Asides in New Comedy and the Palliata - Leeds International ...

ECKARD LEFÈVRE, ASIDES IN NEW COMEDY AND THE PALLIATA
(Here, for these people, every day’s a holiday.
Without much wit, but with great satisfaction,
they whirl in narrow, separate rounds
like kittens chasing their own tails.
And if they can’t complain of headache
and still have credit with the landlord,
they’re pleased with life and free of cares.)
Here a scene is commented on by a character who is not involved in the dialogue
(type IIa). In this case the people overheard also comment on those newly
arrived; for instance Frosch says a little later:
2174 Laßt mich nur gehn! Bei einem vollen Glase
2175 Zieh’ ich, wie einen Kinderzahn,
Den Burschen leicht die Würmer aus der Nase.
Sie scheinen mir aus einem edlen Haus.
Sie sehen stolz und unzufrieden aus.
(Leave it to me! Before they’ve drunk a glass of wine
I’ll worm their secrets out of them
as easily as you pull out a baby-tooth.
I think that they’re aristocrats,
since they look haughty and dissatisfied.)
Here people who comment on a scene and are not involved in the dialogue are
commented on by others (type IIb).
After the Lord has discussed human beings in general and Faust in particular
with Mephistopheles, the latter says, remaining alone on stage:
352 Es ist gar hübsch von einem großen Herrn,
So menschlich mit dem Teufel selbst zu sprechen.
(It is quite decent of a mighty lord to chat
and be so human with the very devil.)
In this case a preceding dialogue is commented on by a character who remains
alone on stage. This kind of aside could be termed a—shortened—exit monologue
(type IIc).
It is obvious that even more subcategories of asides might be defined. 2 But
since this phenomenon shall be dealt with only in general terms in what follows,
further classification does not seem to be necessary.
1. Palliata
Plautus
All of the types of aside mentioned above occur very often in the Palliata. In
the Amphitruo Plautus uses asides with dazzling virtuosity. The first examples will
2 For general instructive remarks on this topic, cf. the analyses done by Schaffner 1911; Haile
1913; Kraus 1934; Duckworth 1952, 109-14; Barbieri 1966; Bain 1977; Moore 1998.
2