Red cloth binding with gilt title on the spine.

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A lovely and rare Victorian edition of this masterpiece. Please view the photographs for a fuller understanding of this book’s condition.

Dive into the classic world of Roman comedy with “The Adelphoe of Terence,” expertly edited and annotated by Sidney G. Ashmore. This timeless play, a staple of ancient literature, explores the complexities of familial relationships, societal expectations, and the moral dilemmas that arise from contrasting values.

Set in ancient Athens, the play follows two brothers raised under vastly different approaches to parenting. Demea, the strict and traditional father, contrasts sharply with his easygoing and indulgent brother, Micio. Their differing philosophies on life and child-rearing are put to the test as their sons, Aeschinus and Ctesipho, navigate love, responsibility, and the consequences of their actions.

Ashmore’s edition provides a comprehensive introduction, offering insights into the historical and cultural context of Roman comedy and the literary significance of Terence’s work. The detailed notes and critical appendix make this edition an invaluable resource for students and scholars alike.

Whether you’re a seasoned classicist or a newcomer to Roman literature, “The Adelphoe of Terence” offers a fascinating glimpse into the world of ancient drama, filled with humor, wit, and timeless human themes.

Adelphoe (also Adelphoi and Adelphi; from Greek: ἀδελφοί, Brothers) is a play by Roman playwright Terence, adapted mostly from a play of the same name by Menander, with the addition of a scene from Diphilus. It was first performed in 160 BC at the funeral games of Aemilius Paulus. Adelphoe, like all of Terence’s works, survives complete. It was Terence’s last play and is often considered his masterpiece. Exploring the best form of child-rearing, the play inspired Molière’s The School for Husbands.

Plot: Demea, father to Aeschinus and Ctesipho, decides to separate his children and raises Ctesipho while allowing his brother Micio to raise Aeschinus. Demea is a strict authoritarian father, and Micio is permissive and democratic. Ctesipho falls in love with a slave-girl musician, but is afraid of exposing his romantic interest due to the strict education he’s received from Demea. Therefore, Aeschinus, in order to help his brother, decides to steal the girl away from the slave-dealer Sannio, accepting all blame for the affair. Demea and Micio spar over who did a better job at raising their sons.

After a long monologue comparing his methods with his brother’s, Demea decides to emulate his brother’s urbanity and openhandedness as a means of critique. In the last hundred lines of the play, Demea gives away a great deal of money and a large estate, convinces his brother to free two of his slaves, and then finally delivers a closing speech decrying all such liberality: “I will tell you: I did it to show you that what they think is your good nature and pleasantness did not happen from a true life, nor from justice and goodness, but from flattery, indulgence, and largess, Micio” (lines 985–988).

He then offers to his sons that he will be their strict father if they so desire him to be, but if they prefer to stay with Micio, they can. Both boys choose to submit to Demea, with Micio’s approval. At the end of the play, Ctesipho keeps his loved one, Aeschinus celebrates his marriage to Pamphila, Sostrata’s daughter, and Micio is made to marry Sostrata.

Publius Terentius Afer (c. 195/185 – c. 159 BC), better known in English as Terence, was a playwright during the Roman Republic. He was the author of six comedies based on Greek originals by Menander or Apollodorus of Carystus. All six of Terence’s plays survive complete and were originally produced between 166–160 BC.

According to ancient authors, Terence was born in Carthage and was brought to Rome as a slave, where he gained an education and his freedom; around the age of 25, Terence is said to have made a voyage to the east in search of inspiration for his plays, where he died either of disease in Greece, or by shipwreck on the return voyage. However, Terence’s traditional biography is often thought to consist of speculation by ancient scholars who lived too long after Terence to have access to reliable facts about his life.

Terence’s plays quickly became standard school texts. He ultimately secured a place as one of the four authors taught to all grammar pupils in the Western Roman Empire, and retained a central place in the European school curriculum until the 19th Century, exercising a formative influence on authors such as William Shakespeare and Molière.