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Commissioner of Public Safety
Kinesias is an Athenian citizen, Myrrhine’s husband, and the father of her baby boy. He approaches the Acropolis afflicted by a nasty attack of love (read: a painful erection) and attempts to seduce his wife, only to be led on and then abandoned. Toward the end of the play, Kinesias is part of the Athenian delegation that, guided by Lysistrata, brokers a peace with the Spartans.
Kinesias Quotes in Lysistrata
The Lysistrata quotes below are all either spoken by Kinesias or refer to Kinesias. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Lines 706 – 979 Quotes
Your duty is clear.
Pop him on the griddle, twist
the spit, braize him, baste him, stew him in his own
juice, do him to a turn. Sear him with kisses,
coyness, caresses, everything—
but stop where Our Oath
begins.
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Explanation and Analysis:
The Chorus of Old Men have been taunting the Chorus of Old Women; one man attempts to kiss a woman, and when this fails he kicks her, only to reveal his pubic hair. Lysistrata, meanwhile, has seen Myrrhine's husband, Kinesias, approaching. He looks mad with desire, and in this passage Lysistrata instructs Myrrhine to excite and tease Kinesias, but to "stop where Our Oath begins"––meaning to stop just at the point before they have sex. Lysistrata's words evoke a grotesque, almost sadistic punishment. She reduces Kinesias to a piece of meat, urging Myrrhine to "baste him, stew him in his Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem.
—Life is a husk. She left our home, and happiness
went with her. Now pain is the tenant. Oh, to enter
that wifeless house, to sense that awful emptiness,
to eat that tasteless, joyless food—it makes
it hard, I tell you.
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Explanation and Analysis:
Myrrhine's husband, Kinesias, has approached the Acropolis. Lysistrata has asked who he is, before flattering him by telling him that he is famous among the women of Athens, who circulate rumors about his penis. Lysistrata allows him to speak to Myrrhine, and in this passage Kinesias laments how terrible their household is without his wife around. On one level, Kinesias' speech might provoke sympathy––he seems to miss his wife terribly, and even brings along their young son to stress how pitiable they are without Myrrhine around. On the other hand, the audience knows that Kinesias is in a kind of Dolorem et quae. Exercitationem non aut. Eveniet dolor non. Incidunt dolores sunt. Ad dolor at. Quia aperiam eligendi. Ut veniam voluptatem. Aperiam consequuntur mollitia.
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Kinesias Character Timeline in Lysistrata
The timeline below shows where the character Kinesias appears in Lysistrata. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Lines 706 – 979
...we later learn, “in erection and considerable pain”). Myrrhine identifies this man as her husband, Kinesias. Lysistrata reminds Myrrhine that her duty is to sexually excite her husband without breaking the...
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“WHO PENETRATES OUR POSITIONS,” asks Lysistrata. Kinesias identifies himself, and Lysistrata pretends to be overcome. The name “Kinesias,” she says, is famous...
(full context)
...Myrrhine says that she’s mad about her husband, but that he doesn’t want her love. Kinesias calls her, and she appears at the wall. He begs her to come down, going...
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Myrrhine takes her baby in her arms. Kinesias says she ought to be ashamed of herself because the household is falling apart without...
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...from the Acropolis. She returns—but, she just remembered, the couple will need a mattress, too. Kinesias says he doesn’t want a mattress, but off his wife goes to get one, giving...
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Myrrhine then begins to undress, and she asks Kinesias whether he’ll remember to vote for the truce. When he gives a noncommittal response, however,...
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Lines 980 – 1323
...as big a pickle as the Spartans. The men all open their cloaks and commiserate. Kinesias, one of the delegates, wants to get hold of Lysistrata; only peace can cure the...
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Kinesias finally notices the Spartans. “Why are you here?” he asks. The Spartans say that they’re...
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...a common enemy whom they’re benefitting by fighting one another: the Persians. She’s interrupted by Kinesias, who is impatient with a lust for Peace, but she serenely ignores him. Lysistrata reminds...
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A Spartan and Kinesias begin to draw up terms—pointing to the naked Peace as they do so. The Spartans...
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Kinesias also emerges from the Acropolis, wreathed and drunk. Speaking in the Spartan dialect, he praises...
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