Summary
Act Two, Scene One
Adriana and Luciana enter and begin to discuss the fact that Antipholus of Ephesus has not yet returned home. Adriana is upset that her husband has so much liberty to do as he pleases, while she waits around for him. She then advises her sister Luciana to marry so that Luciana will have more power, rather than being a servant to her.
Dromio of Ephesus arrives and tells Adriana about his strange encounter with Antipholus. He recounts his conversation in a humorous manner, and then indicates that he was beaten. Adriana orders him to return and fetch his master. When Dromio protests that he will only be beaten again, Adriana starts to beat him until he leaves.
Adriana complains to her sister that she is abandoned by her husband, and that she desperately misses his love. She is convinced that Antipholus is seeing another woman, which explains his absence, and that she is no longer beautiful enough for him.
Act Two, Scene Two
Antipholus of Syracuse is waiting for Dromio of Syracuse, who soon shows up. Antipholus yells at him for playing such a mean joke on his master, and demands that he stop jesting with him. Dromio, knowing nothing of his master's encounter with the other Dromio, thinks his master is teasing him until Antipholus starts to beat him.
Dromio demands to know the reason for the beating, but is only more confused at his master's explanation. The two men then entertain themselves discussing balding men and hair loss in a jestful manner.
Adriana and Luciana arrive on stage, and Adriana mistakes Antipholus of Syracuse for her husband. She complains that he has been cheating on her, and asks him why he did not return with Dromio before. Dromio denies having ever seen her before, but Antipholus does not believe him given his previous encounter with Dromio of Ephesus. Adriana orders Dromio to guard the door, while she and Antipholus enter the house and eat dinner together.
Analysis
As the plot develops, the play introduces the theme of gender through the characters or Adriana and Luciana. Adriana is a portrayed as a complex character, as she is vocal about her disappointment with her husband but riddled with self-doubt regarding his potential infidelity. When Luciana criticizes Adriana for not being a dutiful and submissive wife, Adriana retorts that Luciana will think differently when she herself is married. This debate between the sisters highlights two different perspectives on marriage. Luciana, who is not yet married, evinces a traditional and in her eyes ideal version of what marriage should look like: a submissive wife who acts as a servant to her husband. Adriana, by contrast, approaches marriage from the perspective of experience, understanding that social expectations for wives are largely unrealistic. Through the sisters' debate, the play highlights how different perspectives of gender, love, and marriage influence characters' behavior and help complicate the already-complex plot (if, for example, Adriana sat idly by while she suspected her husband of infidelity, the issue of mistaken identity would be irrelevant).
This portion of the play also delves into the relationship between the Dromios and the Antipholus twins, portraying a unique bond between servant and master that has continued to puzzle critics of the play. The Dromio twins are servants to the Antipholus twins (sometimes referred to as slaves) who sustain a number of beatings at the hands of their masters. However, the servant and master (in both relationships – Ephesus and Syracuse alike) are also portrayed as companions, friends, and brothers in their own form. This notion is compounded by the fact that, in Act One, Egeon explains that he and his wife secured their family to the mast of the ship based on birth order and not blood (i.e., the Antipholus twins were each paired with a Dromio twin, rather than secured with their own brother). The play consistently toys with the concept of brotherhood, showcasing how Dromio and Antipholus are closer in bond than either Dromio or Antipholus twin pairing. Though the play indulges physical comedy through the unkind beatings lodged at the Dromio servants, it also uses the Dromio/Antipholus relationships to interrogate traditional family structure and offer an alternative.
