Assignment 7
Appius sat on his
front stoop taking long swigs of watered down wine while he pretended to ignore
his wife Julia calling for him from inside the house. Finally Julia came out to
the stoop and grabbed him by the ear. “APPIUS we are going to be late!” She
exclaimed while pacing back and forth in the doorway. Appius slowly rose and
grumbled something Julia could not hear while walking into the house.
Appius
was still having a hard time adjusting too civilian life and especially on days
like this were he would have to act very proper and socially acceptable, mainly
in order to please his wife. Julius Caesar himself had composed a treatise on
one of Terence’s plays sermo purus, and
the play was taking place at the Theater of Pompey this very day. Appius had
never been fond of plays but especially ones that were originally written by
Terence. He found Terence’s style a bit too intellectual and not very comedic.
Although
Appius did not want to go to the play he faced a dilemma every married man faces
sometime or another; please his wife or hear the wrath of her later. He walked
into his room and started putting on his toga, clearly making the right
decision. Despite Julia’s nagging Appius was ready before her and opened
another jug of wine at the dinning table. As he started pouring a cup his good
friend and neighbor Gaius and his wife Clodia came strolling into their home.
Cladia ran back to the bedroom to see her dear friend Julia as Gaius sat next
to Appius at the dinning table. “Gaius
it is good to see you my friend! Julia has been driving me crazy about this
play, the last one we went to she would not stop talking about the performance
of the slave playing the young man in love. I do admit it was clever how his
slave was able to outwit the pirates in order to get the young mans woman back
but the comedy was a bit light hearted for my liking. I believe it was a play
originally by Plautus.” Gaius chuckled and took a gulp of the wine Appius had
poured him. “ I agree Appius! Plautus’s plays are witty but a bit unrealistic.
I prefer the Mime style of acting it is so much more entertaining! The violence
and nudity is so provocative and exciting!” Appius smiled and laughed deeply
with Gaius, they raised their glasses and cheered to their wonderful wife’s.
