Alazon

The "braggart soldier" Pyrgopolynices in a 2012 production of the play Miles Gloriosus

Alazṓn (Ancient Greek: ἀλαζών) is one of three stock characters in comedy of the theatre of ancient Greece.[1] He is the opponent of the eirôn. The alazṓn is an impostor that sees himself as greater than he actually is. The senex iratus (the angry father) and the miles gloriosus (the braggart soldier) are two types of alazṓn.[2]

  1. ^ Carlson (1993, 23) and Janko (1987, 45, 170).
  2. ^ Frye, Northrop (1973) [1957]. "First Essay: Historical Criticism". Anatomy of Criticism: Four Essays. Princeton University Press. p. 39. ISBN 0-691-01298-9. alazon, which means imposter, someone who pretends or tries to be something more than he is. The most popular types of alazon are the miles gloriosus and the learned crank or obsessed philosopher.