1. Plautus' Menaechmi

2. The Prologue • Is the information provided in the prologue necessary to know before the play?

3. What’s in a name? Erotium = love thing Menaechmus = name of a Greek mathematician Peniculus = little tail Parasitus = guest

4. Origins of Roman Comedy • What makes this play exotic? • Improv. vs. Scripted • Timelessness – home and family situations • Did the Romans hunger for pure entertainment or are situations believable? • Do politics play a role in this play at all?

5. Stock Characters • What kind of stereotypes do you find in these plays? • Do these plays suggest the superiority of the Roman world in some way? • What do you learn about Roman values from reading Plautus?

6. The Roman Theater First theaters were temporary structures made of wood. Possibly located in the Roman Forum and on the Palatine hill, among other locations.