Last Updated on May 6, 2015, by eNotes Editorial. Word Count: 591

Chremylus

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Chremylus (KREH-mih-luhs), an old Athenian husbandman. Poor but honest, he has consulted the Delphic Oracle to determine whether his only son should be taught virtuous ways or the knavery and double-dealing by which successful men acquire their wealth. The god tells him to follow the first person he meets after leaving the temple. He does so, even though that person is a blind and wretched beggar. When this unfortunate reveals himself as Plutus, Chremylus conceives the idea of restoring his sight so that the God of Wealth can distinguish between the just and the unjust. Chremylus is a simple, friendly fellow, unselfish enough to invite his neighbors to share his good fortune, but he also admits that he loves money, and he loses no time in converting the divine favor he has won into hard cash and luxuries. Like all the playwright’s comic protagonists, he roundly condemns the evils of Athenian society and lashes out particularly against informers, grafters, and voluptuaries.

Cario

Cario (KAR-ee-oh), Chremylus’ slave. He is a broadly comic figure, well aware of his master’s shortcomings, wryly stoical about his own lot in life, and sometimes impertinent. He is perhaps at his best in describing a night in the Temple of Aesculapius, when he had pretended to be one of the holy serpents so that he could filch some pap from an old woman.

Plutus

Plutus (PLEW-tuhs), the God of Wealth. Because he had said that he would favor only the wise, the just, and the virtuous, Zeus, jealous of humankind, had taken away his eyesight so that he would be unable to tell good men from bad. He has wandered in rags, ill treated by those he benefited and, because of his fear of Zeus’s anger, unwilling to have his vision restored. Chremylus convinces him that he is the source of all power, even the power of Zeus. Plutus thus accompanies Chremylus to the Temple of Aesculapius, is there cured, and afterward rewards the just and reduces the unjust to the penury they deserve.

Blepsidemus

Blepsidemus (blehp-SIH-deh-muhs), a friend who helps Chremylus to convince Plutus of his rightful place in the order of things.

Poverty

Poverty, who protests that a great injustice has been done her through the rehabilitation of Plutus, as she will be banished from the land. She argues that she is the source of the public weal: Through her, artisans work, men stay fit, and politicians remain uncorrupted. Chremylus rejects her arguments because he knows the horrors that poverty can bring.

A Just Man

A Just Man, who brings his outworn clothes, evidence of his former wretchedness, to dedicate to Plutus.

An Informer

An Informer, who accuses Chremylus of stealing his money. He is driven off by Chremylus and the Just Man.

An Old Woman

An Old Woman, who protests that her young lover, who no longer needs her bounty, has deserted her. When she joins the celebration of the god’s installation, however, Chremylus promises that her lover will be restored to her.

A Youth

A Youth, formerly the Old Woman’s lover.

Hermes

Hermes (HUR-meez), a messenger of the gods. He complains that neither he nor the other gods are receiving sacrifices because men now realize that before Plutus’ ascendancy the Olympians had governed poorly. He applies for a place in Chremylus’ new establishment and is put to work by Cario washing the entrails of the sacrificial victims.

A Priest of Zeus

A Priest of Zeus, who also comes to seek service with Plutus, now Lord of the Universe.

Last Updated on May 6, 2015, by eNotes Editorial. Word Count: 186