Pseudolus

What is ironic about the fact that Pseudolus offers morality lessons to the audience, and what does it suggest about the message of the play?

The only women in the play are the abused prostitutes and a crying Phoenicium. What is the effect of the absence of women, save for these passive examples?

Why do spectators root for Pseudolus, rather than Ballio, and how does the satisfaction spectators feel when Ballio is deceived reinforce the message of social and moral inversion in the play?

How is love portrayed in Pseudolus? Consider Calidorus’s behavior early in the play and the nature of his relationship with Phoenicium.

The clever or tricky slave is a stock character frequently found in Greek New Comedy and in Plautus’s plays. How does Pseudolus fulfill the role of the clever slave?

At the end of the play, Pseudolus extends his hand to Simo, Ballio is punished, and Calidorus and Phoenicium are united. What might be the effect or message of the play’s happy ending?

Where does Pseudolus, though admittedly tricky and unscrupulous, show that he possesses a staunch sense of morality?

Where do Simo and Ballio show weakness, despite their professions of strength? What is the definition of strength in Pseudolus?