Terence's "The Mother-In-Law" Trivia Quiz

Answer: Athens

Despite being a Roman play, the location is indeed Athens! Roman drama was much inspired by Greek drama, and "The Mother-In-Law" is apparently based on a play by Menander, according to the production notice written at the time of the first attempt at putting on the play.

It is the fifth play by Terence (Publius Terentius Afer), and the first two attempts at putting on the play failed. Reasons given for this in prologues to the play include distraction of the audience due to a gladiatorial display, and a tightrope walker.

Answer: To collect his family's inheritance.

An elderly relative, a cousin, has died, and Laches, Pamphilus' father, has sent him to collect whatever the old man had left. Pamphilus returns with only a saying: "vixit, dum vixit, bene" ('when he lived, he lived well'). The man did not leave anything to his descendants. The news is not received well by greedy Laches.

Answer: Philumena has developed an intense dislike for her mother-in-law, Sostrata.

Hence the name of the play! Laches is very angry with his wife for not treating Philumena properly. Sostrata continues to plead her innocence, maintaining that she has always treated Philumena as though she were her own daughter.

Of course, Laches is wrong, after all - but because the audience does not find this out until later on, dramatic irony has been lost.

Answer: She is pregnant.

On the surface, this seems like a silly reason to leave the marital home, but Philumena and Pamphilus have at this time only been married for seven months. What's more, they did not consummate their marriage until they'd been married for two months. The truth is, Philumena was raped two months before she married Pamphilus.

The attacker stole her ring in the struggle, and impregnated her. She does want to tell her husband or his family, as it is an illegitimate child - indeed, she does not even tell her own father!

Answer: Phidippus and Myrrina

Philotis and Syra are two prostitutes who talk together in the first scene of the play. Theramenes and Eratosthenes were both members of the Thirty Tyrants, a pro-Spartan oligarchy which rose to power after the Peloponnesian War.

Phidippus hears Philumena's new baby boy crying and goes into her room. After he comes back out, he confronts his wife, Myrrina, as to why she has kept it secret. Not giving her much of a chance to explain, he assumes that she has done this because she dislikes Pamphilus because he has a mistress. Myrrina latches onto this explanation, as she would rather her husband does not find out the real reason.

Answer: Yes

Despite giving Parmeno a lengthy description of how this man Callidemides looks ("big chap, ruddy complexion, curly hair, fat, grey eyes, face like a corpse"), Pamphilus is just looking for a way to get Parmeno away from him so he can spend some time alone. Of course, the man himself might be real, explaining how Pamphilus is able to give a description of him so quickly, but there is no meeting. And he has told Parmeno to wait for Callidemides till nightfall!

Answer: He is back together with his mistress.

Laches believes that Pamphilus has claimed not to want Philumena at home while his mother was there because he has resumed his affair with his mistress, Bacchis. (Pamphilus, despite still loving his wife, is determined to do the right thing and so had chosen not to take her back.) After Laches had suggested Sostrata live in the countryside with him, Pamphilus had refused, and Laches uses this to attack Pamphilus, further stating that Pamphilus' claims that the child was born without his knowledge are just another way to get Philumena away from him.

He says that Philumena must have realized this, and that's why she left in the first place! Pamphilus cannot bring himself to admit the truth to his father. Laches then demands to see Bacchis, to question her about whether they have gotten back together or not.

Answer: She is a prostitute.

Bacchis is afraid that her profession will be used against her in the questioning; that is, she thinks that Laches will assume that because she is a prostitute, he should not believe her if she tells him that she has not slept with Pamphilus since he married.

She tells him this, the truth, and he believes her immediately, and then implores her to tell Philumena this. Although Bacchis is very embarrassed to go before a client's wife, she does enter the house to tell the truth.

Answer: Yes

A happy ending - he does take his wife back! While Bacchis is in the house explaining to Philumena and her family that she has not slept with Pamphilus, Myrrina recognizes Bacchis' ring as the one Philumena's rapist pulled off her finger. Bacchis then explains that one night, Pamphilus had come to her, drunk, and after being coaxed, admitted that he'd raped a girl and stolen her ring. Pamphilus had raped Philumena, and therefore is the father of her baby! This is the highest cause of happiness for Pamphilus, as he no longer has the anguish of his wife having another man's child.

I can't imagine how this would sit with Philumena and her parents, though - could you return to a man who had raped you? Somehow this wicked act does not bring Pamphilus down even a notch in anyone's eyes.

Answer: No

No one tells him what it all means, although Parmeno was the one Pamphilus had first confided in that he did not consummate his marriage straight away, so maybe it would have been best for Parmeno to find out, in case later on he wondered about how the dates of Philumena sleeping with Pamphilus and giving birth would not add up!

Laches does not find out either; Pamphilus is determined that the whole situation doesn't end up "like in the comedies where everyone finds out about everything".