SOURCE: An introduction to The Eunich by Terence, translated by Douglass Parker, in The Complete Comedies of Terence: Modern Verse Translations, edited by Palmer Bovie, Rutgers University Press, 1974, pp. 147-52.

In the following essay, Parker discusses influences on The Eunich, concluding that Terence's individuality is evident in the play's "reasoned confusion of viewpoints [and contradiction of attitudes, that mark the best comedy.']

Portrait of Terence from a Carolingian manuscript in the Bibliothque Nationale, Paris.

Success dies hard. The Eunuch was Terence's most successful play during his lifetime, earning an immediate second production and a considerably increased royalty. It has yet to be forgiven this by critics who, equating excellence with unpopularity, prefer the Hecyra's double failure as an index of attainment. Since this is not a universal standard, they find themselves faced with a thorny problem: The Eunuch is fast and funny, and, in fact, an excellent...