this.
Did he have in mind any reader?
Of
course he had, this book is directed to the Greek society that was living the
injustice, because they were the ones who would feel identified. And he wanted
to make conscious and try to change what Greece was living.
Did he set
a specific contract on it?
A criticism of the authorities and courts of
justice. He was demanding a better management in the government.
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Questions about Sources:
Is History
the real and direct source?
Yes,
because it is an important situation that was happening while Aristophanes was
writing the book. So we know that what he was narrating is true.
How far personal affairs influence the Plot?
Throughout
history appears a lot of personas affairs, it is because of the bad
relationship between the father and son. And the different ideas that the
characters are defending.
Is this a theater-play about Justice?
Yes
because it is written as a theater script, and all the time is touching justice
problems. We also have the specifications of how the characters must act.
Why talking and writing about Justice through
comedy?
Because
comedy helped to reduce the tension that this may brought, for being a
situation that the society was living at the moment. And maybe for didn’t offend
someone.
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Questions
about anecdote:
Is a love-hate relation between father and son? Or ¿Is
a justice-injustice one?
Both,
we can see this situations through the history. Bdelicleón is always trying to
change the bad behaviors of this father, because he didn’t concorde with him,
but he also love him otherwise he wouldn’t have done anything.
And
a justice-injustice because the source of their problem is the injustice that
the court was doing.
How worth
is Justice in greek society?
The
law was the only way to control people, and everybody were trying to be good
for the court eyes. Also the people that controled the justice courts wanted a
lot of power, so they can manipulate the society.
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Questions about structure:
Is that kind of comedy structure made for play performance?
Yes because it is written as a theater script, it differences the characters
and it specify how they must talk and act.
How facts are put to deal kindly with argument
and mise-en-scene?
They
play contains acts that are easy to represent in theater, it doesn’t have any
thoughts and the derision is gently increasing the level. And also in theater,
you can’t express thoughts, and you can’t have flashbacks or flashforwards.
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Questions
about Plot:
As a contemporary reader:
Can
I find an example of Aristohane’s comedy in current Comedy?
In
the movie This is my son, where also appears the father and son issues. The Bridget
Jone’s Diary. And the movie Mama Mia!, that shows the same problem but now
between mother and daughtter. Also in this days more injustice movies are
appearing to make consciousness through the comedy.
How
important is irony since then?
Very
important because is a subtle way to express the truth and to ofend indirectly.
Should
I consider Aristohane’s comedy a fixed model?
Yes,
over 1,500 years it was his model that insipire some other authors that use
comedy to criticize. Moliere is one of the authors that use this model as
inspiration, he is known as the father of Comédie Française.
As an author:
Can it make rise atention in contemporary
audience?
Yes
because it talks about a problem that is common today as well. And we prefeer
to laugh about the problems we have than been criticized. If someone just come
and write something to criticize, we must take it the bad way, but if they use
comedy, that make us think about what is happening and then we realise a lot of
stuff that may help us change.
Coul it be modified to get
expectations of contemporary audience?
I think it can have some modifications, the vocabulary can be changed
for a contemporary one. And also it can use people that are better known by us.
Or talk about problems that are more common nowdays. As narco, dealing with
women and prostitution.
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Questions
about Action:
Did author have another choice to write down his
ideas on Plot?
Yes
he had, but I think he choosed the best way. Comedy is one of the best ways to
express something because it reduce the tension. More if we are talking about
problems in the society. He could just do a criticism but it wouldn’t have the
same impact it had.
Is climax a paradigm to be broken?
Yes
because It can have more than one climax. The story can be full of moments that
cause tension. It also can change depending the space and time in which the
story is been hold.
How should climatic points be understood from the
reader’s view?
As
tension points that make the story more interesting. Parts of the story that
make us wonder how the characters will solve the problems.
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Questions
about Time:
Is there any Narrative Technique I/You can
identify for time developing?
Aristophanes
is narrating something while he is living it, making it a lineal story. This
way of narration gave more sense to the story as well, and then the story
doesn’t skip parts of what really happened.
Why to use that kind in his work, by Aristophanes?
Because
it is the best way to connect with the readers you have in mind, tell something
that you already lived. And also the book was written for theater, and there
you can’t have flashbacks or flash forwards. Also you can’t express thoughts
there.
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Questions
about Space:
Does Athens represent the whole Greece?
Yes
because the problem that is told was something that all the people in Greece
where living. And just talk of Athens adds simplicity to the narration.
Might Aristophanes foreshadow the present world?
No,
He was trying to stop what Greece was living in that time, but he didn’t
thought that the world would be the same too much years later. He was trying to
give us a lesson about what should avoid, he didn’t meant to tell us how the
world would be years later.
May we have a glance of the ancient Greece through
The wasps ?
Of course, it showed us the
habits the society had and we can infer that it looked too similar as ours. We also have the same kind of issues
with the government.
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Questions
about Narrator:
What kind of narrator is the
Chorus?
The chorus provides some structure to the narrative
and can provide information and commentary that need not be in the actors'
lines. acts as a kind of liaison between the audience and the actors. It is a Third
person omniscient narrator, because they know everything about the story, how
the characters feel and they thoughts. They also know all the little details
that the audience is not capable of understand so easily.
Why did Chorus disappeared in Theater plays?
Because
today we don’t need that the Chorus explain details. We have good plays that
are explicit and just with the dialogues we can understand everything they want
to transmit.
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Questions
about Characters:
What kind of character is the protagonist?
A
peaceful one, that fought for justice and for solve the problems between the
society and the courts. It also wanted to change the way his father was dealing
with the power and justice. This character is a Human one. Respect to the
fisical, I think He may be thin, with curly blonde hair, tall, with soft look
in the eyes.
What kind of character is the principals?
As
the principal characters I consider they are Philocleon and Bdelycleon, they
have opposite ideals. In first place we have the side of justice and the ones
that want to help people, and in the other side we have the ones that loves
power and want to manipulate the society. They know how to argue and defend
their ideals.
What kind of character is the antagonist?
One
with a lot of power, that is common to make injustice and doesn’t want to
change the way he is. The also is human, but I can imagine him as a fat old
man, that has beard and bad breath. I also think he was ambicious and wanted to
had all the power.
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Questions
about Expression forms:
How dialogues are performed?
As
a theater script, but they are too direct, each character express what they are
up to.
Do dialogues truly belong to the character which
realize them?
Yes,
all the characters express what they are up to. Whether is an injustice
situation, or one where they can help.
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Questions
about Ideas:
Which kind of idea shows the highest level among
them?
Ideas
pro society and the ones that are looking for justice. They are trying to
change the way people are conformist and don’t fight for what the want.
Why has the author done it so?
Because
it is his way to express inconformity with the goverment. And to invite people
to express what they think, not to be quiet and comformist.
What kind of thinking is for expressing ideas?
The
ones against the authority, in which one person speaks out for all the country.
And the ones that wanted to be heard.
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Questions
about symbols:
What does represent father?
The
maximum authorities, the person that has the last world.
What does represent son?
The
justice. The people that are wiling to express what the feel and fight for a
better place to live.
What does represent dogs?
The
society that is witnessing all the issues, and want that someone solve it
without getting them involved.
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Questions
about Meaning of the work:
Is The wasps important
as classical Literature work?
Yes because we can see that people in that times also had problems with
the government, and that some people love to have the power and manipulate the
society.
Is It worth of universal
recognition? Why?
Yes, because all the countries at some point had problems with the
justice, and this book helps us to realize that this issues have appeared
always.
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Questions
about Reception of the work:
¿How different was meaning in his age and today’s?
I
think we perceive it with the same intensity as the Greek society in that age,
because we are really having the same issues than them, and we get so
identified with it.
¿Are you shocked with
Aristophanes world?
Si, because I couldn’t do that
critic to the world I am living in. I am nos shocked about the issue He is
talking about, but the way He expressed it.
¿Are remaining values from the
past in our present world?
Yes, I think most of them and they affect us the same way.
We are hoping that one brave person come out tos ay what we are feeling,
We don’t want to do anything to change it but we are incapable to defend what
we think, and we just criticize.
