The Menaechmi—by Plautus

Take home test

Due Friday, October 19

Directions:  Answer three of the following questions in paragraph form on separate paper, typed and double-spaced.  Use MLA format.

1.     At the very heart of Roman comedy lie the misapprehensions and confusions that arise either from 1) mistaken identity, 2) the working of chance (the “near miss”), or 3) the trickery of the characters themselves.  Find examples of all three of these elements in this play.  Cite specific page numbers/passages.

2.     Identify three characters in the play who represent one of the stock characters typical in Roman theatre.   Justify your identifications by citing specific attributes/behaviors/ statements of each character.

3.     Consider the following social relationships as they unfold in the play:

a.     Master-slave (Sosicles [Menaechmi II]-Messenio)

b.     Husband-wife (Menaechmus I-wife)

c.      Parasite-patron (Peniculus-Menaechmus I)

d.     Prostitute-client (Desiree-Menaechmus I)

e.     Father-daughter (father-Menaechmus I’s wife)

Does Plautus portray any (or all) of these relationships in a cynical light, and is he criticizing the values of contemporary society?  Explain.

4.     Identify some logical inconsistencies in the play that the audience is supposed to simply accept while suspending belief for the sake of drama.  (Are there times when the characters seem to be unrealistically ignorant of certain things that they should know, and that the audience knows?)

5.     Do you think that the play concludes in a way that does justice to the complexity of its plot?  Does it tie up all loose ends, and, in your opinion, would this ending have left the original audience satisfied?