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Laughter in the Exchange: Lucian's Invention of the Comic Dialogue

Peterson, Anna I.
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1275416015

Abstract Details

2010, Doctor of Philosophy, Ohio State University, Greek and Latin.
My dissertation examines Lucian’s claim to have invented the comic dialogue. For Lucian, this new generic category resolves the quarrel between Old Comedy and Platonic dialogue, which he imagines arose from Aristophanes’ portrayal of Socrates in the Clouds and the subsequent blame that Socrates directs at Aristophanes in Plato’s Apology. Through a study of specific texts such as the Fisherman and the Nigrinus as well as broader categories within Lucian’s corpus, I argue that Lucian rescues Old Comedy from the attacks of Plato and his successors by attributing philosophical value to it. My work stands in contrast to recent scholarship on Lucian, which has focused on his relationship to the historical and cultural debates surrounding the Second Sophistic and the Cynic tradition. While these approaches have contributed substantially to our understanding of Lucian’s cultural and philosophical identity, I extend its implications to articulate the significance of Lucian’s characterization of his writings as the union of the comic and philosophic traditions.
Tom Hawkins (Advisor)
Fritz Graf (Committee Member)
Richard Fletcher (Committee Member)
339 p.
Classical Studies
Lucian; Second Sophistic; Imperial Greek; Ancient Comedy; Platonic Dialogue

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Peterson, A. I. (2010). Laughter in the Exchange: Lucian's Invention of the Comic Dialogue [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1275416015

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Peterson, Anna. Laughter in the Exchange: Lucian's Invention of the Comic Dialogue. 2010. Ohio State University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1275416015.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Peterson, Anna. "Laughter in the Exchange: Lucian's Invention of the Comic Dialogue." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University, 2010. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=osu1275416015

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

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This open access ETD is published by The Ohio State University and OhioLINK.