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Where does The Comedy of Errors take place?
The Comedy of Errors takes place in Ephesus, which was an ancient Greek city on the Ionian coast in what today is known as Turkey. For Shakespeare and his contemporaries, Ephesus would have best been known from two books of the New Testament of the Bible that are attributed to Paul the Apostle: namely, the Acts of the Apostles and the Epistle to the Ephesians. Most important for this play is Paul’s association of Ephesus with sorcery and witchcraft. This biblical link helps explain the curious way Shakespeare’s Ephesus is at once ancient and early modern, infused as it is with Christian ideas and sensibilities. The biblical connection also explains the play’s thematic emphasis on hierarchical relations and domestic authority. The Epistle to the Ephesians, in particular, stresses the importance of women obeying their husbands and servants obeying their masters.
Why does the Duke of Ephesus sentence Egeon to death?
The Duke of Ephesus sentences Egeon to death simply because he is a man from Syracuse. In the world of the play, Syracuse and Ephesus are locked in a bitter dispute that came about when the duke of Syracuse began persecuting Ephesian merchants in his city. In the wake of this persecution, the two cities have agreed to ban all travel between them on penalty of death. Therefore, anyone from Ephesus found in Syracuse may be executed, as can anyone from Syracuse found in Ephesus. As the Duke is quick to note, however, the two cities have also agreed to release any captive who can pay a ransom of ten thousand marks for their own freedom. Hence, the Duke defers Egeon’s execution until sundown, giving the foreigner time to gather the necessary funds to secure his liberty.
Why is Antipholus of Syracuse in Ephesus?
Antipholus of Syracuse has come to Ephesus in search of the missing half of his family. Antipholus never explains this reason himself. Rather, we can infer the reason for his arrival from the tragic story his father tells the Duke of Ephesus upon his capture. As Egeon explains, he and his wife had twin sons, but a shipwreck divided the family in two. Egeon ended up in Syracuse with one of his sons, but he doesn’t know what happened to his wife and other son. Years later, when Egeon’s son had grown up, he left home to find the mother and brother he never knew. Antipholus has therefore arrived in Ephesus as part of this search. For his part, Egeon has arrived in search of his wandering son, whom he hasn’t seen in seven years.
Are the two Dromios enslaved to the Antipholuses?
Shakespeare refers to the Dromios not as slaves, but as bondsmen. The two terms are sometimes used interchangeably, given that they each refer to a person who is bound to a master and thus has limited or no ownership over their labor. However, and for the modern reader especially, the term slave is strongly associated with chattel slavery and the transatlantic slave trade that began in the mid-sixteenth century. Furthermore, the relationship between a slave and their master is one of ownership. For a bondsman, by contrast, the relationship isn’t defined by ownership. Rather, a bondsman is typically bound to a master through debt or serfdom. In the case of the Dromios, their situation appears to be a general form of debt bondage. Their parents couldn’t raise them, and so Egeon and his wife took them in. In exchange for the expense of taking care of them, the Dromios act as the Antipholuses’ servants.
Why does the Duke spare Egeon’s life?
At the beginning of the day, the Duke told Egeon he would spare his life if he could drum up a ransom of ten thousand marks. Of course, Egeon doesn’t have that kind of cash, nor does he know anyone in Ephesus who might help him. Thus, as sunset approaches, the Duke leads him to the execution grounds. Along the way, they encounter a group of people engaged in a dispute outside a priory. There, Egeon mistakes Antipholus of Ephesus for the son he knows—that is, Antipholus of Syracuse. The nature of his mistake soon becomes clear when the Syracusan Antipholus shows up, at which point the various “errors” of the day are cleared up and the long-separated family is finally reunited. The Duke is so moved by the family reunion that he releases Egeon, and when Antipholus of Ephesus tries to pay him the legally required ransom, the Duke waives the fee.
