Un schéma virgilien pour comprendre la composition des comédies de Ménandre : l'exemple du Dyscolos

Abstract

Virgil was know to be indebted to Hellenistic schemata. It is in no way prohibited to think that these schemata were previously elaborated, at least as early as the late Vth century. They can be traced up in Menander at any rate, but the discovery of a whole comedy by this poet, namely the Dyscolos, could alone enable us to prove the point, because the latter supposes the recognition of correspondences between more or less distant parts within the play. The starting point of this study will be provided by two series of works recently carried out by Menander scholars : on one hand the close comparison of the scenes at the beginning of Act III, when misanthropic Cnemon upbraids Getas the slave and Sicon the cook, and the final scene of act V when Getas and Sicon wreak revenge on the old man ; on the other hand essays in interpretation of the beginning of act V felt as a fresh departure in the play, since its initial and chief goal, the marriage of the young people, seems to have been achieved by the end of act IV. We hope to obtain a better justification of the five-act division as well as a new perception of the unity of the comedy and its ensuing dramatic power.