9

Preface
As the earliest readers of this volume will already be aware, I have begun my
work on Eupolis with the smallest and in some ways most difficult fragments,
those without play-title. I have done this for various practical and intellectual
reasons, but above all else to familiarize myself with some of the complexities
of the material itself before beginning to wrestle with larger issues having to
do with plot and the like. Volumes I and II, including a general introduction
to the poet, should follow within a year or two.
Most of my text and commentary was read and discussed in Komfrag
sessions in Freiburg during the 2013-2014 academic year. Above all others, I
would like to thank Stelios Chronopoulos and Christian Orth for their care-
ful, critical engagement with my work, and Bernhard Zimmermann for his
leadership of the project as a whole. The assistance of Benjamin Millis was
invaluable with the smallest fragments in particular. The entire commentary
was also read at different stages by Theresa Chresand, Benjamin Millis, Pura
Nieto and Fabian Zogg, all of whom saved me from numerous errors and
offered helpful suggestions. David Sansone commented on several shorter
sections at a critical early stage in the project. Anneliese Kossatz-Deifimann
was of enormous assistance in matters touching on visual evidence. Finally,
the Heidelberg Academy and the College of Eiberal Arts at the University of
Minnesota provided financial support that made my work possible.
This book is dedicated to my lovely wife Rachel, who has the good fortune
to be sitting in the sun on a balcony in Germany with two cats and a book,
looking out at the Black Forest, as I type these words on a cold and foggy
Minnesota morning.

Minneapolis, 18 October 2014