Women and their Voices in Plautus’ Rudens

Abstract: The women who performed Plautus’ Rudens at Washington University in 1884, though they eliminated much misogyny from the play, left in a verse in which a character argues that good women should be silent. The women would have been aware that the line is deeply ironic, as the play offers one of Roman comedy’s most rewarding presentations of women’s voices, which are essential for the successful resolution of the plot. The verse reflects not a belief that women should be silent, but rather an awareness of the necessity for women to use their voices strategically in a patriarchal society.