Throughout
Lysistrata, stage cues and directions have been major aids in determining whom
someone is talking to, how they are acting, or what the tone of their message
is. Towards the end of the play, these
stage directions played an immense part in the understanding of what was going
on between the Koryphaios of women and the Koryphaios of men. The two were arguing about what to do
regarding this “war between the sexes” (page 94). After discussing for a bit,
the Koryphaios of women offers to help the Koryphaios of men look decent once
again.
While
helping him dress in his tunic, she offers to “extract the beast in [him]”
(Page 95). This beast is a made believe bug—an excuse for him to cry without
being ridiculed for it—and this is clearly shown through the stage directions.
When she first suggest doing so, the Koryphaios of men is lost and “searching
himself” wandering what beast she is talking about. However, he finally
understands what she’s hinting at, and as the stage directions clarify, “play[s]
along dubiously” (page 95). However, the most helpful of the stage cues was
when she “[removed] the imaginary insect” (page 95). This explication blatantly
let readers in on the joke.
This
stage cues better helped readers to pick up on the, otherwise, undetectable
humor. They allow insight into when someone is giving a sarcastic rebuttal or
glaring look. Without stage cues, this comedy wouldn’t be very funny; the stage
cues are necessity to the understanding and comprehension of what is truly
being said.
I never thought about the importance of stage direction. You did a great job in eliciting how the cues helped the readers audience understand what was going on. Aristophanes' theme development relies on the ability of each character to follow stage direction.
ReplyDeleteMorgan realizes the importance of stage direction and "blocking". While dialogue back and forth between the men and women is what most take note of, the stage cues also allow for a better understanding of the plot. Like Morgan says, the actions of the characters proves the undetectable humor and expression that correlates to the words they speak.
ReplyDeleteIt is actually very good that you brought up the importance of stage direction towards the end of the play. Both the Koryphaios men and women are in a thespian "tug-of-war" which can be interpreted as a metaphor for the schism between how males and females think. Even when the characters aren't actually speaking, they are "saying" something which means a lot more than words can produce.
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