Terence, Heautontimorumenos

Download PDF Add to Bookshelf Report an Error

The romantic comedy

Heautontimorumenos

(The Self-Tormentor), Terence’s third play written, was adapted from a Greek comedy of the same name by Menander and first performed in April 163 B.C.E. at the

ludi Megalenses,

the annual games for the Great Mother of the Gods.

The plot

The plot

As a typical love comedy, Heautontimorumenos uses the erotic tribulations of two young men as the pretext for a comical battle of wits between a strict old father, Chremes, and his wily slave, Syrus. The prologue reveals (6) that Terence expanded the single love plot (simplex argumentum) of his Greek model into a so-called double plot (duplex argumentum), probably adding another pair of lovers and linking their fate closely to that of the first couple. Moreover, the standard deception plot gains interest and

3288 words

Citation: Knorr, Ortwin. "Heautontimorumenos". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 27 December 2012 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=13479, accessed 13 December 2024.]

13479 Heautontimorumenos 3 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

Save this article

Leave Feedback

The Literary Encyclopedia is a living community of scholars. We welcome comments which will help us improve.