Emily Brostek
Professor Cole
CAMS 001
January 29, 2013
Type characters and physical humor are two main examples of how Plautus is able to entertain the audience
in his works. Both of these elements allow the story to be extremely relatable to any audience and make the plays
enjoyable. Since Plautus highlights these elements in his plays, his comedy can still be appreciated thousands of
years after it was written.
Type characters in Plautus’ plays include the wise slave and the pompous, foolish military men. In works
such as, The Braggart Soldier, The Haunted House, and A Funny Thing Happened…, the plot revolves around a
cunning slave manipulating situations to avoid and solve problems. This idea is humorous to the audience because
society’s lowest member holds all the cards and is able to outsmart the upper class. For example, in The Braggart
Soldier, not only is Palaestrio able to help his master free his girlfriend from the braggart soldier, but he is able to
maneuver his own freedom at the same time! This conduct is entertaining because in my opinion it is always
amusing to see the underdog win. As a member of the audience, you root for the slave to overcome his barricades of
his social status and make the opposing characters into fools.
Plautus also uses type characters in reference to the upper class military. These characters are written as
arrogant officials of the government who are put into their place by the slaves. The film, “A Funny Thing
Happened…” was humorous to me because of the obvious humor surrounding the character, Miles Gloriosus. Here
this great military captain tries to make an entrance filled with grandeur, while his soldiers are fumbling and falling
behind him. Pseudolous, the slave, manages to trick him for most of the play, showing that even a high military
general is no smarter than the average fool. This is entertaining to the audience because we still enjoy making fun of
the upper-class today. For example, some of the greatest and most humorous Saturday Night Live sketches have
been humorous impersonations of Presidential candidates and government officials.
Another element I find funny in Plautus’ writing is his use of physical direction and humor. In one of the
scenes from The Haunted House, Plautus has Philolaches facing the audience, commenting on a conversation
between two other characters. I think the use of this is extremely funny because Philolaches is making crude
comments which the audience can enjoy. At one point he even says, “…if I don’t chop that bitch to bits” (The
Haunted House 211-212). By making these comments directly to the audience he is able to connect with them on a
more personal level and comically explain what the audience is thinking. I think this is an extremely entertaining
tool used in Plautus’ plays.
In conclusion, the use of both type characters and direct humor are both ways I think Plautus entertains his
audience. By incorporating type characterizations that we can identify with, Plautus bridges the gap between the
play and reality. His clever use of these techniques successfully made me laugh a lot throughout his works.