History Creator / Plautus

With his fellow playwright, Terence (Publius Terentius Afer), he popularized the "boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl" plot, typical of the Greek "New Comedy," that has been perhaps the most common dramatic structure in Western drama ever since. He also helped to establish an array of StockCharacters, including the Nice Young Man and Girl, the Nice Young Man's slightly racier Best Friend, the Rival (who is often a [[MilesGloriosus Boastful Soldier]]), the Parasite who lives off him and [[ServileSnarker makes sarcastic remarks behind his back]], the HenpeckedHusband, the [[GrandeDame uptight, domineering Matron]], and the Clever Servant who manages his master's affairs, that have been common (with variations) in comedy ever since.

* MyHovercraftIsFullOfEels: The attempts to translate Carthaginian in ''Poenulus'' leave something to be desired.

Titus Maccius Plautus (c. 254–184 BC) was a Roman comic playwright of the Old Latin period. Imitating most of his plots from the Greek playwright Menander, he gave them a distinctly Roman feel, despite the fact that (in order to escape the charge of "slandering the Roman People and State") he put his characters in the PaperThinDisguise of Greek names. With his fellow playwright, Terence (Publius Terentius Afer), he popularized the "boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl" plot, typical of the Greek "New Comedy," that has been perhaps the most common dramatic structure in Western drama ever since. He also helped to establish an array of StockCharacters, including the Nice Young Man and Girl, the Nice Young Man's slightly racier Best Friend, the Rival (who is often a [[MilesGloriosus Boastful Soldier]]), the Parasite who lives off him and [[ServileSnarker makes sarcastic remarks behind his back]], the HenpeckedHusband, the [[GrandeDame uptight, domineering Matron]], and the Clever Servant who manages his master's affairs, that have been common (with variations) in comedy ever since.

* MyHovercraftIsFullOfEels: The attempts to translate Carthaginian in ''Poenulus'' [[{{Understatement}} leave something to be desired]].

* SmugSnake: Ballio the pimp in ''Pseudolus'' is a raging egomaniac who threatens his courtesans with demotion to low-class whoress--as well as floggings--if they fail to obtain rich birthday presents for him from their lovers; and he takes a nasty delight in telling Calidorus that his [Calidorus'] beloved is about to be sold. In the end, when he's been tricked out of the deal, he resolves to hang himself.
** TropeNamer: "Ballio" became the Latin word for that sort of character.

'''Titus Maccius Plautus''' (c. 254–184 BC) was a Roman comic playwright of the Old Latin period. Imitating most of his plots from the Greek playwright Menander, he gave them a distinctly Roman feel, despite the fact that (in order to escape the charge of "slandering the Roman People and State") he put his characters in the PaperThinDisguise of Greek names. With his fellow playwright, Terence (Publius Terentius Afer), he popularized the "boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl" plot, typical of the Greek "New Comedy," that has been perhaps the most common dramatic structure in Western drama ever since. He also helped to establish an array of StockCharacters, including the Nice Young Man and Girl, the Nice Young Man's slightly racier Best Friend, the Rival (who is often a [[MilesGloriosus Boastful Soldier]]), the Parasite who lives off him and [[ServileSnarker makes sarcastic remarks behind his back]], the HenpeckedHusband, the [[GrandeDame uptight, domineering Matron]], and the Clever Servant who manages his master's affairs, that have been common (with variations) in comedy ever since.

* [[MyHovercraftIsFullOfEels Helicopterum Meum Anguillum Plenum Est]][[note]]No Latin rendering of hovercraft could be found so helicopter will have to do.[[/note]]: The attempts to translate Carthaginian in ''Poenulus'' [[{{Understatement}} leave something to be desired]].

->'''Unidentified Character''': He was a bilious attack to me, an ague, a cough, a dropsy.

One of Plautus's plays is the TropeNamer for MilesGloriosus. His works were also the principal inspiration for the later musical comedies ''The Boys From Syracuse'' and ''AFunnyThingHappenedOnTheWayToTheForum''. And his ''Menaechmi'' was the basis for Creator/{{William Shakespeare}}'s ''Theatre/TheComedyOfErrors''.

Facietque extemplo Crucisalum me ex Chrysalo.''

-->''Credo, hercle! adveniens nomen mutabit mihi,\\

-->By Hercules, I think that if he shows up he'll change my name,\\
and instantly transform me from "Christopher" to "Cross-offer!" [[hottip:*:literally, from "Chrysalus"="Goldie" to "Crucisalus"="Jump-onto-the-cross." That one probably had 'em rolling in the aisles.]]
-->-- ''Chrysalus the Slave, in Plautus's ''Bacchidæ

!!Tropes found in his works
* [[MyHovercraftIsFullOfEels Helicopterum Meum Anguillum Plenum Est]][[hottip:*:No Latin rendering of hovercraft could be found so helicopter will have to do.]]: The attempts to translate Carthaginian in ''Poenulus'' [[{{Understatement}} leave something to be desired]].

* SeparatedAtBirth: The title characters in ''Menaechmi''.

* [[MyHovercraftIsFullOfEels Helicopterum Meum Anguillum Plenum Est]][[hottip:No Latin rendering of hovercraft could be found so helicopter will have to do.]]: The attempts to translate Carthaginian in ''Poenulus'' [[{{Understatement}} leave something to be desired]].

* [[MyHovercraftIsFullOfEels Helicopterum Meum Anguillum Plenum Est]]: The attempts to translate Carthaginian in ''Poenulus'' [[{{Understatement}} leave something to be desired]].

* SeparatedAtBirth: The title characters in ''Menauchmi''.

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