The Politics of Socratic Humor

346 Pages·2018·1.81 MB·English

by  John Lombardini

The Politics of Socratic Humor
In honor of beloved Virgil—
“O degli altri poeti onore e lume . . .”
—Dante, Inferno
The publisher and the University of California Press
Foundation gratefully acknowledge the generous support of the
Joan Palevsky Imprint in Classical Literature.
The Politics of Socratic
Humor
John Lombardini
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRESS
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the world by advancing scholarship in the humanities, social
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www.ucpress.edu.
University of California Press
Oakland, California
© 2018 by The Regents of the University of California Library
of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names:
Lombardini, John, author.
Title: The politics of Socratic humor / John Lombardini.
Description: Oakland, California : University of
California Press, [2018] | Includes bibliographical
references and index. |
Identifiers: LCCN 2018011950 (print) | LCCN 2018016651
(ebook) | ISBN 9780520964914 (ebook) | ISBN
9780520291034 (cloth : alk. paper) Subjects: LCSH:
Socrates. | Greek wit and humor—Political aspects. |
Irony—Political aspects. | Greek wit and humor—
Philosophy.
Classification: LCC B318.I7 (ebook) | LCC B318.I7 L66
2018 (print) | DDC 183/.2—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018011950
Manufactured in the United States of America
25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
CONTENTS
Acknowledgments
Introduction
1. Aristophanes and Socratic Mockery
2. Plato and Socratic Eirōneia
3. Xenophon, Socratic Mockery, and Socratic Irony
4. Aristotle, Eutrapelia, and Socratic Eirōneia
5. Socratic Humor in the Hellenistic Period
Conclusion
Notes
Bibliography
Index
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Writing a scholarly monograph can often feel like a lonely
endeavor, but these acknowledgments are a testament to the
fact that such a project is impossible without a large
community of colleagues, friends, mentors, and family
members.
First, though this book is not a revised version of my doctoral
dissertation, I would never have been able to produce it
without the guidance and support I received from friends and
mentors as a graduate student in the Politics Department at
Princeton University. I am especially grateful to Eric
Beerbohm, John Cooper, Michael Frazer, Katie Gallagher, Luca
Grillo, Nate Klemp, Ben McKean, Kevin Osterloh, Jess Paga,
David Stevens, David Teegarden, and Ian Ward. Patrick
Deneen first encouraged me to pursue the topic of humor for
my dissertation, and I would like to thank him for all of his
support during my time in graduate school. Sankar Muthu
brought a keen set of eyes to my dissertation project, and has
been an invaluable source of advice and support. Finally, Josh
Ober agreed to chair my dissertation despite the fact that he
was on his way to Stanford, and has been an enthusiastic
supporter of my work ever since. He has been a model for how
to bridge the worlds of classics and political science, and I am
truly grateful for all of the advice, feedback, and support he
has generously provided in both graduate school and after.
A fellowship at the Columbia Society of Fellows provided me
with the time to conceive of the book project as it currently
stands, and provided an ideal intellectual environment for
starting other new projects as well. Thanks are due in
particular to Joshua Dubler, Marcus Folch, Elizabeth Irwin,
David Johnson, Elisabeth Ladenson, Elizabeth Scharffenberger,
Melissa Schwartzberg, Katharina Volk, Nancy Worman, and Jim
Zetzel.
I also had the pleasure of spending a pre-tenure sabbatical
year at Washington University in St. Louis, during which I
finished the first draft of the book manuscript. My thanks to
both the Political Science and Classics Departments for
providing a welcoming environment in which to work and grow
as a scholar. In particular, I would like to thank Eric Brown,
Bill Bubelis, Clarissa Hayward, Cathy Keane, Frank Lovett, Tim
Moore, and George Pepe.
My friends and colleagues at the College of William & Mary
have been a constant source of support since I first joined the
faculty there. In particular, I would like to thank Bill Hutton,
John McGlennon, Chris Nemacheck, John Oakley, Ron
Rapoport, Joel Schwartz, Simon Stow, and Kristin Wustholz.