Persa home Plautus (Dramata)

PERSA

Author: Plautus
Date: unknown
Model: None known

Texts and Commentaries

Latin text on-line at the Perseus Project (Leo 1895)
Lindsay, W.M. 1904-1905. T. Macci Plauti Comoediae. 2 vols. Clarendon: Oxford.
Nixon, Paul. 1916-38. Plautus. 5 vols. Loeb Classical Library 260. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. 3:417-524.
Ernout, Alfred. 1932. Plaute. 7 vols. Paris: Les Belles Lettres. 5:93-160.
Woytek, Erich. 1982. T Maccus Plautus: Persa. Vienna Osterreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften.

English Translations Available

Riley, Henry Thomas. 1912. The Comedies of Plautus. 2 vols. London: G. Bell and Sons. 2:255-302.

translation on-line at the Perseus Project

Nixon, Paul. 1916-38. Plautus. 5 vols. Loeb Classical Library 163. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. 3:417-524.
Murphy, Charles T. 1942. The Complete Roman Drama, ed. George Duckworth. 2 vols. New York: Random House. 1:675-722.
Bovie, Palmer. 1995. Plautus: The Comedies, eds. David R. Slavitt and Palmer Bovie. Baltimore: John Hopkins University Press. 4:1-78.

CAST OF CHARACTERS

TOXILIUS - a servant in love.
SAGARISTIO - a servant.
SATURIO - a Parasite.
PAEGNIUM - a boy.
DORDALUS - a Procurer.
LEMNISELENE - a Courtesan, beloved by Toxilus.
SOPHOCLIDISCA - her attendant.
A YOUNG WOMAN - daughter of Saturio.

Act and Scene	Lines	Characters	Action
I.i	1-52	Toxilus Sagaristio	Toxilus and Sagaristio meet each other. Toxilus, whose master is away, is in love with a mistress and he must buy her by tonight for 600 didrachmas. Toxilus has asked everyone he knows and no one can help him. So he asks Sagaristio if he could loan him the money. Sagaristio says he will ask people and try to come up with the money.
I.ii	53-80	Saturio	Saturio, a parasite, is talking to himself. He is proud of what he does and his family has been doing it for ages. When he is going to eat, he is interrupted.
I.iii	81-167	Toxilus Saturio	Saturio and Toxilus are talking to one another. Toxilus entices him with food. They make a deal to use Saturio’s daughter and sell her to the pimp. They will say that she is a foreigner. Once Toxilus has the money, they will take her back. Saturio goes off to get his daughter.
II.i	168-182	Sophoclidisca Lemniselene	Sophoclidisca, Lemniselene’s attendant, tells her that she has given her lady five years of service, but she is still not highly respected by her. But it is forgiven because her lady is in love. She is sent to bring a letter to Toxilus, the fool in love with Sophoclidisca.
II.ii	183-250	Toxilus Paegnium Sophoclidisca	Toxilus sends Paegniun to bring a message to his lover Lemniselene. He runs into Sophoclidisca and they are bickering until they realize that they are both carrying a letter to the other's master.
II.iii	251-271	Sagaristio	Sagaristio talking to himself explains that he has money from his master, with which he is supposed to buy oxen. But says that he is going to misuse the money and loan it to his friend. He is going to get beaten, but he doesn’t care because it has happened before. He runs into Pægnium.
II.iv	272-301	Paegnium Sagaristio	Sagaristio asks Paeginum where Toxilus is. He is persistent in telling him. Paeginum has finished his job so he is hurrying home and doesn’t want to bother speaking with Sagaristio. They both get mad at each other and Paeginum scurries off.
II.v	302-328	Toxilus Sophoclidisca Sagaristio	Toxilus sends Sophoclidisca off to tell her lady the plan. He runs into Sagaristo who tells him that his master has sent him to buy oxen, instead he is going to give them money to Toxilus to help him out. Toxilus is so excited and he tells Sagaristo that he will pay him back. He asks him to help with his plan. They exit into the house.
III.i	329-399	Saturio his daughter	Saturio tells his daughter that today she will be sold. She tries to make him feel guilty about selling his own daughter as if she were a slave. She argues with him that this is wrong, but ultimately she must be obedient.
III.ii	400-404	Dordalus	Dordalus talking to himself wonders if his neighbor is going to get the money to him in time.
III.iii	405-448	Toxilus Dordalus	Toxilus comes in insulting Dordalus and taunting him with the money in the purse. He gives him the 600 didrachmas. Dordalus tells the girl to get ready for she is freed.
IV.i	449-461	Toxilus	Toxilus gives himself props for how clever he is. Sagaristio comes in with the woman (daughter) dressed in Persian clothes.
IV.ii	462-469	Toxilus Sagaristio	Toxilus tells him he looks fabulous, and that they should hide until he speaks with the pimp, once he comes back.
IV.iii	470-548	Dardalus Toxilus	Dordalus is excited that he has sold one of his girls. Toxilus asks him if his girl has been freed. He gives a letter to Dordalus saying it is from his master in Persia. It tells about a slave girl that has been sent and she may be bought but without any guarantees. Dordalus is not interested at first because he does not want any legal problems, but he takes a look at her to see if she is worth it.
IV.iv	549-672	Sagaristio his daughter Toxilus Dordalus	Sagaristo and daughter come up to them dressed as Persians. Toxilus tells Dordalus that he must buy her because she is clever and all the best Athenian men will want to have, so he will be very rich. Sagaristo and Dordalus discuss about how much she should cost. They ask her questions and she cleverly answers without fouling up her lies. Dordalus likes her and agrees to buy her for 60 minae.
IV.v	673-682	Toxilus his daughter Sagaristio	Toxilus reminds Sagaristo to pretend to go to the ship but sneak off and come to his house with the money.
IV.vi	683-710	Dordalus Sagaristio Toxilus	Dordalus comes in with 2 drachmas short of the money, because the bag cost money. He asks Sagaristo what his name is. In response, Sagaristo makes up a long funny name that insults Dordalus, but he does not notice. Sagaristo leaves.
IV.vii	711-730	Toxilus Dordalus Saturio Sagaristio his daughter	Toxilus says what a great day Dordalus has had in making deals. Dordalus thanks him for his help. Saturio talks to Toxilus ready to claim his daughter, but he hides until the pimp comes back out.
IV.viii	731-737	Dordalus Toxilus	Dordalus is relieved, for his busy day is over. Toxilus leaves to go be with his freed-woman.
IV.ix	738-752	Saturio Sagaristio's daughter Dordalus	Saturio storms in claiming his daughter. Dordalus does not know what to do he tries to explain but Saturio will not let him. Saturio commands him to follow him to the Praetor so that they can settle this.
V.i	753-776	Toxilus Lemniselene Sagaristio	Toxilus is gloating about his successful plan and how he subdued the foe. He reclines with Lemniselene in utter happiness. Sagaristo also eats with them, and he asks for his share of the profit.
V.ii	777-858	Toxilus Lemniselene Sagaristio Dordalus Paegnium	Dordalus is furious that Toxilus has tricked and ruined him. He says he will torture him if they ever cross paths. Toxilus invites him to come in and dine. Dordalus cannot believe that Lemniselene kept this plan concealed form him. Paegnium hits and makes fun of him. Dordalus figures out that Sagaristo was the Persian who tricked him. After all the characters beat and torture him he holds up his hands for mercy. As he leaves Toxilus yells, “Remember who you messed with!” He turns to the audience and says, “Spectators, kindly fare you well. The Procurer is demolished. Grant us your applause.”