This is the first comprehensive edition in any language of the Birds, a play generally recognized as one of Aristophanes' masterpieces--both for its imaginative plot and for the charm and originality of its lyrics. The commentary gives generous help with the translation, for the less advanced student of Greek, and also with interpretation and the lyric meters, as well as fully discussing the staging. The introduction discusses the nature of the play; its historical and mythological background; the history of the text, including the contributions of ancient scholars recorded in the scholia,...

Birds is generally recognized as one of Aristophanes' masterpieces, for its imaginative plot (it is the source of the word "Cloudcuckooland"), and its charming and original lyrics. This abridgment of Nan Dunbar's widely acclaimed edition of Birds, published in 1995, preserves all the material designed to help the less advanced student of Greek or the non-specialist to translate, understand, and enjoy the play. It also retains the notes on staging, but the metrical, textual, and ornithological problems are dealt with more summarily, and purely illustrative parallels are omitted.