Classical World

Several frustrated lovers in Roman comedy threaten to kill themselves, but of course never act on their threats. In this paper, I first situate the parasuicidal amator within the literary tradition of Greek tragedy, its Roman adaptations, and the praetexta, and then ask how gendered connotations of suicide contribute to the humor of empty threats. Particularly poignant is comedy's relationship to the praetexta and the logic of sacrifice for the sake of collective values. When juxtaposed to heroic and manly acts of self-inflicted death, the comic lover's weakness comes into sharp focus.