The terms tragoedus, comoedus, tragicus and comicus in the work of Isidore of Seville

Abstract

Throughout his work, Isidore of Seville provides distinct reflections on theatre and the different theatrical trades. Bearing in mind the totality of the Isidorian passages in which they appear, we analyse in this article the acceptations that the terms «tragoedus», «comoedus», «tragicus» and «comicus» have in the work of the Sevillian archbishop. The scarce bibliography on the matter has suggested the existence of an alleged Isidorian confusion between the terms «tragoedus» and «tragicus» on the one hand and «comoedus» and «comicus» on the other. According to the critics, the first two items were used interchangeably by Isidore to refer to both the actors and the authors of a tragedy; likewise, the latter two were employed without distinction to mean those of a comedy. The present study aims, nevertheless, to clarify Isidore's degree of knowledge of the meaning of these nouns as well as his mayority trend when using them.