Cratinus ( grc-gre, Κρατῖνος; 519 BC – 422 BC) was an

Athenian Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

comic

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or writte ...

of the

Old Comedy Old Comedy (''archaia'') is the first period of the ancient Greek comedy, according to the canonical division by the Alexandrian grammarians.Mastromarco (1994) p.12 The most important Old Comic playwright is Aristophanes – whose works, with thei ...

Life

Cratinus was victorious 27 known times, eight times at the

City Dionysia The Dionysia (, , ; Greek: Διονύσια) was a large festival in ancient Athens in honor of the god Dionysus, the central events of which were the theatrical performances of dramatic tragedies and, from 487 BC, comedies. It was the sec ...

, first probably in the mid-to-late 450s BCE (IG II2 2325. 50), and three times at the

Lenaia The Lenaia ( grc, Λήναια) was an annual Athenian festival with a dramatic competition. It was one of the lesser festivals of Athens and Ionia in ancient Greece. The Lenaia took place in Athens in Gamelion, roughly corresponding to January. ...

, first probably in the early 430s (IG II2 2325. 121; just before Pherecrates and

Hermippus Hermippus ( grc-gre, Ἕρμιππος; fl. 5th century BC) was the one-eyed Athenian writer of the Old Comedy, who flourished during the Peloponnesian War. Life He was the son of Lysis, and the brother of the comic poet Myrtilus. He was younger t ...

). He was still competing in 423, when his ''Pytine'' took the prize at the City Dionysia; he died shortly thereafter, at a very advanced age, about 97 years (test. 3). Little is known of his personal history. His father's name was Callimedes, and he himself was a

taxiarch Taxiarch, the anglicised form of ''taxiarchos'' or ''taxiarchēs'' ( el, ταξίαρχος or ταξιάρχης) is used in the Greek language to mean "brigadier". The term derives from ''táxis'', "order", in military context "an ordered forma ...

. The ''

Suda The ''Suda'' or ''Souda'' (; grc-x-medieval, Σοῦδα, Soûda; la, Suidae Lexicon) is a large 10th-century Byzantine encyclopedia of the ancient Mediterranean world, formerly attributed to an author called Soudas (Σούδας) or Souidas ...

'' has brought several accusations against Cratinus. First, it accuses Cratinus of excessive cowardice. Secondly, a charge against the moral character. Thirdly, a charge of habitual intemperance. Having examined all these charges, it may be safe to say that all of these charges are unlikely to be true, and that there is no evidence that Cratinus really committed such things. Moreover, other writers, including

Aristophanes Aristophanes (; grc, Ἀριστοφάνης, ; c. 446 – c. 386 BC), son of Philippus, of the deme In Ancient Greece, a deme or ( grc, δῆμος, plural: demoi, δημοι) was a suburb or a subdivision of Athens and other city-states ...

, were silent on these charges, except the third charge, which is sustained by many passages of

and other writers. They also refer the "Confession of Cratinus", which Cratinus himself seems to have treated the subject in a very amusing way, especially in his ''Pytine''. That he was related to the 4th-century comic poet

Cratinus Junior Cratinus the Younger (4th century BC) was a comic poet of the Middle Comedy, and was a contemporary of Plato and of Corydus. He flourished in the middle of 4th century BC, and as late as 324 BC.Clinton, Fast. Hell. ii. p. xliii. Some scholars belie ...

is a reasonable hypothesis but cannot be proven.

Works

Cratinus was regarded as one of the three great masters of Athenian

(the others being

and

Eupolis Eupolis ( grc-gre, Εὔπολις; c. 446c. 411 BC) was an Athenian poet of the Old Comedy, who flourished during the time of the Peloponnesian War. Biography Nothing whatsoever is known of his personal history. His father was named Sosipolis. ...

). Although his poetry is several times described as relatively graceless, harsh, and crudely abusive (test. 17; 19), his plays continued to be read and studied in the Hellenistic and Roman periods. He wrote 21 comedies. They were chiefly distinguished by their direct and vigorous political satire. 514 fragments (including ten dubia) of his comedies survive, along with 29 titles. His most famous play is the ''Pytine''.

''Pytine''

The ''Pytine'' (The Wineflask) was Cratinus' most famous play. A grammarian describes the background of the play as follows: In 424 BC,

produced ''

The Knights ''The Knights'' ( grc, Ἱππεῖς ''Hippeîs''; Attic: ) was the fourth play written by Aristophanes, who is considered the master of an ancient form of drama known as Old Comedy. The play is a satire on the social and political life of clas ...

'', in which he described Cratinus "as a drivelling old man, wandering about with his crown withered, and so utterly neglected by his former admirers that he could not even procure to quench the thirst of which he was perishing" Soon after that play, Cratinus responded by producing a play called ''Pytine'' (The Wineflask) in 423 BC, which defeated the ''Connus'' of

Ameipsias Ameipsias ( grc, , fl. late 5th century BC) of Athens was an Ancient Greek comic poet, a contemporary of Aristophanes, whom he twice bested in the dramatic contests. His ''Konnos'' () gained a second prize at the City Dionysia in 423, when Aristo ...

and ''

The Clouds ''The Clouds'' ( grc, Νεφέλαι ''Nephelai'') is a Greek comedy play written by the playwright Aristophanes. A lampooning of intellectual fashions in classical Athens, it was originally produced at the City Dionysia in 423BC and was not as ...

'' of Aristophanes, which was produced in the same year.

Other plays

In Grenfell and Hunt's ''Oxyrhynchus Papyri'', iv. (1904), containing a further instalment of their edition of the ''Behnesa papyri'' discovered by them in 1896-1897, one of the greatest curiosities is a scrap of paper bearing the argument of a play by Cratinus, the ''Dionysalexandros'' (i.e.

Dionysus In ancient Greek religion and myth, Dionysus (; grc, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstasy, festivity, and theatre. The Romans ...

in the part of

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

), aimed against

Pericles Pericles (; grc-gre, Περικλῆς; c. 495 – 429 BC) was a Greek politician and general during the Golden Age of Athens. He was prominent and influential in Athenian politics, particularly between the Greco-Persian Wars and the Pelopo ...

; and the

epitome An epitome (; gr, ἐπιτομή, from ἐπιτέμνειν ''epitemnein'' meaning "to cut short") is a summary or miniature form, or an instance that represents a larger reality, also used as a synonym for embodiment. Epitomacy represents "t ...

reveals something of its wit and point. Other plays of Cratinus include *''Archilochoi'' ("The Archilochuses") (c. 448 BC) *''Boukoloi'' ("The Cow-Herds") *''Bousiris'' (" Busiris") *''Deliades'' ("Women From Delos") *''Didaskaliai'' ("The Rehearsals") *''Drapetides'' ("Female Runaways") *''Empipramenoi'' ("Men On Fire") or ''Idaioi'' ("The Idaeans") *''Euneidai'' ("Children of Euneus") *''Thrattai'' ("Women From Thrace") *''Kleoboulinai'' ("The Cleobulines") *''Lakones'' ("The Laconians") *''Malthakoi'' ("The Soft Ones") *''Nemesis'' (" Nemesis") *''Nomoi'' ("The Laws") *''Odysseis'' ("The Odysseuses") *''Panoptai'' ("The All-Seers") *''Ploutoi'' ("The Gods of Wealth") *''Pylaia'' ("The Meeting At

Pylae Yalova is a market-gardening town located in northwestern Turkey on the eastern coast of the Sea of Marmara. The town has a population of 156,838, while the population of the surrounding Yalova Province is 291,001 . A largely modern town, it is ...

") *''Satyroi'' ("Satyrs"), won 2nd prize at the Lenaea of 424 BC *''Seriphioi'' ("Men From Seriphus") *''Trophonios'' ("

Trophonius Trophonius (; Ancient Greek: Τροφώνιος ''Trophōnios'') was a Greek hero or daimon or god—it was never certain which one—with a rich mythological tradition and an oracular cult at Lebadaea (Λιβαδειά; ''Levadia'' or ''Livad ...

") *''Cheimazomenoi'' ("Storm-Tossed Men"), won 2nd prize at Lenaea of 425 BC''

Acharnians ''The Acharnians'' or ''Acharnians'' (Ancient Greek: ''Akharneîs''; Attic: ) is the third play — and the earliest of the eleven surviving plays — by the Athenian playwright Aristophanes. It was produced in 425 BC on behalf of the young drama ...

'', Introduction *''Cheirones'' ("The Chirons") *''Horai'' ("The Hours") 462 fragments of Cratinus survive.

Style

The style of Cratinus has been likened to that of

Aeschylus Aeschylus (, ; grc-gre, Αἰσχύλος ; c. 525/524 – c. 456/455 BC) was an ancient Greek tragedian, and is often described as the father of tragedy. Academic knowledge of the genre begins with his work, and understanding of earlier Greek ...

. He appears to have been fond of lofty diction and bold figures, and was most successful in the lyrical parts of his dramas, his choruses being the popular festal songs of his day. According to the statement of a doubtful authority, not borne out by

Aristotle Aristotle (; grc-gre, Ἀριστοτέλης ''Aristotélēs'', ; 384–322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. Taught by Plato, he was the founder of the Peripatetic school of phil ...

, Cratinus increased the number of actors in comedy to three.

Standard edition

The standard edition of the fragments and testimonia is in

Rudolf Kassel Rudolf Kassel (11 May 1926 – 26 February 2020) was a German classical philologist. He was a professor at the Free University of Berlin from 1963 to 1975 and subsequently the University of Cologne from 1975 until his retirement in 1991. Career Ka ...

and

Colin François Lloyd Austin Colin François Lloyd Austin, FBA (26 July 1941 – 13 August 2010) was a British scholar of ancient Greek. Biography Colin Austin was born in Melbourne, Australia, in 1941, the second son of Lloyd James Austin (1915–1994) and of Jeanne-Fra ...

's ''Poetae Comici Graeci'' Vol. IV. The eight-volume ''Poetae Comici Graeci'' produced from 1983 to 2001 replaces the outdated collections ''Fragmenta Comicorum Graecorum'' by

August Meineke Johann Albrecht Friedrich August Meineke (also ''Augustus Meineke''; ; 8 December 179012 December 1870), German classical scholar, was born at Soest in the Duchy of Westphalia. He was father-in-law to philologist Theodor Bergk.

(1839-1857), ''Comicorum Atticorum Fragmenta'' by

Theodor Kock Theodor is a masculine given name. It is a German form of Theodore. It is also a variant of Teodor. List of people with the given name Theodor * Theodor Adorno, (1903–1969), German philosopher * Theodor Aman, Romanian painter * Theodor Blueger, ...

(1880-1888) and ''Comicorum Graecorum Fragmenta'' by

Georg Kaibel Georg Kaibel (30 October 1849 – 12 October 1901) was a German classical philologist born in Lübeck. He was a leading authority of Greek epigraphy and epigrammatics He studied classical philology at the Universities of Göttingen and Bonn. ...

(1899).

References

External links

*
Ancient Library

Fragmenta Comicorum Graecorum (ed. Meineke)

Comicorum Atticorum Fragmenta (ed. Kock)
{{Authority control 519 BC births 5th-century BC deaths Ancient Greek dramatists and playwrights 5th-century BC Athenians 5th-century BC writers Old Comic poets