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The tricky slave is a
The tricky slave is a stock character
A stock character, also known as a character archetype, is a fictional character in a work of art such as a novel, play, or a film whom audiences recognize from frequent recurrences in a particular literary tradition. There is a wide range of st ...
. He is a clever, lower-class person who brings about the happy ending
A happy ending is an ending of the plot of a work of fiction in which almost everything turns out for the best for the main protagonists and their sidekicks, while the main villains/antagonists are dead/defeated.
In storylines where the protagon ...
of a comedy for the lovers. He is more clever than the upper-class
Upper class in modern societies is the social class composed of people who hold the highest social status, usually are the wealthiest members of class society, and wield the greatest political power. According to this view, the upper class is gen ...
people about him, both the lovers and the characters who block their love, and typically also looking out for his own interests. In the New Comedy
Ancient Greek comedy was one of the final three principal dramatic forms in the theatre of classical Greece (the others being tragedy and the satyr play). Athenian comedy is conventionally divided into three periods: Old Comedy, Middle Comedy, an ...
, the tricky slave or ''dolosus servus'' aimed to get his freedom by assisting his young master in love.Northrop Frye
Herman Northrop Frye (July 14, 1912 – January 23, 1991) was a Canadian literary critic and literary theorist, considered one of the most influential of the 20th century.
Frye gained international fame with his first book, '' Fearful Symmet ...
, ''Anatomy of Criticism
''Anatomy of Criticism: Four Essays'' (Princeton University Press, 1957) is a book by Canadian literary critic and theorist Northrop Frye that attempts to formulate an overall view of the scope, theory, principles, and techniques of literary c ...
'', p 173,
Besides the actual slaves of classical theater, he also appears as the scheming valet in Renaissance comedy, called the ''gracioso
The gracioso () is a clown or jester in Spanish comedy of the 16th century. Clarín, the clown in Pedro Calderón de la Barca's '' Life is a dream'' is recognized as a gracioso.
Benjamin Ivry describes the gracioso as "scatological, sexual, an ...
'' in Spanish. The zanni
Zanni (), Zani or Zane is a character type of commedia dell'arte best known as an astute servant and a trickster. The Zanni comes from the countryside and is known to be a "dispossessed immigrant worker".Rudlin, John. ''Commedia dell'arte: An Act ...
of Commedia dell'arte
(; ; ) was an early form of professional theatre, originating from Italian theatre, that was popular throughout Europe between the 16th and 18th centuries. It was formerly called Italian comedy in English and is also known as , , and . Charact ...
are often tricky slaves, as are Puss-in-Boots in Perrault's fairy tale, Jeeves
Jeeves (born Reginald Jeeves, nicknamed Reggie) is a fictional character in a series of comedic short stories and novels by English author P. G. Wodehouse. Jeeves is the highly competent valet of a wealthy and idle young Londoner named Bertie W ...
in P. G. Wodehouse
Sir Pelham Grenville Wodehouse, ( ; 15 October 188114 February 1975) was an English author and one of the most widely read humorists of the 20th century. His creations include the feather-brained Bertie Wooster and his sagacious valet, Jeeve ...
's work and Figaro.
In fairy tale
A fairy tale (alternative names include fairytale, fairy story, magic tale, or wonder tale) is a short story that belongs to the folklore genre. Such stories typically feature magic (paranormal), magic, incantation, enchantments, and mythical ...
s, the same function is often fulfilled by fairy godmother
In fairy tales, a fairy godmother () is a fairy with magical powers who acts as a mentor or parent to someone, in the role that an actual godparent was expected to play in many societies. In Perrault's ''Cinderella'', he concludes the tale with ...
s, talking animals, and like creatures.
Northrop Frye
Herman Northrop Frye (July 14, 1912 – January 23, 1991) was a Canadian literary critic and literary theorist, considered one of the most influential of the 20th century.
Frye gained international fame with his first book, '' Fearful Symmet ...
identified him as a central portion of the Myth of Spring comedy and a type of eiron
In the theatre of ancient Greece, the ''eirōn'' ( grc, εἴρων) "dissembler" was one of various stock characters in comedy.Carlson (1993, 23) and Janko (1987, 45, 170). The usually succeeded by bringing down his braggart opponent (the "boas ...
character.
A female version of the tricky slave would be Morgiana, a clever slave girl from "Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves
"Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves" ( ar, علي بابا والأربعون لصا) is a folk tale from the ''One Thousand and One Nights''. It was added to the collection in the 18th century by its French translator Antoine Galland, who heard ...
" in the ''One Thousand and One Nights
''One Thousand and One Nights'' ( ar, أَلْفُ لَيْلَةٍ وَلَيْلَةٌ, italic=yes, ) is a collection of Middle Eastern folk tales compiled in Arabic during the Islamic Golden Age. It is often known in English as the ''Arabian ...
'' (''Arabian Nights''). She is initially in Cassim's household but on his death she joins his brother Ali Baba and through her quick-wittedness she saves Ali's life many times and eventually kills his worst enemy, the leader of the Forty Thieves. As reward, Ali frees her and Morgiana marries Cassim's son. There is a Korean folktale of The Cunning Servant
The Cunning Servant (''Kkoejaengi hain'') is a comical Korean folktale about a cunning young servant who keeps tricking his master, even into marrying his master’s daughter, and ends up living happily ever after. As a socially underprivileged f ...
.
References