Plautus' Curculio in German attire and scenery of the Austrian Monarchy, or an adaptation of Plautus' comedy by J. M. R. Lenz: die Türkensklavin
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| Year of publication | 2022 |
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| Description | The translation and loose adaptation of Plautus' comedy Curculio by Jakob Michael Reinhold Lenz written for German theatres dates to 1772-1773; they were published anonymously under the title Lustspiele nach dem Plautus in 1774. Lenz embarked on translating and adapting Plautus' comedies at the instigation of Lessing. The plot of the comedy Curculio – Die Türkensklavin in Lenz's German translation – takes place in Vienna, in the scenery of the Austrian Monarchy. This paper analyses J. M. R. Lenz's adaptation practices and the updating of the Roman comedy through contemporary realities of his German audience. Modern editors refer to Lenz's comedies based on Plautus as "Nachbildungen", i.e. imitations; Lenz himself refers to his approach and adaptation of Plautus as, in fact, following Plautus, who himself imitated and adapted Greek models. |
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