This paper investigates the pharmakos (“scapegoat”) motif in Hipponax and Aristophanes, suggesting that the significant similarities —particularly in invective strategies and the construction of the poetic persona— constitute compelling evidence for the inf luence of the scapegoat rituals on both iambus and comedy. Following a concise overview of the scholarly discourse on the relationship between the two genres and an outline of the fundamental characteristics of the rituals at issue, the paper first examines the fragments of Hipponax which employ the motif. It then shifts to Aristophanes, focusing on three invective songs from Acharnians and Birds, where political adversaries are cast in the role of the scapegoat, as well as on key passages from Knights and Frogs, where the motif functions as a core element of the dramatic structure. Finally, I propose that the Aristophanic authorial persona at times adopts the role of a poetological pharmakos, employing self-victimisation as a tool to assert himself both as a literary innovator and a defender of the people against demagogic corruption.
