Mędrzec i błazen w przestrzeni literackiego sympozjonu (na wybranych przykładach z literatury antycznej)
A Wise Man and a Jester in the Literary Symposion (based on Examples selected from Ancient Literature)

Author(s): Monika Szczot
Subject(s): Language and Literature Studies
Published by: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Śląskiego
Keywords: wise man; jester; literary symposion; Xenophon; Plutarch;Lucian;
Summary/Abstract: The topic specific literature dedicated to ancient symposion underlines the typical features of the characters presented therein. Within the group of symposion characters, apart from the host of the feast, a physician, pair of lovers, there is also a wise man and a jester. The analysis of selected pieces by Xenophon, Plutarch and Lucian, included in the article, shows the roles played by the wise man and the jester during the feast. The jester is, for the reason of his profession, regularly featured as a comic figure, but the symposion permits the characters to go beyond their roles. Occasionally, Aristophanes, Socrates and Aesop play the role of the jester, thus, taking part in the eristic competition and creating the comic discourse. The jester and the wise man in the symposion underline the problems featured in the literary piece, make the presented world more dynamic and expose the variety of that world.

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