This work translates three plays by Plautus, who combined Italian farce with the more polished Greek form of comedy. The text also presents discussions of the origins of Roman comedy, the realities of slavery, the role of women in Roman society and the nature and expectations of a Roman audience.
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.