The padded costume of the komast has its parallel in the similar costume of the comic actor. Perhaps, the distortion of the human figure by fat struck the Greeks as a good symbol of festivity, during which overindulgence in food and drink was natural. The Greeks, who admired the lean and muscular male figure, no doubt found the fat paunch and backside of the komast and the comic actor laughable. The Greeks were not alone in this attitude. America has had a long tradition of fat comedians such as Fatty Arbuckle, Oliver Hardy, Lou Costello, Buddy Hackett, Jackie Gleason, Zero Mostel, John Belushi, John Candy, Louis Anderson, and most recently, Roseanne, Chris Farley, and Drew Carey.
Phallus means penis or a symbolic represention of a penis carried in a ritual procession.
The parabasis was a long choral passage in Old Comedy, both recited and sung, directly addressed to the audience. Back to Table of Contents.