Editing Terence (section)

== Plays ==

[[File:Vat. lat. 3868 4v miniature.jpg|thumb|Miniature from the [[Codex Vaticanus Latinus 3868|Vatican Terence]] of masked actors performing the first scene of the ''Andria'']]

Like [[Plautus]], Terence adapted [[Greek theatre|Greek plays]] from the late phases of [[Greek comedy|Attic comedy]]. Unlike Plautus though, Terence's way of writing his comedies was more in a simple conversational Latin, pleasant and direct, while less visually humorous to watch.<ref>Knox, P.E., and J.C. McKeown (2013). The Oxford Anthology of Roman Literature. Oxford: Oxford University Press.</ref>

Five of Terence's plays are about a pair of young men in love (in the ''Hecyra'' there is only one young man, who is already married, but who suspects his wife of infidelity). In all the plays there are two girls involved, one a citizen woman, the other a prostitute. In four of the plays a recognition (''anagnorisis'' or ''anagnorismos'') occurs which proves that one of the girls is the long-lost daughter of a respectable citizen, thus making the way free for her marriage.<ref>Levin, Richard (1967). [https://www.jstor.org/stable/3295493 "The Double Plots of Terence"]. ''The Classical Journal'', Vol. 62, No. 7, pp. 301-305.</ref><ref>Görler, Woldemar (1972). [https://www.jstor.org/stable/45128088 "Doppelhandlung, Intrige, und Anagnorismos bei Terenz]. ᾽᾽Poetica᾽᾽, Vol. 5, No. 2, pp. 164-182.</ref>

Terence's six plays are:
* [[Andria (comedy)|''Andria'' (''The Girl from Andros'')]] (166 BC)
::A young Athenian, Pamphilus, is desperately in love with Glycerium, a foreign girl of low class, and has made her pregnant. But his father Simo wants him to marry the daughter of his friend Chremes. Meanwhile his friend Charinus is in love with the daughter that Pamphilus rejects. The wily slave Davus advises Pamphilus to agree to the marriage, believing that Chremes will object to it because of his affair with Glycerium, but the plan goes wrong when Chremes agrees to the marriage after all. Pamphilus is furious with Davus. Simo is also furious since he believes that birth of Glycerium's baby is just one of Davus's tricks. The situation is saved when, thanks to the arrival of a stranger from [[Andros]], Chremes realises that Glycerium is his own long-lost daughter. The two young men get to marry the girls of their choice and Davus is rescued from punishment.

* [[Heauton Timorumenos|''Heauton Timorumenos'' (''The Self-Tormentor'')]] (163 BC)
::An Athenian farmer, Chremes, asks his neighbour Menedemus why he works all day on his farm. Menedemus says he is punishing himself for allowing his anger over his son Clinia's love affair with a poor girl to push the boy into going abroad on military service; he misses him terribly. On returning home Chremes finds that Clinia has returned and is visiting Chremes' son Clitipho. Chremes' wily slave Syrus brings Clinia's girlfriend Antiphila to Chremes' house; but he also brings Clitipho's girlfriend, the expensive courtesan Bacchis. To conceal Clitipho's affair, he says they will pretend to Chremes that Bacchis is Clinia's girlfriend, and that Antiphila is one of Bacchis's servants. In another ruse he suggests to Chremes that Chremes should persuade Menedemus to buy Antiphila so that Clinia can stay with Bacchis. However, when Clitipho's mother discovers from a ring that Antiphila is her own daughter, whom Chremes had ordered to be exposed as a baby, this plan falls through. Undeterred, Syrus tricks Chremes into paying money to Bacchis for Antiphila's release. But when Chremes learns that it is Clitipho who is in love with Bacchis, he is furious, especially at the thought of how much Bacchis will cost. At first he threatens to disinherit Clitipho, but eventually he forgives him on condition that he agrees to marry a suitable girl at once. Clinia, meanwhile, is allowed to marry Antiphila. Syrus is also forgiven.

* [[Eunuchus|''Eunuchus'' (''The Eunuch'')]] (161 BC)
::A young man, Phaedria, is in love with a courtesan, Thais. He reluctantly agrees to leave town for a couple of days so that Thais can spend time with a rival lover, Thraso, who has promised to give her a certain slave girl who had previously been in her family. Before leaving town, Phaedria gives Thais an African maid and a eunuch. But while he is absent his 16-year-old brother Chaerea, at the suggestion of the slave Parmeno, disguises himself as the eunuch, gains access to Thais's house, and rapes the young girl, who is actually an Athenian citizen kidnapped in childhood. Thais's plans to restore the girl to her family are ruined. The situation is resolved when Chaerea begs Thais for forgiveness and offers to marry the girl himself. Phaedria gets to continue his affair with Thais, but is persuaded to share her with Thraso, who is richer than he is and can defray the expense of her upkeep. Parmeno, despite the gleeful predictions of Thais's maid Pythias, in the end escapes punishment.

* ''[[Phormio (play)|Phormio]]'' (161 BC)
::While their fathers are away Antipho has fallen in love with a poor orphaned citizen, and his cousin Phaedria has fallen for a slave girl. Phormio, a parasite, has helped Antipho to marry the poor girl by making a false claim in court. When Antipho's father Demipho returns he is furious because he had wanted Antipho to marry his brother Chremes's daughter. Chremes agrees to pay Phormio 30 minae on condition that he removes the girl and marries her himself. Too late Chremes realises that the poor girl is his own daughter. He tries to undo the arrangement with Phormio, but Phormio has already paid the money to Phaedria to buy his slave girl. Phormio escapes punishment since Chremes' wealthy wife Nausistrata is furious not only about Chremes' secret second marriage but that he had been embezzling her money to pay for it. Antipho is allowed to keep his wife, Phaedria to keep his girlfriend, and Phormio is invited to dinner.

[[File:Houghton Inc 473 - Terence, Works.jpg|thumb|1496 edition of Terence's ''Works'']]

* [[Hecyra|''Hecyra'' (''The Mother-in-Law'')]] (165 BC, but eventually performed in 160 BC)
::Laches' son, Pamphilus, has been made to marry Philumena, daughter of their neighbour Phidippus. At first he refused to sleep with her, because of his love for a courtesan, Bacchis, but gradually he grows to love his wife. But while he is away Philumena leaves their home and moves back to her father's house. Everyone blames the mother-in-law, Sostrata, or else his continuing love for Bacchis. But when Pamphilus returns he discovers that the real reason for her departure is that she is about to give birth to a child, which he believes is not his. He therefore decides to divorce Philumena even though he still loves her. The situation is resolved when Philumena's mother Myrrina discovers Philumena's ring which Pamphilus had given to Bacchis. It is revealed that Pamphilus had drunkenly raped a young unknown woman some ten months ago and taken her ring, making Pamphilus the father of Philumena's child. The couple reconcile, and the gossipy slave Parmeno and the two fathers are kept in the dark about the rape.

* [[Adelphoe|''Adelphoe'' (''The Brothers'')]] (160 BC)
::Micio, a wealthy Athenian bachelor, has brought up Aeschinus, the adopted elder son of his brother Demea, in town in an indulgent way. Meanwhile Demea has brought up his younger son Ctesipho in the village in a strict fashion. When Ctesipho falls in love with a slave-girl, Aeschinus on his behalf abducts the girl from the slave-dealer, Sannio, who owns her. Meanwhile, however, the widowed neighbour, Sostrata, alarmed that Aeschinus seems to have abandoned her daughter whom Aeschinus had made pregnant, sends her relative Hegio to complain to Micio, to Aeschinus's embarrassment. A rascally slave, Syrus, plays his part by negotiating with the slave-dealer, and by keeping Demea out of the way of Ctesipho by various ruses. When Demea at last finds Ctesipho and his girlfriend in Micio's house, he is furious and reproaches Micio for interfering in Ctesipho's upbringing. The situation is resolved when Demea takes control. Changing from strictness to indulgence, he suggests that they should forego Aeschinus's wedding procession and simply knock down the dividing wall between the two houses; in addition he insists that Micio must marry Sostrata, give Syrus his freedom and some business capital, and grant Hegio an income from part of his land. Ctesipho is allowed to keep his music-girl.