Mostellaria;

by Plautus

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work.

This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.

As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

Genres: Plays, Theatre, Drama, Classics, School, Ancient, Fiction

212 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 185

About the author

Titus Maccius Plautus (c. 254 – 184 BC), commonly known as Plautus, was a Roman playwright of the Old Latin period. His comedies are the earliest works in Latin literature to have survived in their entirety. He wrote Palliata comoedia, the genre devised by the innovator of Latin literature, Livius Andronicus. The word Plautine refers to both Plautus's own works and works similar to or influenced by his.

Reviews

[Clàudia]

el personatge de Tranió es resumeix en les següents paraules: gaslight, gatekeep, girlboss

[Albs]

Plaute pots donar-nos més del que has fet aquí

[Illiterate]

A slave manages a haughty master and his errant son.

[olivia]

philolaches would’ve made tik toks of him living off of daddy’s money

[audrey]

genuinely would’ve been four stars if not for the ending :/

[Dorotea]

La scena iniziale con Grumione e Tranione ("M'hai mandato una zaffata d'aglio, letamaio che non sei altro, tanghero, caprone, porcaio, sozza mistura di brago e sterco! / Che vuoi farci? Non è consentito a tuti odorari di profumi esotici come te, nè sedere a capotavola come fai tu, nè mangiare pietanzine delicate come quelle che mangi tu") e la scena con Callidamate ubriaco (Atto I, Scena Quarta) mi hanno fatto spaccare; in generale però ho trovato la trama abbastanza fastidiosa e non ho apprezzato pienamente la commedia.

[maria]

pel cole.
4 estrelles merescudíssimes perquè no podia parar de riure tota l'estona amb frases del tipus et penjaré, ets un moc ben penjat o carallot i gamarús. pel que fa la història, què vols que et digui, curta.

[Phillip]

So, the play itself isn't bad, but I hated this translation. It's a translation from the 1850s, by Henry Thomas Riley, an old school classicist, and so it's got that awkward stilted style like bad Shakespeare--people going around saying things like "prithee" or "by my troth," which are probably not accurate to Roman republic-era linguistic styles, and aren't really that well performable.

As a plot, Mostellaria is probably more more enjoyable and interesting than this translation makes it. The play is about a young man named Philolaches, who has been living the life or Riley while his father has been abroad, including borrowing a bunch of money to free Philanatium, the music-girl whom he loves. When his father, Theuropides, returns, the clever slave Tranio needs to try and salvage the situation, which he does by telling Theuropides that Philolaches has moved out of the house because it's haunted. Theuropides buys this, and even agrees to pay a banker the money for Philolaches' debt, having been told by Trani it's the cost of buying the house next door so Philolaches can avoid living in a haunted house. Tranio successfully navigates preventing Theuropides and the neighbor Simo from figuring out what's going on, until a slave of Philolaches' friend shows up at Theuropides' house and tells the old man about his son's riotous lifestyle. This gives the game away, and Theuropides fears he's financially and reputationally ruined, determining to punish Tranio and his son, until the friend whose slave gave the game away arrives to reconcile everyone.
https://youtu.be/Wl7dQpkIum4

[Laia ♡]

Una obra bona, però crec que no és la seva millor. Els monòlegs de Filòlaques i Fanisc m'han agradat molt, crec que són molt interessants des d'un punt de vista acadèmic, però la història com a tal podria ser més divertida. No hi ha res com els Bessons

[Ferran]

Brillant Plaute i brillant l'Esther.

[Joan]

Una obra divertida que té el seu encant als seus primers actes però va degradant-se a mesura que s'allarga la trama.

Tot i que sembla molt actual i el llenguatge és molt proper, potser una representació teatral renovant el IV i el V acte seria millor.

[Mike]

2.5 stars. I can’t understand why this play by Plautus was lauded in the critical introduction for its vivid characterization when we are given just more of the same with the clever slave, the “slow burn” master, the miserly money-lender, etc. Like a modern situation comedy, the plot has an amusing concept, but includes pointless characters (let’s call them “guest stars”), filler dialogue, and an all-too-neat ending. It wasn’t bad...just not very memorable.

[Beverley Sylvester]

Were it not for being told before reading this play, I would not have known this is a rewritten Roman version of the Greek play The Malcontent (AKA The Grouch) by Menander (which I have also read). They are both realistic plays which stood apart from others at the time as they contained neither gods nor heroes. Beyond that, however, they did not seem to be the same play to me.

[Andràș-Florin Răducanu]

"Casa cu stafii" de Plaut

Citită în 23 mai.

Număr de pagini: 120.

Prima comedie de Plaut, foarte similară cu scrierile lui Moliere. Foarte bine scrisă și gândită. O comedie a moravurilor valabilă și astăzi.

Nota: 10.

[Eva]

Viktig föregångare till den västerländska komedin, som Comedia dell'arte och Shakespeares förväxlingskommedier osv. Men det känns inte som om den listige tjänaren i denna pjäs är så listig, utan snarare strular till det för sig.

[Mike Gardiner]

“I want to go to Haunted House more than Aqua.”

“Comedy is ok, but Plautus… is more difficult.”

(Funny how Shakespeare just steals so much of this for SHREW, and Sondheim was a genius for distilling all of these into FORUM.)

[Nicoletta]

2,5

[Justin]

I didn’t think this one was too funny but Tranio was pretty entertaining. In Menaechmi I thought the characters were assholes. In this one, they were just boring.

[Katsuro]

Not as good as his best work, but still funny.

[Thordur]

Titus Maccius Platus var rómverskt leikritaskáld. Þessi bók er stutt, eitt leikverk og góður formáli á undan. Ef þú hefur áhuga á leikritagerð þá er þetta bók fyrir þig til þess að lesa.

[Caín]

Cuando Simó le dice al Teopròpides que han sacado un muerto q estaba vivo antes solté una carcajada genuina

[annabananaxox]

me he cagado de risa

[Sabrina]

ups

[mire ♡]

tranión petardo

[Santiago González (puntoartica)]

Bastante mediocre, para bien y para mal. Funciona pero no es especialmente graciosa

[Recensioni in tre parole]

Metatestuale. Divertente. Rocambolesco.

[Noa]

Una comèdia de les típiques romanes, llegida a classe de llatí. M’ha agradat però, no es dels meus llibres preferits.

[paula :)]

2,5 ⭐️

[luuucííía]

2,5

[Sofía Jiménez]

Lo he disfrutado bastante e incluso me he reído a pesar de ser un libro de tantos y tantos años y ser obligatorio del instituto.
3,5 estrellas.