Discuss the use of errors in The Brothers Menaechmus to produce Essay

Discuss the use of errors in The Brothers Menaechmus to produce comedy. Do you agree with Plautus that Mistakes are funny - Essay Example Comedy in The Brothers Menaechmus The comedy that is a part of The Brothers Menaechmus has as its principal source, the errors that the characters that are a part of the play commit. The play revolves around a case of mistaken identity, where identical looks are mistaken for the same identity. The play, through comedy and laughter, forces the readers to rethink their ideas about appearance and reality and the fragile nature of an identity that is based solely on appearances. Plautus tries to redefine the limits that were traditionally assigned to comedy as merely a means of eliciting laughter and tries to take it beyond. However, the play tends to mostly do so through a derisive treatment of the women characters. There is also a subversive element in the play; one that is brought about by the resourcefulness that the slave displays, something that wins him his freedom. The principal error in the play leads to a lot of complications within the plot. It however, allows for the producti on of comedy, as the trope of the mistaken identity creates a lot of situations where the audience shares a certain piece of knowledge with the playwright that the other characters do not. This leads to a situation where the errors are funny. If a situation had to arise where the audience too was in the dark regarding the action in the play, then the play would create situations of suspense.