Summary

Publius Terentius Afer (195/185–159 bce), probably born at Carthage, was enslaved and brought to Rome as a young slave after the Second Punic War. Where Plautus’s plays showcase freewheeling, exuberant, inventive Latin, Terence’s six comedies feature refined, conversational Latin that exercised significant influence on subsequent Latin writers and was much admired. Not long after his early death, his plays became school texts and remained so for many centuries. His method of composition was controversial because he mixed characters and elements from two plots; his prologues dispense with exposition, focusing instead on literary polemics and rivalries. For four plays, he adapted Menandrian originals; for two, he adapted Apollodorus of Carystus. His plays focus tightly on citizen families, particularly the father–son relationship, and often include rape plots, which modern readers find disturbing.