The Virtues of Inexact Law: Legal Inaccuracy as a Literary Strategy in Menander (Samia 570-588 and Heros 18-40)

It is often stated that, in opposition to Aristophanes’ plays, Menander’s comedy is not characterized by the inclusion of references to Athenian law. However, an analysis of his surviving works reveals a considerable number of legal allusions, including mentions to litigation and judicial procedures...

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Autor principal: Buis, Emiliano J.
Formato: Artículo revista
Lenguaje:Español
Publicado: Universidad Nacional del Nordeste. Facultad de Humandiades. Instituto de Letras 2021
Materias:
Athenian law
Legal inaccuracy
Menander
Samia
Heros
Derecho ateniense
imprecisión jurídica
Menandro
Héroe
Acceso en línea:https://revistas.unne.edu.ar/index.php/clt/article/view/5416
Aporte de:
Revistas UNNE - Universidad Nacional del Noroeste (UNNE) de Universidad Nacional del Nordeste
id I48-R154-article-5416
record_format ojs
spelling I48-R154-article-54162023-08-02T15:29:52Z The Virtues of Inexact Law: Legal Inaccuracy as a Literary Strategy in Menander (Samia 570-588 and Heros 18-40) Las virtudes del derecho inexacto: la imprecisión jurídica como estrategia literaria en Menandro (Samia 570-588 y Héroe 18-40) Buis, Emiliano J. Athenian law Legal inaccuracy Menander Samia Heros Derecho ateniense imprecisión jurídica Menandro Samia Héroe It is often stated that, in opposition to Aristophanes’ plays, Menander’s comedy is not characterized by the inclusion of references to Athenian law. However, an analysis of his surviving works reveals a considerable number of legal allusions, including mentions to litigation and judicial procedures. The objective of this paper is to examine two passages in which this legal background emerges (Sam. 570-588; Her. 18-40) in order to explore the strategies deployed by Menander to manipulate law for literary purposes. In particular, both texts show that the legal realm is quoted in a generic and hesitant way. By means of a comparison with Aspis 174-189, it will be concluded that imprecision and vagueness –which are privileged characteristics of these references– effectively replicate the typical misunderstanding of comic plots and the frequent uncertainties of status attributed to the characters in the plays. A pesar de que suele decirse que, a diferencia de las obras aristofánicas, la comedia de Menandro no se caracteriza por incluir referencias al derecho ateniense, un análisis de sus piezas conservadas permite apreciar un número considerable de alusiones a leyes, litigios y procedimientos judiciales. El objetivo de este trabajo es examinar dos pasajes en que se despliega ese recurso del plano jurídico (Sam. 570-588; Her. 18-40) con el fin de examinar las estrategias mediante las cuales allí Menandro manipula literariamente el derecho. En particular, se relevará en ambos textos la voluntad por apelar de modo genérico y vacilante al universo del derecho. A partir de una comparación con el pasaje de Escudo 174-189, se concluirá que la imprecisión y la vaguedad –características privilegiadas de estas referencias– replican los malentendidos tipos de los enredos cómicos y las incertidumbres de status con las que los argumentos de las piezas suelen revestir a sus personajes. Universidad Nacional del Nordeste. Facultad de Humandiades. Instituto de Letras 2021-08-27 info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion Artículo revisado por pares application/pdf https://revistas.unne.edu.ar/index.php/clt/article/view/5416 10.30972/clt.0165416 Cuadernos de Literatura; Núm. 16 (2021): Junio; 28-46 2684-0499 0326-5102 spa https://revistas.unne.edu.ar/index.php/clt/article/view/5416/5243 Derechos de autor 2021 Cuadernos de Literatura
institution Universidad Nacional del Nordeste
institution_str I-48
repository_str R-154
container_title_str Revistas UNNE - Universidad Nacional del Noroeste (UNNE)
language Español
format Artículo revista
topic Athenian law
Legal inaccuracy
Menander
Samia
Heros
Derecho ateniense
imprecisión jurídica
Menandro
Samia
Héroe
spellingShingle Athenian law
Legal inaccuracy
Menander
Samia
Heros
Derecho ateniense
imprecisión jurídica
Menandro
Samia
Héroe
Buis, Emiliano J.
The Virtues of Inexact Law: Legal Inaccuracy as a Literary Strategy in Menander (Samia 570-588 and Heros 18-40)
topic_facet Athenian law
Legal inaccuracy
Menander
Samia
Heros
Derecho ateniense
imprecisión jurídica
Menandro
Samia
Héroe
author Buis, Emiliano J.
author_facet Buis, Emiliano J.
author_sort Buis, Emiliano J.
title The Virtues of Inexact Law: Legal Inaccuracy as a Literary Strategy in Menander (Samia 570-588 and Heros 18-40)
title_short The Virtues of Inexact Law: Legal Inaccuracy as a Literary Strategy in Menander (Samia 570-588 and Heros 18-40)
title_full The Virtues of Inexact Law: Legal Inaccuracy as a Literary Strategy in Menander (Samia 570-588 and Heros 18-40)
title_fullStr The Virtues of Inexact Law: Legal Inaccuracy as a Literary Strategy in Menander (Samia 570-588 and Heros 18-40)
title_full_unstemmed The Virtues of Inexact Law: Legal Inaccuracy as a Literary Strategy in Menander (Samia 570-588 and Heros 18-40)
title_sort virtues of inexact law: legal inaccuracy as a literary strategy in menander (samia 570-588 and heros 18-40)
description It is often stated that, in opposition to Aristophanes’ plays, Menander’s comedy is not characterized by the inclusion of references to Athenian law. However, an analysis of his surviving works reveals a considerable number of legal allusions, including mentions to litigation and judicial procedures. The objective of this paper is to examine two passages in which this legal background emerges (Sam. 570-588; Her. 18-40) in order to explore the strategies deployed by Menander to manipulate law for literary purposes. In particular, both texts show that the legal realm is quoted in a generic and hesitant way. By means of a comparison with Aspis 174-189, it will be concluded that imprecision and vagueness –which are privileged characteristics of these references– effectively replicate the typical misunderstanding of comic plots and the frequent uncertainties of status attributed to the characters in the plays.
publisher Universidad Nacional del Nordeste. Facultad de Humandiades. Instituto de Letras
publishDate 2021
url https://revistas.unne.edu.ar/index.php/clt/article/view/5416
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