In Roman comedies, there are usually several characters who are slaves. Part of the plot often hinges on one or more of their efforts to leave the slave status; this plot feature may include an enslaved woman’s desire to marry a free man. One of the slave characters is usually a close personal servant to the protagonist, who is usually an elite young man. That slave’s role is essential to the plot’s resolution. He helps his master achieve his goals, which may include becoming wealthy or winning the girl of his dreams, often demanding that the young man win his father’s approval. This slave is usually much smarter than the master, especially in terms of devising complicated plans and manipulating others to get his way. In this regard, the crafty slave serves as a critique of Roman social order by emphasizing the unfairness of a birth-based hierarchy.
In The Pot of Gold, the plot revolves around the efforts of the slave Strobilus to obtain his own freedom (at which he does not succeed) and help his master with his courtship (a successful effort). These plans revolve around the hiding, theft, and recovery of the titular gold. Lyconides is the foolish young man whom Strobilus serves, Phaedria is the young woman he wants to marry, and Euclio is Phaedria’s tight-fisted father, whose opposition to their match must be overcome.
In The Pot of Gold the various slaves and servants are used as what is called stock characters. A stock character is an archetype, there to fulfill a particular dramatic purpose. Examples in countless plays, movies, and films would include the absent-minded professor, the mad scientist, the high school geek, and the girl next door.
In the works of Plautus and other playwrights of the ancient world, we're often introduced to the stock character of the wily, intelligent servant. He or she is there to act as a kind of chorus, providing a running commentary on the action. In satires such as The Pot of Gold this is an especially important function as it allows Plautus to poke fun at the habits and social conventions of the Roman upper classes.
The various servants in The Pot of Gold tend to be much more sympathetic, more recognizably human, than the aristocrats they serve. This helps to provide the audience with a way into the story, as we're introduced to characters with whom we can more readily identify. Naturally, the servants are more down-to-earth, allowing them to highlight the greed, folly, and stupidity of their masters. For example, Staphyla, Euclio's maid, appears to be the only one who cares about Phaedria's state of health during her pregnancy. She is also concerned by her master's increasingly disturbed state of mind.
Then we have Strobilus, slave of Lyconides, Phaedria's lover and potential suitor. He spies Euclio hiding his pot of gold before eventually stealing it. Euclio thinks he's being very cunning and clever in hiding his treasure, but he is easily outsmarted by a humble slave. Again, we see the use of the common dramatic trope of the wily servant getting one over on a member of the social elite.
Yet we also see another kind of use for slave characters by Plautus. For as well as being cunning and devious, Strobilus is also a loyal servant to his master, Lyconides. He demonstrates this by returning the pot of gold to Euclio, thus paving the way for his master to be married to Phaedria.
No comments:
Post a Comment