LESSONS FROM ANCIENT COMEDIES There is wisdom in these seemingly silly tales Picture this. A man mistakenly gives his newborn baby a bath in boiling hot water. The child's face, grimaced and distorted, reflects her agony. In the throes of death, she fails her hands about and dies in her father's arms. This is one of the most gruesome scenes in the popular Malay folk literature series of Pak Pandir.Pak Pandir, in absurd conclusion, looks at the baby's face and thinks she is laughing with glee. Mak Andeh comes home, to find her only daughter scalded to death. How this could be considered comedy is probably beyond the comprehension of the modern audiences of today. And yet, perhaps, this is the genius of the ancient comedies in delivering the simplest of messages. That sheer stupidity can cause great grief and untold personal loss. The unthinkable makes you think. Why such tales? Perhaps comedies are prevalent in all old fables as a means to share wisdom...