• Latin and Greek philology, literature, and textual criticism, more Latin than Greek, especially Roman comedy and Neoteric and Augustan poetry.

Forthcoming 2012. The Oxford Handbook of Greek and Roman Comedy. Co-edited with Adele Scafuro.  Oxford University Press.

Forthcoming 2012. Joannes Burmeister:  Aulularia Inversa and Fragments of Mater-Virgo. Edited, translated, and introduced by M.F.

Forthcoming 2011/12. ‘Dynamics of Appropriation in Roman Comedy:  Menander’s Kolax in Three Roman Receptions (Naevius, Plautus, and Terence’s Eunuchus),’ in an edited volume on Ancient Comedy and Reception.

Forthcoming 2011. ‘Tale padre, tale figlia?  alcune ambiguità nel Persa,’ in R. Raffaelli, A. Tontini, eds., Lecturae Plautinae Sarsinates XIV:  Persa.  Urbino and Sarsina.

Forthcoming 2011. ‘The Reception of Greek Comedy in Rome,’ in M. Revermann, ed., The Cambridge Companion to Greek Comedy. Cambridge.

2011. Review of A. Sharrock, Reading Roman Comedy. Poetics and Playfulness in Plautus and Terence. Classical Journal 106, 113-117 (also published as CJ Online 2010.06.01)

2010. Funny Words in Plautine Comedy. Oxford University Press.

• This monograph (about 350 pages) discusses puns and double entendre in Plautus, arguing that some of the comedian's best jokes have gone undetected; it also argues that nine characters' names are incorrect in modern vulgate texts, and that numerous ambiguous words are wrongly analyzed.

2010.  Review of M. J. Pernerstorfer, ed., Menanders Kolax: Ein Beitrag zu Rekonstruktion und Interpretation der Komödie. Mit Edition und Übersetzung der Fragmente und Testimonien sowie einem dramaturgischen Kommentar.  Classical Review 60, 379-380

2010.  Review of G. Clementi, La filologia plautina negli Adversaria di Adrien Turnèbe.  Bryn Mawr Classical Review (= BMCR) 2010.02.62

2009.  Review of J. Dellaneva and B. Duvick (eds.), Ciceronian Controversies. BMCR 2009.10.58

2008. “The Lesbia Code: Backmasking, Pillow Talk, and Cacemphaton in Catullus 5 and 16,” Quaderni Urbinati di Cultura Classica 89, 55-69.

• If you translate and reverse vivamus mea Lesbia in Greek, the entire poem implies fellatio, not just kissing; poem 16 is a response to two readers who have manipulated the text like this.

2008.  “Plautus, Truculentus 78,” Mnemosyne 61, 298-299.Emend the verse to read omni ex pectore (vulgate omne)

2007.  “Parasitus Colax (Terence, Eunuchus 30),” Mnemosyne 60, 483-489.

• Colax in this phrase should be viewed as a Latin adjective from colere (like aud-ax pertin-ax etc.) rather than the transliterated Greek word kolax “flatterer;” suprasegmental differences between the Greek and Latin words point the pun.

2007.  “Freudian Slips in Plautus,” AJP 128.2, 209-237

• Freud’s remarks in the Psychopathology throw light on farcical scenes in Rudens and Trinummus.

2006.  “Troy Destroyed (Plautus, Bacchides 973-4 and 1053),” CP 101, 280-286

• Plautus mocks Greek inability to articulate Latin f to pun on filios “sons” and philippos “gold coins”.  In 1053 read scandunt “are climbing” (MSS and vulgate scindunt)

2006.  “Sicilicissitat (Plautus, Men. 12) and Early Geminate Writing in Latin,” Mnemosyne 59, 95-110

• The word combines Greek sikelizein “to affect a Sicilian atmosphere” and the Latin word sicilicus (an archaic diacritical mark indicating gemination of consonants), implying that the plot of the play “is double” or “counts twice”.  The allusion to the sicilicus allows us to retrodate the use of sicilici to the era before Ennius' arrival in Rome in 204 BC.

• N.B. addenda/corrigenda:  (i) On. p. 97 for “Taubmann’s 1605 commentary” read “Taubmann’s 1612 commentary” (I foolishly confused his first and second edition); (ii) ibid., “Siberus” is Adam Siber, author of an important German-Latin dictionary. (iii) I omitted a note indicating that anteloquium is an old suggestion and therefore imply that the emendation is entirely my idea; that is wrong.

2005.  “Unum Somnum (Plautus, Amphitruo 697):  a Lost Example of Code-Switching?” RhM 148, 404-6

• Unum is a corruption or hypercorrected transliteration of the Greek word oinon “wine”; Sosia scurrilously insinuates that Alcumena has been drinking.

2004.  “Agnus kouriôn (Plautus, Aulularia 561-4),” CP 99, 147-53

• A bilingual riddle joke is elucidated by adopting the text of Nonius.

2004.  “Propertius 3.4, 1.1, and the Aeneid Incipit,” CQ n.s. 54, 649-50

• An ephemeral response to a suggestion that Propertius mysteriously implies that the ille ego qui lines of the start of the Aeneid are spurious.

2003.  “A Lacuna in Plautus’ Menaechmi V.2,” Mnemosyne 56, 72-4

• As the title implies.

(For copies of published work since 2003, preprints of forthcoming papers, abstracts of conference talks, and book reviews, see http://cornell.academia.edu/MichaelFontaine/Papers)

• Latin Literature

On Leave Spring 2013

Fall 2012
Roman Comedy: Plautus (LATIN 3207)

Spring 2012
Graduate Seminar in Latin: Sallust's Bellum Catilinae (LATIN 7272)

Fall 2011
Paranoia and Conspiracy (CLASS 2632/COML 2632)
Survey of Latin Literature (LATIN 4203)

Spring 2010
Graduate Seminar in Latin: Lucretius (CLASS 7272)

Fall 2009
Roman Poetry (LATIN 3203)
Advanced Readings in Latin Literature (LATIN 4201)

Spring 2009
Paranoia and Conspiracy (CLASS 2632)
Advanced Readings in Latin Literature (LATIN 4202)

Fall 2008
Greek Prose (GREEK 2101)
Survey of Latin Literature (LATIN 4203)