O velho (não) irado na Comédia Nova de Menandro e de Terêncio

Abstract

This thesis aims to investigate the figures of the angry old man and the non-angry old man in New Comedy, more precisely in the work of the playwrights Menander and Terence, placing these characters in comparison for a greater understanding of how these old men function within the dynamics of the theatrical text and what leads them to be dominated or not by vices. For the purposes of comparative analysis, we will use philosophical texts by authors such as Plato, Aristotle, Cicero and Seneca, with the aim of establishing what was the expected behavior of old people in the period in which the studied plays were inserted and whether this behavior was reproduced or not in the theater. To do this, we will highlight the speeches of these characters and their motivations, always using philosophy – Peripatetic and Stoic – as a behavioral parameter of what was expected in society. We hope, with this research, to contribute to the studies of classical theater, highlighting the importance of philosophical contributions and discussions in the development of this theater and in the composition of its characters.