written several years later. It is unfinished, not having received the
author's final revision, and was probably published soon after his
death, certainly several years before Ovid's _Ars Amatoria_ (cf.
_A.A._ 535 _sqq._).
Book iii. (six Elegies) is professedly the work of Lygdamus. No poet
of that name is mentioned in ancient literature, and it has been
suggested that the author may have been a young relative of Tibullus
who used a Greek adaptation of the gentile name Albius (+lygdos+
= white marble). He speaks as a man of good social position
(iii. 2, 22). From the fact that he belonged to the circle of
Messalla, his poems came to be added to those of Tibullus, whom he
constantly imitates. There are also many reminiscences of Horace,
Ovid, and Propertius. The six Elegies are addressed to Neaera, who was
probably the poet's cousin and was married or betrothed to him (iii.
1, 23; 2, 12). Lygdamus was born in the same year as Ovid, B.C. 43;
iii. 5, 17,
'Natalem primo nostrum videre parentes,
cum cecidit fato consul uterque pari.'
The remarkable coincidence between iii. 5, 15-20, and Ovid, _A.A._ ii.
669-70, _Tr._ iv. 10, 6, _Amor._ ii. 14, 23-4, is best explained by
Hiller (_Hermes_, xviii. 360-1), who suggests that Lygdamus may have
composed the poem in his earlier years merely to amuse Neaera, without
publishing it, and that after Ovid's works had appeared he may, to
oblige a friend or patron (_e.g._ Messalinus), have published his
collection of elegies, adding in the process of revision the lines
copied from Ovid.
The remaining poems belong to Book iii. in the MSS., but in most
editions are printed as a separate Book iv. iv. 1, in hexameters, is
the _Panegyricus Messallae_, written in honour of Messalla's
consulship, B.C. 31. Its rhetorical exaggeration and want of taste
forbid its being attributed to Tibullus, written, as it was, so
shortly before he reached the summit of his powers. Its date puts
Lygdamus out of question: doubtless it is by some young member of
Messalla's circle.
The rest of the Book has for its theme the love of Sulpicia, the
daughter of Servius Sulpicius and Valeria, the sister of Messalla, for
a young Greek named Cerinthus. _El._ 2-6 are apparently by Tibullus
himself, who may have amused himself by turning into verse the letters
of the young lovers. _El._ 7 is of disputed authorship; but it
resembles the work of Sulpicia rather than that of Tibullus. _El._
8-12 are by Sulpicia to Cerinthus. _El._ 13 purports to be by
Tibullus. _El._ 14 is an epigram, of doubtful authorship.
Two _Priapea_ are found in MSS. of Tibullus, but probably neither of
them is by him.
PROPERTIUS.
(1) LIFE.
The name by which the poet designates himself is Propertius simply;
the praenomen Sextus rests on the authority of Donatus. The additions
in some MSS., 'Aurelius' and 'Nauta,' are clearly erroneous.
He was certainly a native of the district of Umbria, and probably of
the town of Asisium (the modern Assisi). Cf. iv. 1, 121,
'Umbria te notis antiqua penatibus edit,
(mentior? an patriae tangitur ora tuae?)
qua nebulosa cavo rorat Mevania campo,
et lacus aestivis intepet Umber aquis,
scandentisque Asisi consurgit vertice murus,
murus ab ingenio notior ille tuo.'
'Asisi' in l. 125 is Lachmann's emendation for 'Asis' of the MSS., and
is rendered almost certain by the topography of the district. Asisium
agrees better than Hispellum (the modern Spello) with the description
in the passage quoted; with iv. 1, 65,
'Scandentes quisquis cernet de vallibus arces,
ingenio muros aestimet ille meo';
and with the epithet 'proxima' in i. 22, 9, as Asisium is nearer than
Hispellum to Perusia. Cf. i. 22, 3-10,
'Si Perusina tibi patriae sunt nota sepulcra,
Italiae duris funera temporibus, ...
proxima supposito contingens Umbria campo
me genuit terris fertilis uberibus.'
At Assisi, moreover, have been found several inscriptions of the
Propertii, one of which, C. PASSENNO | C. F. SERG. |, PAULLO |
PROPERTIO | BLAESO,[66] probably refers to the Passennus Paullus
mentioned by Pliny, _Ep._ vi. 15, as 'municeps Propertii.'
Propertius was younger than Tibullus, and older than Ovid. His birth,
therefore, took place between B.C. 54 and 43 (Hertzberg gives 46,
Postgate prefers 50). Cf. Ovid, _Tr._ iv. 10, 53,
'Successor fuit hic [Tibullus] tibi, Galle; Propertius illi;
quartus ab his serie temporis ipse fui.'
He came of a family well known in the neighbourhood (cf. iv. 1, 121,
'notis penatibus,' already quoted), but not 'noble' in the technical
sense; ii. 34, 55,
'Aspice me, cui parva domi fortuna relictast,
nullus et antiquo Marte triumphus avi.'
His childhood was clouded by the early death of his father, and by the
confiscation of his estate in B.C. 41; iv. 1, 127,
'Ossaque legisti non illa aetate legenda
patris; et in tenues cogeris ipse lares,
nam tua cum multi versarent rura iuvenci,
abstulit excultas pertica tristis opes.'
His mother then took him to Rome, where he studied law for a short
time after assuming the _toga virilis_, but abandoned it in favour of
poetry; iv. 1, 131,
'Mox ubi bulla rudi demissast aurea collo,
matris et ante deos libera sumpta toga,
tum tibi pauca suo de carmine dictat Apollo
et vetat insano verba tonare foro.'
Meanwhile he was engaged in his first love affair with Lycinna, who is
otherwise unknown (iii. 15, 3 _sqq._). In B.C. 29 or 28 his
acquaintance with Cynthia began. Her real name was Hostia (Apuleius,
_Apol._ 10, 'Accusent ... Propertium, qui Cynthiam dicat, Hostiam
dissimulet'), and she was possibly a grand-daughter of the poet
Hostius (p. 65). Cf. iii. 20, 8,
'Splendidaque a docto fama refulget avo.'
A courtesan of the higher class, she is represented by Propertius as
possessed of great personal charms and varied accomplishments (i. 2,
30, 'Omnia quaeque Venus quaeque Minerva probat'), combined with many
faults of temper and character. She had a house at Rome in the Subura,
and we hear of her also at Tibur, where she was buried (iv. 7, 15;
85). She was considerably older than Propertius; ii. 18, 19,
'At tu etiam iuvenem odisti me, perfida, cum sis
ipsa anus haud longa curva futura die.'
At the end of two years the unfaithfulness of Propertius led to twelve
months of estrangement; iii. 16, 9,
'Peccaram semel, et totum sum pulsus in annum.'
Cynthia was reconciled to him about the beginning of B.C. 25; but the
passion on both sides gradually cooled until, in 23, Propertius
harshly cast her off (iii. 24 and 25). Possibly there was a second
reconciliation before her death (iv. 7). The five years of bondage
(iii. 25, 3, 'Quinque tibi potui servire fideliter annos,') will thus
be B.C. 28, 27, 25-23.
Propertius lived chiefly at Rome; but i. 18 was written near the
Clitumnus, and in ii. 19 he promises to join Cynthia in that region.
In iii. 21 he contemplates a voyage to Athens; l. 1,
'Magnum iter ad doctas proficisci cogor Athenas,
ut me longa gravi solvat amore via.'
A few years earlier he had refused to accompany his friend Tullus to
Athens and Asia (i. 6).
Nothing is known of the subsequent life of Propertius, but from two
passages in the younger Pliny it is natural to infer that he married,
in obedience to the _Lex Iulia_ of B.C. 18, and had issue. Pliny,
_Ep._ vi. 15, 'Passennus Paullus ... inter maiores suos Propertium
numerat'; ix. 22, 'Propertium ... a quo genus ducit.'
We cannot tell even when he died. He must have been alive in B.C. 16,
because iv. 6 was written for the _ludi quinquennales_, which were
held for the first time in that year; and iv. 11. 65, is an allusion
to the consulship of P. Cornelius Scipio, also in B.C. 16.
In personal appearance Propertius was pale and thin, and rather fond
of dress; i. 5, 21,
'Nec iam pallorem totiens mirabere nostrum,
aut cur sim toto corpore nullus ego';
ii. 4, 5,
'Nequiquam perfusa meis unguenta capillis,
ibat et expenso planta morata gradu.'
He had been introduced to Maecenas after the publication of his first
Book, but naturally was not on such intimate terms with him as older
men like Virgil and Horace were. ii. 1 and iii. 9 are addressed to
Maecenas. In the first of these poems Propertius declares that he is
unequal to the composition of an epic, which his patron had urged upon
him, but adds (l. 17)
'Quod mihi si tantum, Maecenas, fata dedissent
ut possem heroas ducere in arma manus, ...
bellaque resque tui memorarem Caesaris, et tu
Caesare sub magno cura secunda fores.'
For poems referring to Augustus cf. ii. 10, iv. 6 (on Actium), iii. 18
(on the death of Marcellus).
Horace and Propertius do not mention each other by name. Chronology
forbids the identification of the bore in Hor. _Sat._ i. 9 with
Propertius, who, on the same ground, cannot be meant in _Sat._ i. 10,
18,
'Neque simius iste,
nil praeter Calvum et doctus cantare Catullum.'
But Hor. _Ep._ ii. 2, 87-101, is undoubtedly aimed at Propertius. Cf.
especially l. 99,
'Discedo Alcaeus puncto illius; ille meo quis?
quis nisi Callimachus? Si plus adposcere visus,
fit Mimnermus et optivo cognomine crescit.'
Though both poets belonged to the same literary circle, they differed
widely in temperament as well as in age. With Tibullus, who was a
member of Messalla's circle, Propertius may have had no personal
acquaintance; at all events, neither alludes to the other.
For Virgil Propertius expresses warm admiration in ii. 34, written
during the composition of the _Aeneid_. Ovid, who calls him 'blandus'
(_Tr._ ii. 465) and 'tener' (_A.A._ iii. 333), was an intimate friend
of his; cf. _Tr._ iv. 10, 45 (quoted p. 206). The minor poets to whom
he writes are Ponticus (i. 7 and 9), Bassus (i. 4), and a tragic poet,
Lynceus (a pseudonym, ii. 34, 25).
(2) WORKS.
The extant Elegies, divided in the MSS. into four Books, are probably
all that Propertius ever wrote. On account of the disproportionate
length of Book ii., and the number 'tres' (which, however, may be said
in anticipation) in ii. 13, 25,
'Sat mea sat magna est si tres sint pompa libelli,
quos ego Persephonae maxima dona feram,'
some editors make Book ii. consist only of _El._ 1-9, and assign the
remainder (10-34) to a new Book iii. Books iii. and iv. of the MSS.
then become iv. and v. respectively. In the most recent editions,
however, the MSS. arrangement is retained, and it is here followed.
_Book_ i.--All the Elegies in Book i., except the last two, are
amatory. _El._ 2-10 belong to the first months of the poet's love,
when Cynthia was gracious, though capricious. She had refused to
accompany a rival of his, who was going to Illyricum as praetor (_El._
8); but afterwards she left Rome for Baiae, and the rest of the Book
is full of complaints of her harshness. _El._ 1, written after the
year of separation, introduces the whole Book in a melancholy strain.
The clearest indication of date in Book i. is 8, 21, 'Nam me non ullae
poterunt corrumpere taedae,' where Propertius protests that he will
never marry, in spite of the _Lex Iulia_ of B.C. 27. (He could not
legally marry a woman of Cynthia's class.) The Book was published
probably in B.C. 25, under the title of 'Cynthia.' Cf. ii. 24, 1,
'Cum sis iam noto fabula libro
et tua sit toto Cynthia lecta foro.'
Her name was a recommendation for the Book, and it was probably her
satisfaction at the fame which it brought her that caused her to
relent towards Propertius. Cf. Mart. xiv. 189,
'Cynthia, facundi carmen iuvenile Properti,
accepit famam, nec minus ipsa dedit.'
At all events, a few months afterwards we find the old relations
re-established; ii. 3, 3,
'Vix unum potes, infelix, requiescere mensem,
et turpis de te iam liber alter erit.'
_Book_ ii.--Cynthia is the theme of nearly all the thirty-four poems
of Book ii., which give lively expression to her lover's varying
moods. Only three Elegies (1, 10, and 31) are given to other subjects.
Of the few poems to which dates can be assigned, the earliest is _El._
31 (on the dedication of the temple of the Palatine Apollo, B.C. 28),
and the latest is _El._ 10, to Augustus (written shortly before the
invasion of Arabia by Aelius Gallus in B.C. 24. Cf. l. 16, 'et domus
intactae te tremit Arabiae'). The Book was therefore published B.C. 24
at the earliest.
_Book_ iii.--In this Book the poems on Cynthia form a far smaller
proportion; 7, 12, and 22 show the warmth of the poet's friendship;
events of national interest are treated in 4, 11, and 18. In 5, 23-47,
Propertius looks forward to spending his later years in the study of
natural science ('naturae perdiscere mores,' l. 25).
There are few hints of the date of any of the poems in iii. _El._ 20
is apparently as early as B.C. 28; 18 certainly belongs to B.C. 23; 4
perhaps refers to the expedition against the Parthians planned in B.C.
22. The last-mentioned year is the earliest possible date of
publication.
_Book_ iv., in which there is no principle of arrangement, probably
appeared after the author's death. His archaeological tastes come out
in four Elegies written, in imitation of the +Aitia+ of
Callimachus, on Roman antiquities--_El._ 2 on Vertumnus, 4 on Tarpeia,
9 on Cacus, 10 on Jupiter Feretrius. In this way Propertius fulfilled
his promise to Maecenas, iii. 9, 49,
'Celsaque Romanis decerpta Palatia tauris
ordiar et caeso moenia firma Remo,
eductosque pares silvestri ex ubere reges,
crescet et ingenium sub tua iussa meum.'
_El._ 7 and 8 relate to Cynthia; in 7 her ghost appears to the poet.
_El._ 3, a letter from Arethusa to Lycotas, possibly suggested to Ovid
the plan of his _Heroides_, just as the antiquarian poems already
mentioned may have suggested the _Fasti_. The Book ends with a lament
for Cornelia, daughter of Scribonia, Augustus' first wife (_El._ 11).
The date of 6 and 11 is certainly not earlier than B.C. 16, while 8
seems to have been written before the rupture with Cynthia. The
antiquarian poems are considered by some to have been among
Propertius' earliest efforts.
Propertius was familiar with the whole range of Greek poetry--Homer
(iii. 1, 25-34), Mimnermus (i. 9, 11), Pindar (iii. 17, 40), the
dramatists, Theocritus, and Apollonius Rhodius. As his models he names
especially the Alexandrians Callimachus and Philetas, whom he claims
to follow more closely than any of his predecessors; iii. 1, 1,
'Callimachi Manes et Coi sacra Philetae,
in vestrum, quaeso, me sinite ire nemus.
Primus ego ingredior puro de fonte sacerdos
Itala per Graios orgia ferre choros.'
Cf. iv. 1, 64,
'Umbria Romani patria Callimachi.'
In wealth of mythological illustration Propertius is peculiarly
Alexandrian. He is continually drawing parallels and contrasts from
Greek legend; _e.g._ i. 15, Cynthia how unlike Calypso! iii. 12, Aelia
Galla a modern Penelope. Of Roman poets, he names as his predecessors
in amatory verse Virgil, Varro Atacinus, Catullus, Calvus, and
Cornelius Gallus (ii 34, 61-92). Once he dreams of writing an epic on
the Alban kings in the vein of Ennius; iii. 3, 5,
'Parvaque tam magnis admoram fontibus ora,
unde pater sitiens Ennius ante bibit.'
In Propertius love of social pleasures appears side by side with a
strain of deep melancholy _e.g._ in. 5, 21,
Me iuvat et multo mentem vincire Lyaeo
et caput in verna semper habere rosa,
contrasted with the numerous passages where he is thinking of the
grave, _e.g._ ii. 1, 71,
'Quandocumque igitur vitam mea fata reposcent,
et breve in exiguo marmore nomen ero.'
There is no greater patriot than Propertius. Cf. the denunciation of
Cleopatra (iii. 11) and the frequency of the epithet 'Romanus.'
OVID.
(1) LIFE.
Ovid's own writings (especially _Tr._ iv. 10) supply nearly all the
information we possess regarding his life. The biographies in the MSS.
are valueless.
P. Ovidius Naso was his full name, in which the MSS. agree. He speaks
of himself as Naso simply, and Statius and Martial refer to him by
that name; Tacitus and the two Senecas use the _nomen_ Ovidius.
He was born in Sulmo, one of the three divisions of the Paelignian
country, B.C. 43--the year in which Hirtius and Pansa fell at Mutina.
_Tr._ iv. 10, 3,
'Sulmo mihi patria est, gelidis uberrimus undis,
milia qui novies distat ab urbe decem.
Editus hic ego sum; nec non ut tempora noris,
cum cecidit fato consul uterque pari.'
His birthday was 20th March--the second day of the festival of the
Quinquatria (cf. _Fast._ iii. 809-814), l. 13,
'Haec est armiferae festis de quinque Minervae,
quae fieri pugna prima cruenta solet.'
He belonged to an equestrian family, and he frequently contrasts
himself with those who had reached that dignity by military service or
by possessing the requisite fortune; _ibid._ l. 7,
'Si quid id est, usque a proavis vetus ordinis heres,
non sum fortunae munere factus eques.'
Cf. _Am._ i. 3, 7; iii. 8, 9; iii. 15, 5; _Pont._ iv. 8, 17.
Along with his elder brother, he received a careful education at Rome,
and studied also at Athens. He practised rhetoric under Arellius
Fuscus and Porcius Latro. _Tr._ iv. 10, 15,
'Protinus excolimur teneri, curaque parentis
imus ad insignes urbis ab arte viros.'
_Tr._ i. 2, 77,
'Non peto quas quondam petii studiosus Athenas.'
Sen. _Contr._ ii. 10, 8, 'Hanc controversiam memini ab Ovidio Nasone
declamari apud rhetorem Arellium Fuscum, cuius auditor fuit, nam
Latronis admirator erat, cum diversum sequeretur dicendi genus.'
Seneca says that _Met._ xiii. 121, and _Am._ i. 2, 11, were borrowed
from Latro.
But, in spite of his father's remonstrances, Ovid preferred poetry to
public life. _Tr._ iv. 10, 19,
'At mihi iam parvo caelestia sacra placebant,
inque suum furtim Musa trahebat opus.
Saepe pater dixit, "studium quid inutile temptas?
Maeonides nullas ipse reliquit opes."
Motus eram dictis totoque Helicone relicto
scribere conabar verba soluta modis:
sponte sua carmen numeros veniebat ad aptos;
quicquid temptabam dicere, versus erat.'
In due time he assumed the _toga virilis_, and with it the broad
purple stripe worn by prospective senators. He also held two of the
minor offices of the _vigintiviratus_, the preliminary to a senatorial
career, being (1) triumvir capitalis or else triumvir monetalis, (2)
decemvir stlitibus iudicandis. _Tr._ iv. 10, 28,
'Liberior fratri sumpta mihique toga est,
induiturque umeris cum lato purpura clavo';
l. 33,
'Cepimus et tenerae primos aetatis honores,
deque viris quondam pars tribus una fui.'
_Fast._ iv. 384,
'Inter bis quinos usus honore viros.'
In virtue of this second office he sat in the centumviral court;[67]
and he also acted as an arbitrator. _Tr._ ii. 93,
'Nec male commissa est nobis fortuna reorum
lisque decem deciens inspicienda viris.
Res quoque privatas statui sine crimine iudex.'
He sought no higher office, having neither strength nor inclination
for the Senate; he assumed the narrow stripe of the _eques_, and
devoted himself to poetry and pleasure. _Tr._ iv. 10, 35,
'Curia restabat: clavi mensura coacta est:
maius erat nostris viribus illud onus.
Nec patiens corpus, nec mens fuit apta labori,
sollicitaeque fugax ambitionis eram.
Et petere Aoniae suadebant tuta sorores
otia, iudicio semper amata meo.'
He made a tour in Asia (including Troy) and Sicily in the company of
the poet Pompeius Macer: the date of this journey is unknown, but he
was almost a year in Sicily. _Pont._ ii. 10, 21-29 (to Macer),
'Te duce magnificas Asiae perspeximus urbes,
Trinacris est oculis te duce nota meis, ...
Hic mihi labentis pars anni magna peracta est.'
_Fast._ vi. 423,
'Cura videre fuit: vidi templumque locumque,'
(of the temple of Pallas at Troy).
Towards the end of A.D. 8, Ovid was banished by imperial edict to
Tomi, on the Black Sea, near the mouth of the Danube, the cause
alleged being the publication of the _Ars Amatoria_. Ovid mentions
this edict, but also hints at another reason, connected with the
imperial family. _Tr._ ii. 207,
'Perdiderint cum me duo crimina, carmen et error,
alterius facti culpa silenda mihi;
nam non sum tanti renovem ut tua vulnera, Caesar,
quem nimio plus est indoluisse semel.
Altera pars superest, qua turpi carmine factus
arguor obscaeni doctor adulterii.'
He was guilty of no crime of his own, but was banished for witnessing
the crime of another. Cf. _Tr._ iii. 5, 49,
'Inscia quod crimen viderunt lumina, plector,
peccatumque oculos est habuisse meum.'
It is probable that the real reason[68] of Ovid's banishment was that
he was privy to a guilty intrigue between D. Silanus and Julia, the
grand-daughter of Augustus. Julia was banished in A.D. 9, and Tacitus
(_Ann._ iii. 24) tells us of the intrigue, for which Silanus (like
Ovid) suffered _relegatio_. His knowledge of the offence was betrayed
by friends and domestics. Cf. _Tr._ iv. 10, 101,
'Quid referam comitumque nefas famulosque nocentes?'
The date of his banishment is given _Tr._ iv. 10, 95,
'Postque meos ortus Pisaea vinctus oliva
abstulerat decies praemia victor equus,
cum maris Euxini positos ad laeva Tomitas
quaerere me laesi principis ira iubet.'
[Here an Olympiad is reckoned as five years.] His punishment was
_relegatio_, involving banishment to a fixed spot, but not
confiscation of property; _Tr._ ii. 135,
'Adde quod edictum, quamvis immite minaxque,
attamen in poenae nomine lene fuit;
quippe relegatus, non exul, dicor in illo,
privaque fortunae sunt ibi verba meae.'
In Tomi he spent the remaining years of his life, far from friends and
books; _Tr._ v. 12, 53,
'Non liber hic ullus, non qui mihi commodet aurem,
verbaque significent quid mea norit, adest';
suffering from illness (_Tr._ iii. 3) and the climate, and fighting
against the barbarians; _Tr._ iv. 1, 71,
'Aspera militiae iuvenis certamina fugi,
nec nisi lusura movimus arma manu:
nunc senior gladioque latus scutoque sinistram,
canitiem galeae subicioque meam.'
On the other hand he learned the language of the people, and actually
wrote poems in it; _Tr._ v. 12, 57,
'Ipse mihi videor iam dedidicisse Latine:
nam didici Getice Sarmaticeque loqui.'
_Pont._ iv. 13, 19,
'A! pudet, et Getico scripsi sermone libellum,
structaque sunt nostris barbara verba modis,
et placui--gratare mihi--coepique poetae
inter inhumanos nomen habere Getas!
materiam quaeris? laudes de Caesare dixi.'
For his popularity with the natives cf. _Pont._ iv. 14, 53,
'Solus adhuc ego sum vestris immunis in oris,
exceptis si qui munera legis habent.
Tempora sacrata mea sunt velata corona,
publicus invito quam favor imposuit';
also _Pont._ iv. 9, 101.
Ovid's death took place in A.D. 18: Jerome yr. Abr. 2033, 'Ovidius
poeta in exilio diem obiit et iuxta oppidum Tomos sepelitur.' He was
thrice married; _Tr._ iv. 10, 69,
'Paene mihi puero nec digna nec utilis uxor
est data, quae tempus per breve nupta fuit;
illi successit quamvis sine crimine coniunx,
non tamen in nostro firma futura toro;
ultima, quae mecum seros permansit in annos,
sustinuit coniunx exulis esse viri.'
His third wife belonged to the _gens Fabia_. Cf. _Pont._ i. 2, 138 (to
Fabius Maximus),
'Ille ego, de vestra cui data nupta domo est.'
The _filia_ mentioned _Tr._ iv. 10, 75, may have been either a
daughter or step-daughter of Ovid's. Some think that she is the
Perilla of _Tr._ iii. 7.
Ovid's social position was of the highest, as may be inferred from his
relations with the palace. He was intimate with Messalla, the patron
of Tibullus, and wrote an elegy on him (now lost). Cf. _Pont._ i. 7,
27 (to Messalinus),
'Nec tuus est genitor nos infitiatus amicos,
hortator studii causaque faxque mei:
cui nos et lacrimas, supremum in funere munus,
et dedimus medio scripta canenda foro.'
Among the friends to whom the _Epp. ex Ponto_ are written may be
mentioned Albinovanus, Carus, Rufus, Severus, Fabius Maximus Cotta,
Tuticanus, the younger Macer, all poets; and other literary men of
distinction, _e.g._ Graecinus, Atticus, Brutus, Sex. Pompeius, Gallio.
For his intimacy with the learned Hyginus cf. Sueton. _Gramm._ 20,
'fuit familiarissimus Ovidio poetae.'
He was old enough to have seen Virgil, and hear Aemilius Macer and
Horace recite; with Propertius, Tibullus, Ponticus, and Bassus he was
on terms of close intimacy (_Am._ iii. 9 is a lament for Tibullus),
_Tr._ iv. 10, 41-52,
'Temporis illius colui fovique poetas,
quotque aderant vates, rebar adesse deos.
Saepe suas volucres legit mihi grandior aevo,
quaeque necet serpens, quae iuvet herba, Macer.
Saepe suos solitus recitare Propertius ignes,
iure sodalicii qui mihi iunctus erat.
Ponticus heroo, Bassus quoque clarus iambis
dulcia convictus membra fuere mei.
Detinuit nostras numerosus Horatius aures,
dum ferit Ausonia carmina culta lyra.
Vergilium vidi tantum; nec amara Tibullo
tempus amicitiae fata dedere meae.'
Besides the _rura paterna_ at Sulmo, Ovid possessed an estate on the
_via Clodia_, near Rome; _Pont._ i. 8, 41,
'Non meus amissos animus desiderat agros
ruraque Paeligno conspicienda solo,
nec quos piniferis positos in collibus hortos
spectat Flaminiae Clodia iuncta viae.'
He cannot have been poor, in spite of his complaints, _e.g._ _Pont._ iv.
8, 32,
'Carpsit opes illa ruina meas.'
(2) WORKS.
1. _Amores_, at first in five Books, but in a second edition reduced
to three; cf. the motto prefixed to the Book,
'Qui modo Nasonis fueramus quinque libelli,
Tres sumus.'
The poems are nearly all on Corinna, a name which probably does not
stand for any real person, but merely for an abstraction around which
Ovid groups his own fancies. To suppose, as Sidonius Apollinaris did
(23, 157)[69] that Augustus' daughter Julia was meant, is absurd, for
Corinna is a _meretrix_. The identity of Corinna was unknown; _Am._
ii. 17, 28,
'Et multae per me nomen habere volunt.
Novi aliquam, quae se circumferat esse Corinnam';
and twenty years afterwards Ovid could write (_A.A._ iii. 538),
'Et multi, quae sit nostra Corinna, rogant.'
The _Amores_, in their original form, constituted Ovid's earliest
work, written in his youth. The extant poems are not all that he wrote
on Corinna; _Tr._ iv. 10, 57,
'Carmina cum primum populo iuvenilia legi,
barba resecta mihi bisve semelve fuit.
Moverat ingenium totam cantata per urbem
nomine non vero dicta Corinna mihi.
Multa quidem scripsi; sed quae vitiosa putavi,
emendaturis ignibus ipse dedi.'
The lament for Tibullus (iii. 9) must have been written in Ovid's
twenty-fourth year.
2. _Heroides_.--Some of these at least were written before the second
edition of the _Amores_, for in _Am._ ii. 18, 21-6 nine of them are
mentioned by name. The title _Heroides_ is due to the grammarian
Priscian; in the MSS. they are called _Epistulae_, and so Ovid himself
refers to them, _A.A._ iii. 345,
'Vel tibi composita cantetur epistula voce:
ignotum hoc aliis ille novavit opus.'
Of the twenty letters in our collection 1-14 are letters from heroines
to their lovers; 15-20 are in pairs, _e.g._ Paris to Helen and Helen
to Paris. The authenticity of these last six is doubted, partly
because the title _Heroides_ cannot apply to half of them, and also
because of their inferiority in style. In the use of the epistolary
form in love poetry Ovid had no predecessor, and he himself calls
attention to the novelty (_A.A._ above). The style shows the influence
of Ovid's rhetorical training: the Epistles are _suasoriae_ in verse,
and of _suasoriae_ we know that he was particularly fond (Sen.
_Contr._ ii. 10, 12, 'Declamabat Naso raro controversias et non nisi
ethicas: libentius dicebat suasorias. Molesta illi erat omnis
argumentatio.'). His matter he would naturally draw from Homer, the
_Cypria_, Apollonius Rhodius, and the Greek tragedians.
3. Between the two editions of the _Amores_ he wrote the lost tragedy
_Medea_. It was later than _Am._ iii. 1, where he pictures the Muses
of Elegy and Tragedy as contending for his homage, and he finally
decides (ll. 67-8),
'Exiguum vati concede, Tragoedia, tempus:
tu labor aeternus; quod petit illa breve est.'
On the other hand, it was earlier than _Am._ ii. 18, 13,
'Sceptra tamen sumpsi, curaque tragoedia nostra
crevit, et huic operi quamlibet aptus eram.'
The drama enjoyed a high reputation in antiquity. Cf. Quint. x. 1, 98,
'Ovidii Medea videtur mihi ostendere, quantum ille vir praestare
potuerit, si ingenio suo imperare quam indulgere maluisset.'
4. _Medicamina Faciei Femineae_, an incomplete poem of 100 lines,
giving directions for the toilet. Cf. _A.A._ iii. 205,
'Est mihi, quo dixi vestrae medicamina formae,
parvus, sed cura grande, libellus, opus.'
5. _Ars Amatoria_, a didactic poem in three Books, on the art of
love-intrigue. The title given by the MSS. is doubtless correct: Ovid
himself speaks of 'ars amandi,' or simply 'ars' or 'artes.' It was
written about B.C. 2, from the allusion, i. 171, to the 'naumachia' in
that year,
'Quid, modo cum belli navalis imagine Caesar
Persidas induxit Cecropiasque rates?'
The _Ars_ must have been in view when he wrote _Am._ ii. 18, 19,
'Quod licet, aut artes teneri profitemur amoris--
ei mihi, praeceptis urgeor ipse meis!'
6. _Remedia Amoris_, written next, while professing to be a
recantation of the last-named work, exhibits, if possible, a more
immoral tone. Cf. l. 487,
'Quaeris, ubi invenias? artes, i, perlege nostras.'
7. Ovid now produced a work of greater compass, the _Metamorphoses_,
in fifteen Books of heroic verse. When it was composed is not known,
but he had the idea of it in his mind when he wrote _Am._ iii. 12,
21-40. At the time of his banishment the poem had been written, but
not revised. He committed his MS. to the flames, but copies were in
the hands of friends; _Tr._ i. 7, 13-16,
'Carmina mutatas hominum dicentia formas,
infelix domini quod fuga rupit opus.
Haec ego discedens, sicut bene multa meorum,
ipse mea posui maestus in igne manu.
Quae quoniam non sunt penitus sublata, sed extant, (l. 23)
pluribus exemplis scripta fuisse reor.
Ablatum mediis opus est incudibus illud, (l. 29)
defuit et scriptis ultima lima meis.'
The poem consists of a collection of stories of the transformation of
human beings into animals. Cf. i. 1,
'In nova fert animus mutatas dicere formas
corpora.'
The idea, title, and much of the subject-matter was borrowed from the
Alexandrians, _e.g._ the +Metamorphôseis+ of Parthenius, the
+Heteroioumena+ of Nicander.
8. In the _Fasti_, in six Books, Ovid furnishes a poetical calendar of
the Roman year. Each month has a Book allotted to it, and he speaks of
having written twelve Books; _Tr._ ii. 549,
'Sex ego Fastorum scripsi totidemque libellos,
cumque suo finem mense volumen habet.
Idque tuo nuper scriptum sub nomine, Caesar,
et tibi sacratum sors mea rupit opus.'
Probably the second six Books were never completed; but there are
references to portions of them, _e.g._ iii. 57,
'Vester honos veniet, cum Larentalia dicam;
acceptus Geniis illa December habet.'
The _Fasti_ had been written side by side with the _Metam._ and
interrupted at the sixth Book by Ovid's banishment. During his exile
he added some passages, but found that his Muse was fit only for
melancholy themes; iv. 81,
'Sulmonis gelidi--patriae, Germanice, nostrae--
me miserum, Scythico quam procul illa solo est!'
i. 540,
'Felix, exilium cui locus ille fuit!'
The design is stated at the outset, i. 1-8,
'Tempora cum causis Latium digesta per annum
lapsaque sub terras ortaque signa canam ...
Sacra recognosces annalibus eruta priscis,
et quo sit merito quaeque notata dies.'
The work is thus a medley of religion, history, and astrology, and in
its explanations of customs may be compared to the +Aitia+ of
Callimachus. For information about religious rites, and for
derivations of names (_e.g._ _Agnalia_, i. 317-332), he would have
recourse to Varro; for history, to Livy (cf. ii. 193-242, the story of
the Fabii, from Livy, ii. 49, and vi. 587, etc., the story of Tullia,
from Livy, i. 48); for astronomy, to Clodius Tuscus.
It was begun some time after Augustus regulated the Julian calendar in
B.C. 8, and was originally addressed to Augustus, as Ovid himself says
(_Tr._ ii. 552 above); 'Caesar' is addressed ii. 15, vi. 763, and
elsewhere. After the death of Augustus, Ovid began to remodel it and
dedicate it to Germanicus. Cf. i. 3,
'Excipe pacato, Caesar Germanice, voltu
hoc opus et timidae dirige navis iter.'
But the task was stopped by his death; and while Book i. has the
remodelled form, Books ii.-vi. remain as first written.
_Poems written in exile._--9. _Tristia_, five Books of letters to
Augustus, to Ovid's wife and friends (who, however, are not named),
praying for pardon or for a place of exile nearer Rome. Book i. was
written on the journey to Tomi, the other books not after A.D. 11 or
12, Cf. v. 10, 1,
'Ut sumus in Ponto, ter frigore constitit Hister.'
10. The _Ibis_ was written at the beginning of his exile. Cf. l. 1,
'Tempus ad hoc, lustris bis iam mihi quinque peractis.'
The title was taken from the poem in which Callimachus attacked
Apollonius Rhodius under the name of Ibis. Cf. l. 55,
'Nunc, quo Battiades inimicum devovet Ibin,
hoc ego devoveo teque tuosque modo.'
Ovid studiously conceals the identity of the enemy whom he attacks; l.
61,
'Et quoniam, qui sis, nondum quaerentibus edo,
Ibidis interea tu quoque nomen habe.'
He had once been a friend of the poet, but had proved false to him,
doubtless in connexion with the circumstances which caused his
banishment; cf. l. 85, 'capiti male fido,' l. 130, 'perfide.' He
persecuted Ovid's wife, and tried to get possession of his property.
The conjectures that the unknown was Messalla Corvinus or the poet
Manilius may be dismissed at once. Many hold that Hyginus is meant;
Prof. Ellis suggests the _delator_ Cassius Severus (Tac. _Ann._ iv.
21), or T. Labienus (Sen. _Contr._ x. praef. 4), or the astrologer
Thrasyllus (Tac. _Ann._ vi. 20). To the same person probably are
addressed _Tr._ iii. 11, iv. 9, v. 8; _Pont._ iv. 3.
11. The _Epistulae ex Ponto_, in four Books, were written A.D. 12-16.
In tone they resemble the _Tristia_, but the composition is more
careless, and the friends to whom he writes are mentioned by name.
12. _Halieuticon_, a poem on fish, in hexameters, in a fragmentary
condition. Ovid wrote this towards the end of his life.
Pliny, _N.H._ xxxii. 152, 'His adiciemus ab Ovidio posita nomina quae
apud neminem alium reperiuntur, sed fortassis in Ponto nascentium, ubi
id volumen supremis suis temporibus incohavit.'
MANILIUS.
Manilius is not mentioned by any other writer, and his own poem gives
no particulars of his life. There is uncertainty even as to the true
form of his name, the MSS. giving variously M. Mallius, Manlius, or
Manilius, with the addition in one case of EQOM (probably = equitis
Romani). In some MSS. the poem is wrongly attributed to Aratus or
Boetius, both of whom wrote on the same subject as Manilius.
Bentley conjectured that Manilius was an Asiatic Greek, but the poet
speaks of Latin as 'nostra lingua' (ii. 889), while Greek is 'externa
lingua' (iii. 40), and he uses no Greek constructions.
His poem, the _Astronomica_, in its present form, consists of five
Books of hexameter verse: probably a sixth Book has been lost. It may
have been wholly composed in the reign of Tiberius, or begun under
Augustus. Book v. was written under Tiberius, if the burning of
Pompey's theatre in A.D. 22 is alluded to in ll. 513-515. The earlier
Books contain nothing which might not have been written after the
death of Augustus--the allusions to the disaster of Varus in A.D. 9
(i. 899), and to the sojourn of Tiberius at Rhodes (iv. 764). Either
Augustus or Tiberius may be the 'Caesar' of i. 7 and i. 386. On the
other hand, if Ovid is referring to Manilius (as Prof. Ellis suggests)
in _Tr._ ii. 485,
'Ecce canit formas alius iactusque pilarum,
hic artem nandi praecipit, ille trochi,'
it would follow that the whole poem had been published before the
death of Augustus, for the descriptions of ball-play and swimming
occur in v. 165-171 and 420-431.
Astronomy is treated only in Book i.; the rest of the poem is devoted
to astrology. This is in accordance with the author's statement of his
theme (i. 1-3), which he was the first Roman to treat in verse (i. 4,
113, ii. 57). As his object is to convey instruction rather than to
give pleasure (iii. 36-39), he does not scruple to use Greek technical
terms (ii. 693, 829, 897, iii. 40). The subject does not lend itself
readily to verse (i. 20, iii. 31), and the poem is intolerably dry,
except the introductions to each Book, which reveal considerable
poetical power. The chief peculiarities of Manilius' language are his
strange use of prepositions and his fondness for alliteration;
imitations of Virgil are found throughout.
Manilius is a fatalist (iv. 14 and 22): still fate does not abolish
the moral quality of actions (iv. 108-118). The universe is directed
by a 'vis animae divina' or 'divinum numen' (i. 250, 491).
LIVY.
There is no ancient biography of Livy, and very little light is thrown
on his life by his own writings or by allusions in other authors.
Titus Livius was born at Patavium (the modern Padua) B.C. 59: Jerome
yr. Abr. 1958, 'T. Livius Patavinus scriptor historicus nascitur.'
(The Armenian version gives _Ol._ 180, 4 = B.C. 57.) Near Patavium
there was a famous sulphur spring known as Aponus or Aponi fons,
whence Martial calls the district Apona tellus (i. 61, 3, 'Censetur
Apona Livio suo tellus'). There is no reason to suppose from this that
Livy's birthplace was not Patavium itself, but a village Aponus, which
is nowhere mentioned. Statius (_Silv._ iv. 7, 55) calls him 'Timavi
alumnus.' For Livy's acquaintance with Patavium cf. x. 2, 14 and 15.
From his tone we may infer that he came of a good family, and he must
have possessed a fair income. The charge against his style of
_Patavinitas_ implies that he spent a considerable part of his life in
his native town, but he probably settled at Rome about B.C. 30. That
he took no part in public life is clear from his own words: i. praef.
5, 'Hoc laboris praemium petam, ut me a conspectu malorum, quae nostra
tot per annos vidit aetas, tantisper certe, dum prisca illa tota mente
repeto, avertam, omnis expers curae, quae scribentis animum etsi non
flectere a vero, sollicitum tamen efficere posset.'
He enjoyed the intimacy of Augustus, whom he himself mentions, iv. 20,
7, 'hoc ego cum Augustum Caesarem ... se ipsum ... legisse audissem.'
Tac. _Ann._ iv. 34, 'T. Livius, eloquentiae ac fidei praeclarus in
primis, Cn. Pompeium tantis laudibus tulit, ut Pompeianum eum Augustus
appellaret; neque id amicitiae eorum offecit.' It was at Livy's
suggestion that the future emperor, Claudius, started to compose a
history: Sueton. _Claud._ 41, 'historiam in adulescentia, hortante T.
Livio, Sulpicio vero Flavo etiam adiuvante, scribere adgressus est.'
On the other hand, Caligula would have liked to remove Livy's writings
and his bust from all the libraries, calling him 'verbosum in historia
neglegentemque' (Sueton. _Calig._ 34).
Nothing more is known of his life, except that he visited Campania,
xxxviii. 56, 3, 'Nam et Literni monumentum monumentoque statua
superimposita fuit, quam tempestate disiectam nuper vidimus ipsi.'
He died at his native town, A.D. 17: Jerome yr. Abr. 2033, 'Livius
historicus Patavii moritur.'
He had at least one son (Quint. x. 1, 39, 'apud Livium in epistula ad
filium scripta'), and one daughter (Sen. _Contr._ x. praef. 2, 'L.
Magius gener T. Livi').
Livy wrote philosophical works, probably popular treatises like
Cicero's, some of them in the form of dialogues.
Sen. _Ep._ 100, 9, 'Nomina adhuc T. Livium. Scripsit enim et dialogos,
quos non magis philosophiae adnumerare possis quam historiae, et ex
professo philosophiam continentis libros.'
A book on rhetoric was known to Quintilian and Seneca the elder,
apparently in the form of a letter addressed to the author's son
(Quint. x. 1, 39, above).
Quint. ii. 5, 20, 'quemadmodum Livius praecipit' (on models of style);
Sen. _Contr._ ix. 2, 26, 'Livius de oratoribus ... aiebat' (on
obscurity of expression); Sen. _Contr._ ix. 1, 14, 'T. Livius tam
iniquus Sallustio fuit ut hanc ipsam sententiam ... obiceret
Sallustio.'
These minor works have perished, and of his great history only a
portion survives.
Its title, according to the oldest MSS., the summaries of the lost
Books, and the grammarians, was _Ab urbe condita libri_; and this is
corroborated by Livy's own language: i. praef. 1, 'si a primordio urbis
res populi Romani perscripserim'; and by Pliny, _N.H._ praef. 16, 'T.
Livium ... in historiarum suarum, quas repetit ab origine urbis,
quodam volumine.' Livy refers to it loosely as _meos annales_ (xliii.
13, 2). Separate parts may have had special titles: thus Books
cix-cxvi. were known as _Civilis belli libri_ viii. (Codex Nazarenus
of the Periochae).
The number of Books now extant is thirty-five, viz., i.-x., which
carry the history down to B.C. 293, and xxi.-xlv., covering the period
B.C. 218-167. Of these xli. and xliii. are incomplete. But we possess
summaries (_Periochae_ or _Argumenta_) of Books i.-cxlii., except
cxxxvi. and cxxxvii., which show that the narrative was continued to
the death of Drusus in B.C. 9. There is no evidence that it actually
went further; but as the death of Drusus is hardly an event of
sufficient importance to form the conclusion of so great a work, it
has been thought that Livy may have intended to finish with the death
of Augustus--the point from which Tacitus starts. The total number of
Books would then have been probably one hundred and fifty.
The division into Books (_libri_ or _volumina_) is due to the author:
vi. 1, 1, 'quae ab condita urbe Romani gessere quinque libris
exposui.' The division into decades (_i.e._ sets of ten Books) is
first mentioned towards the end of the fifth century; it is merely a
conventional arrangement, the subject-matter falling naturally into
sets of fifteen Books, which again sometimes embrace three
sub-divisions each a half-decade, or two, a half-decade and a decade.
An epitome was known to Martial, xiv. 190,
'Pellibus exiguis artatur Livius ingens,
quem mea non totum bibliotheca capit.'
The evidence of the date of composition is as follows:
(_a_) i. 19, 3, 'Bis deinde post Numae regnum [Ianus] clausus fuit,
semel T. Manlio consule post Punicum primum perfectum bellum, iterum,
quod nostrae aetati dei dederunt ut videremus, post bellum Actiacum ab
imperatore Caesare Augusto pace terra marique parta.' Now, as the
first closing of the temple of Janus by Augustus was in B.C. 29, and
as Livy is silent as to the second closing after the Cantabrian war in
25, it follows that this passage was written B.C. 29-25. The use of
the title Augustus, conferred on Octavian in 27, puts the earliest
possible date two years later. The history therefore was not begun
before B.C. 27.
(_b_) ix. 36, 1, 'Silva erat Ciminia magis tum invia atque horrenda
quam nuper fuere Germanici saltus.' In this Niebuhr found an allusion
to the campaigns of Drusus, B.C. 12-9, and accordingly assumed that
the first decade was not published till B.C. 9. But the passage may
equally well refer to earlier campaigns, _e.g._ of Julius Caesar. Nor
can it be shown that the history of Dionysius of Halicarnassus,
published B.C. 7, was used by Livy for Books viii.-x. Book ix. must
have been written before B.C. 20, or Livy would have mentioned the
recovery of the standards from the Parthians in ix. 18, 9.
(_c_) xxviii. 12, 12, 'Hispania prima Romanis inita provinciarum, quae
quidem continentis sint, postrema omnium nostra demum aetate ductu
auspicioque Augusti Caesaris perdomita.' This was written not earlier
than B.C. 19, if it refers to Agrippa's victory over the Cantabrians.
(_d_) Book lix. mentioned the _lex de maritandis ordinibus_, and
consequently cannot have been earlier than B.C. 18.
(_e_) The books in which Pompeius figured were composed in the
lifetime of Augustus (Tac. _Ann._ iv. 34, above).
(_f_) Book cxxi., according to the oldest MS. of the Periochae, was
published after the death of Augustus; so doubtless were the remaining
Books (A.D. 14-17).
A work of such compass, and occupying so many years of the author's
life, would naturally be published in sections. This _a priori_ view
is corroborated by several considerations: (_a_) There are separate
prefaces to various sections (vi. 1; xxi. 1; xxxi. 1); (_b_) Livy's
style was censured[70] by Asinius Pollio, who died A.D. 5; (_c_)
Augustus was acquainted with Livy's sympathetic treatment of Pompeius
(see above); (_d_) Livy had great fame in his lifetime: Pliny, _Ep._
ii. 3, 8, 'Numquamne legisti Gaditanum quemdam T. Livi nomine
gloriaque commotum ad visendum eum ab ultimo terrarum orbe venisse
statimque ut viderat abisse?'
The historians from whom Livy derived his materials, and whom he
himself mentions are: _Fabius Pictor_ (i. 44, 2, etc.). Livy refers to
him six times, but it may be questioned whether he used him at
first-hand. More probably he took his opinions on the authority of
later annalists like Macer, Antias, and Tubero. _Cincius Alimentus_
(xxi. 38, 3): the Cincius quoted in vii. 3, 7, may be the same, or an
antiquarian of the Ciceronian or Augustan age; _Cato_ (xxxiv. 15, 9);
_Calpurnius Piso_ (xxv. 39, 15); _Coelius Antipater_ (xxix. 25, 3);
_Claudius Quadrigarius_ (vi. 42, 5, etc.); _Valerius Antias_, quoted
thirty-five times--far more frequently than any other authority;
_Licinius Macer_; _Aelius Tubero_ (iv. 23, 1); _Clodius Licinus_
(xxix. 22, 10); _Rutilius_ (xxxix. 52, 1); _Polybius_; _Silenus_
(xxvi. 49, 3), a Greek, whose account of the Second Punic War was
favourable to the Carthaginians.
A criticism of Livy's use of these sources is impossible, except in
the case of Polybius, all the others having perished. His tone in
alluding to the Greek historian is remarkable for its coldness: xxx.
45, 5, 'Polybius haudquaquam spernendus auctor'; cf. xxxiii. 10, 8.
Although Polybius is not mentioned till Book xxx., he was undoubtedly
used throughout the third decade, as well as in the fourth and fifth.
Livy follows him very closely. Where Livy differs from Polybius he is
probably following the account of Coelius Antipater, who is his
leading authority for the Second Punic War.
Livy is not careful to reconcile his sources, and so frequently
contradicts himself. His way of explaining a discrepancy between his
authorities is by striking an average (xxvi. 49, 6, 'si aliquis
adsentiri necesse est, media simillima veris sunt'). His irresolution
was noted by Quintilian, ii. 4, 19, 'saepe quaeri solet de tempore, de
loco, quo gesta res dicitur, nonnumquam de persona quoque, sicut
Livius frequentissime dubitat.' This of course has its good side: it
saves him from dogmatizing on uncertain points, and he has a hearty
appreciation of the confusion in his authorities: xxxvii. 34, 5, 'is
ubi et quando et quo casu captus sit, sicut pleraque alia, parum inter
auctores constat.' He recognizes the value of contemporary evidence:
xxii. 7, 4, 'Fabium aequalem temporibus huiusce belli potissimum
auctorem habui'; xxi. 38, 3, 'L. Cincius Alimentus, qui captum se ab
Hannibale scribit, maxime auctor moveret.' Criticism of his
authorities is most conspicuous in the case of Valerius Antias, whom
at first he followed in good faith; he condemns him again and again
for exaggeration and credulity, _e.g._ xxxiii. 10, 8, 'si Valerio qui
credat, omnium rerum immodice numerum augenti'; xxxix. 43, 1,
'Valerius Antias, ut qui nec orationem Catonis legisset et fabulae
tantum sine auctore editae credidisset.' He also recognizes the bias
of Licinius Macer: vii. 9, 5, 'quaesita ea propriae familiae laus
leviorem auctorem Licinium facit.' For the untrustworthiness of family
records, cf. viii. 40, 4, 'vitiatam memoriam funebribus laudibus reor
falsisque imaginum titulis, dum familiae ad se quaeque famam rerum
gestarum honorumque fallenti mendacio trahunt.'
Livy often refers to authorities whom he does not name: 'invenio apud
quosdam,' 'satis constat'; and to tradition: 'fama est,' 'dicitur,'
'fertur,' 'traditur.' Tradition was the sole source for events prior
to the sack of Rome by the Gauls, cf. vi. 12, 2 _sqq._
There is no trace in Livy of any use of original documents.
He constantly resists the temptation to digress from his proper theme:
_e.g._ xxxix. 48, 6, 'cuius belli et causas et ordinem si expromere
velim, immemor sim propositi, quo statui non ultra attingere externa,
nisi qua Romanis cohaererent rebus.'
In spite of his love of truth (xxii. 7, 4, 'nihil haustum ex vano
velim, quo nimis inclinant ferme scribentium animi': cf. Tac. _Ann._
iv. 34, 'fidei praeclarus'), partiality blinds him to the faults of
his own countrymen, and he fails to do justice to opponents like the
Samnites and Carthaginians.
In dealing with the legendary period he admits that his narrative has
no trustworthy foundation, and gives it merely for what it is worth:
Praef. 6, 'Quae ante conditam condendamve urbem poeticis magis decora
fabulis quam incorruptis rerum gestarum monumentis traduntur, ea nec
adfirmare nec refellere in animo est. Datur haec venia antiquitati, ut
miscendo humana divinis primordia urbium augustiora faciat.'
The numerous speeches exemplify Livy's rhetorical tendency,
representing what he thought the speaker would have said under the
given circumstances: iii. 67, 1, 'ibi in hanc sententiam locutum
accipio.'
His power of describing character is noted by Seneca, _Suas._ vi. 21,
'Quoties magni alicuius viri mors ab historicis narrata est, toties
fere consummatio totius vitae et quasi funebris laudatio redditur. Hoc
... T. Livius benignius omnibus magnis viris praestitit.'
_Religion and morality._--Livy believes in the influence of the gods
on human affairs: ix. 1, 11, 'cum rerum humanarum maximum momentum
sit, quam propitiis rem, quam adversis agant dis.' Superior to the
gods is _necessitas_ (ix. 4, 16), and _fortuna_ is also powerful (ix.
17, 3; v. 37, 1). He condemns the irreligion of his own day (x. 40,
10, 'iuvenis ante doctrinam deos spernentem natus'), cf. iii. 20, 5;
viii. 11, 1. He retains the old belief in prodigies and portents,
every war being introduced by a list of them, but recognizes that many
reported instances were fictitious: xxi. 62, 1, 'Multa ea hieme
prodigia facta, aut, quod evenire solet motis semel in religionem
animis, multa nuntiata et temere credita sunt.'
He condemns the vices of his own age, and lauds the old Romans: Praef.
12, 'Nuper divitiae avaritiam et abundantes voluptates desiderium per
luxum atque libidinem pereundi perdendique omnia invexere.'
_Politics._--Livy is an aristocrat, with a poor opinion of the lower
orders: _e.g._ xxiv. 25, 8, 'Ea natura multitudinis est: aut servit
humiliter aut superbe dominatur; libertatem, quae media est, nec
cupere modice nec habere sciunt.' His political attitude is influenced
to a great extent by the earlier historians, who had mostly been on
the aristocratic side. Yet he is not a defender of the aristocratic
party through thick and thin; and though he admired the character of
some leading republicans, there can be no question of his loyalty to
the Empire. Cf. Tac. _Ann._ iv. 34, 'Scipionem, Afranium, hunc ipsum
Cassium, hunc Brutum nusquam latrones et parricidas, quae nunc
vocabula imponuntur, saepe ut insignes viros nominat.'
Livy's view of Caesar is quoted by Seneca, _N.Q._ v. 18, 4, 'in
incerto esse utrum illum nasci magis rei publicae profuerit, an non
nasci?'
_Contemporaries of Livy._--1. _Pompeius Trogus_, whose history is
known to us only through the abridgment made by M. Iunianus Iustinus,
probably in the time of the Antonines. Trogus was of Gallic descent.
His grandfather had received the Roman _civitas_ from Pompey; his
father was one of Caesar's officers, and is possibly to be identified
with the Cn. Pompeius of Caes. _B.G._ v. 36 (Iustin. xliii. 5, 11).
His chief work, _Historiae Philippicae_, in forty-four Books, was
concerned chiefly with the history of Macedonia and the Diadochi; but
it embraced also the empires of the East and the history of Greece
down to the time of Philip, as well as Parthia, Spain, Carthage, and
the early history of Rome.
2. _Fenestella_, who died, according to Jerome, in A.D. 19 at the age
of seventy. Nothing is known of his life, or of the poems which Jerome
attributes to him; but he certainly wrote _Annales_ (Nonius, p. 154).
He is also quoted as an authority on miscellaneous antiquarian and
constitutional points.
3. _M. Verrius Flaccus_, tutor to the grandsons of Augustus (Sueton.
_Gramm._ 17), was the author of _Fasti_, fragments of which have been
discovered near Praeneste, and which were used by Ovid for his poem of
that name. Of Verrius' grammatical works, the greatest was that
entitled _De verborum significatu_ (Gell. v. 17, 1), arranged
alphabetically. It is lost, but we possess part of an abridgment (nine
out of sixteen Books) made by _Sex. Pompeius Festus_ before the third
century A.D. The abridgment of Festus was in turn epitomized by
_Paulus Diaconus_ in the time of Charlemagne, and his work is extant
in a complete form.
4. _C. Iulius Hyginus_, a freedman of Augustus and librarian of the
Palatine library (Sueton. _Gramm._ 20), wrote _De vita rebusque
illustrium virorum_ (Gell. i. 14, 1); _Exempla_ (Gell. x. 18, 7); _De
situ urbium Italicarum_ (Serv. _ad Verg. Aen._ iii. 553); _De familiis
Troianis_ (ibid. v. 389); theological works, _e.g._ _De dis Penatibus_
(Macrob. _Saturn._ iii. 4, 13); commentaries on Virgil and Helvius
Cinna; and _De Agricultura_, a treatise to which Virgil was indebted
(Colum. i. 1, 13). The Hyginus who wrote _Fabulae_ and _De Astrologia_
probably lived in the second century A.D.
VITRUVIUS.
Vitruvius Pollio (the cognomen appears only in the abridgment of his
book) served under Caesar in Africa B.C. 46; viii. 3, 25, 'C. Iulius
Masinissae filius ... cum patre Caesari militavit. Is hospitio meo est
usus. Ita cottidiano convictu necesse fuerat de philologia disputare ...'
Under Augustus he was an officer of engineers, and was enabled to
spend the rest of his life in comfort through the liberality of that
prince and his sister Octavia: i. praef. 2, 'Cum M. Aurelio et P.
Minidio et Cn. Cornelio ad apparationem ballistarum et scorpionum
reliquorumque tormentorum refectionem fui praesto et cum eis commoda
accepi. Quae cum primo mihi tribuisti, recognitionem per sororis
commendationem servasti. Cum ergo eo beneficio essem obligatus, ut ad
exitum vitae non haberem inopiae timorem ...'
He wrote the treatise _De Architectura_, in ten Books, when he was no
longer young (ii. praef. 4, 'faciem deformavit aetas'), between the
years B.C. 16 and 13. The temple of Quirinus, mentioned iii. 2, 7, was
built in the former year; and he speaks of only one stone theatre in
Rome (iii. 2, 2), whereas in B.C. 13 there were three.
The arrangement of the subject-matter is as follows: Book i., sciences
on which architecture is based, chief divisions of the subject, choice
of site, and method of laying out a town; ii., building materials; iii.,
temples--Ionic order; iv., Doric and Corinthian orders; v., public
buildings, _e.g._, forum, theatre; vi., private houses--construction;
vii., decoration; viii., water-supply; ix., methods of measuring time,
_e.g._, sun-dials; x., engines and machines used in war and in the arts.
The work is dedicated to Augustus, who is addressed throughout, and is
meant to be of practical use to him in his building operations.
The body of the work is severely technical; the introductions to the
Books are in a more ambitious style. Vitruvius writes as a
professional man, not as a scholar: i. 1, 17, 'Non uti summus
philosophus nec rhetor disertus nec grammaticus summis rationibus
artis exercitatus, sed ut architectus his litteris imbutus haec nisus
sum scribere.' He freely confesses his obligations to Greek authors,
whom he enumerates vii. praef. 10-14. Diagrams were appended to the
text: i. 6, 12, 'Quoniam haec a nobis sunt breviter exposita, ut
facilius intellegantur visum est mihi in extremo volumine formas, sive
uti Graeci +schêmata+ dicunt duo explicare.'
SENECA THE ELDER.
(1) LIFE.
Annaeus Seneca (for the praenomen Marcus, usually given, there is no
authority: in the best MSS. it is Lucius, possibly through confusion
with his son) was a native of Corduba: Mart. i. 62, 7,
'Duosque Senecas unicumque Lucanum
facunda loquitur Corduba.'
The date of his birth is probably about B.C. 55, for he was old enough
to have heard Cicero if the civil wars had not prevented him leaving
his native town: _Contr._ i. praef. 11, 'Omnes magni in eloquentia
nominis excepto Cicerone videor audisse: ne Ciceronem quidem aetas
mihi eripuerat, sed bellorum civilium furor, qui tunc orbem totum
pervagabatur, intra coloniam meam me continuit.'
He was of equestrian rank; cf. the speech of Seneca the younger, Tac.
_Ann._ xiv. 53, 'Egone, equestri et provinciali loco ortus, proceribus
civitatis adnumeror?'
Most of his life appears to have been spent in Rome, where alone he
could have acquired his vast knowledge of contemporary rhetoric.
Together with his countryman Porcius Latro, he attended the lectures
of the rhetorician Marullus: _Contr._ i. praef. 22, 'Hoc Latro meus
faciebat, ut sententias amaret. Cum condiscipuli essemus apud Marullum
rhetorem ...' Asinius Pollio he had heard at two different periods:
_Contr._ iv. praef. 3, 'audivi illum et viridem et postea iam senem.'
Seneca's wife was Helvia, whose noble character is described by her
son (_ad Helv._ 14, 3; 16, 3): by her he had three sons, M. Annaeus
Novatus, L. Annaeus Seneca, and M. Annaeus Mela.
He survived Tiberius; for (1) he alludes to events which happened
after his reign, (2) Sueton. _Tib._ 73, quotes from 'Seneca' an
account of the death of Tiberius, and we know that the elder Seneca
wrote history: that his son did likewise there is nothing to show.
Hence he was alive after A.D. 37. On the other hand, he was dead
before his son's exile in A.D. 43, for Sen. _ad Helv._ 2, 5, after
enumerating the calamities which had befallen his mother--among them
his father's death--concludes with the words 'raptum me audisti: hoc
adhuc defuerat tibi, lugere vivos.'
Seneca was a man of stern character: for his old-world views and
dislike of innovation cf. his son's words (_ad Helv._ 17, 3), 'Patris
mei antiquus rigor ... Virorum optimus, pater meus, maiorum
consuetudini deditus.' He disapproved of the higher education of
women, 'propter istas quae litteris non ad sapientiam utuntur, sed ad
luxuriam instruuntur.'
(2) WORKS.
The only extant works of Seneca are _Oratorum et Rhetorum Sententiae,
Divisiones, Colores Controversiarum et Suasoriarum_.
1. The _Controversiae_ were written at the request of his three sons,
but were intended for a wider circle of readers: i. praef. 10,
'Quaecumque a celeberrimis viris facunde dicta teneo, ne ad quemquam
privatim pertineant, populo dedicabo.' Seneca here gives a criticism
of the rhetoricians of his time, with specimens of the style of each:
i. praef. 1, 'Exigitis rem magis iucundam mihi quam facilem; iubetis
enim quid de his declamatoribus sentiam qui in aetatem meam inciderunt
indicare, et si qua memoriae meae nondum elapsa sunt ab illis dicta
colligere, ut quamvis notitiae vestrae subducti sint, tamen non
credatis tantum de illis, sed et iudicetis.' The specimens are given
from memory, and the arrangement is not systematic: i. praef. 4,
'Illud necesse est impetrem, ne me quasi certum aliquem ordinem
velitis sequi in contrahendis quae mihi occurrent.' Seneca treats only
of those rhetoricians whom his sons had not themselves heard: i.
praef. 4, 'Neque de his me interrogatis quos ipsi audistis, sed de his
qui ad vos usque non pervenerunt.' His hero is Cicero, since whose
time oratory has steadily degenerated: i. praef. 11, 'Illud ingenium
quod solum populus Romanus par imperio suo habuit'; _ibid._ 7, 'Omnia
ingenia quae lucem studiis nostris attulerunt tunc nata sunt: in
deterius deinde cottidie data res est.'
Of the ten Books of _Controversiae_ only five have come down to us,
viz., i., ii., vii., ix., and x. The deficiency is to some extent
supplied by an abridgment (_Excerpta_) made in the fourth or fifth
century A.D., which adds thirty-nine themes to the thirty-five
contained in the surviving part of the original work. Each Book had a
separate preface. Those to v., vi., and viii. are entirely wanting;
for the prefaces to ii., iii., and iv. we are indebted to the
abridgment.
The _Controversiae_ were written when Seneca was an old man, and when
his two elder sons were preparing for public life, probably about A.D.
20: x. praef. 1, 'Sinite me ab istis iuvenilibus studiis ad senectutem
meam reverti'; ii. praef. 4 (to Mela), 'Fratribus tuis ambitiosa curae
sunt foroque se et honoribus parant.'
As to the date of publication, it has been argued[71] that they
appeared after the fall of Seianus and before the death of Mamercus
Scaurus, _i.e._, between A.D. 31 and 34. Probably, however, the
publication did not take place till after the death of Tiberius, A.D.
37; the protest against the burning of books (x. praef. 6-7) would
have been as offensive to him as to Seianus.
2. There is only one book of _Suasoriae_, and the beginning of it is
lost. It gives specimens of the treatment of seven themes, _e.g._, 3,
'Deliberat Agamemnon an Iphigeniam immolet negante Calchante aliter
navigari fas esse.' It is certainly later than the _Controversiae_:
_Contr._ ii. 4, 8, 'Quae dixerit suo loco reddam, cum ad suasorias
venero.' One passage cannot have been written before A.D. 34: 2, 22,
'Scaurum Mamercum, in quo Scaurorum familia exstincta est.' It was not
published in the lifetime of Tiberius, for Seneca calls the accuser of
Scaurus 'homo quam improbi animi tam infelicis ingenii' (2, 22), and
quotes Cremutius Cordus (6, 19) whose books had been burned in
Tiberius' time.
3. Seneca wrote also on Roman history from the commencement of the
civil wars to his own time, but left the work of publication to his
son.
L. Seneca _de vita patris_ (Haase, vol. iii. p. 436), 'Si quaecumque
composuit pater meus et edi voluit iam in manus populi emisissem, ad
claritatem nominis sui satis sibi ipsi prospexerat ... Quisquis
legisset eius historias ab initio bellorum civilium, unde primum
veritas retro abiit, paene usque ad mortis suae diem,' etc.
Footnotes to Chapter III
[41] M. Valerius Probus of Berytus (Sueton. _Gramm._ 24) who
flourished, according to Jerome, A.D. 56, prepared critical editions
of Lucretius, Virgil, and Horace. A commentary on the _Eclogues_ and
_Georgics_ passes under his name, but most of it is spurious.
[42] A grammarian of the fifth century A.D., who merely versifies
Donatus.
[43] On this point Professor W. M. Ramsay writes to us: 'Virgil's farm
was certainly not at Pietole (which is two miles south of Mantua, out
in the flat plain): for (1) the farm was a long way from the city (cf.
_Ecl._ 9, 59 _sqq._); (2) it was beside hills (_ibid._ 7 _sqq._); (3)
woods were on or by it (cf. Donatus "silvis coemendis"), and the flat
fertile valley was certainly not abandoned to forests. After exploring
the country, I felt clear that the farm was on the west bank of the
Mincio, opposite Valeggio, where the northern hills sink to the dead
level of the Po valley.'
[44] His knowledge of science is reflected in his works. Cf.
_Georgics_, passim, and _Ecl._ 3, ll. 40-2.
[45] The latter part of this statement is worthless: Augustus was only
a child when Virgil came to Rome.
[46] Probus is manifestly wrong in saying that the distribution of
land took place 'post _Mutinense_ bellum.'
[47] For details see H. Nettleship, _Ancient Lives of Vergil_, who
holds that there was really only one eviction.
[48] The writings of Augustus are enumerated by Sueton. Aug. 85--(1)
_Rescripta Bruto de Catone_, a reply to Brutus' pamphlet on Cato; (2)
_Hortationes ad Philosophiam_; (3) _De Vita Sua_; (4) Life of Drusus
(Sueton. _Claud._ 1); (5) Poems: 'Sicily' in hexameters, Epigrams and
Fescennine verses; a tragedy, 'Ajax' (never finished).
[49] Servius wrote 'triennio' perhaps because he thought only of the
dates of _Ecl._ 1 and 10 (H. Nettleship, _ibid._).
[50] C. Schaper's view is that _Ecls._ 4, 6, and 10 were not written
till B.C. 27-25 for a second edition. He supposes _Ecl._ 6 to allude
to the marriage of Marcellus and Julia in 25 (referring 6, 3 to the
_Aeneid_), and _Ecl._ 10 to be a lament for Gallus, who committed
suicide B.C. 27.
[51] Iulus is properly spelt Iullus (as in inscriptions), and is for
Iovillos, a diminutive from the stem of Iuppiter.
[52] L. Orbilius Pupillus of Beneventum, who in his +Perialgês+
complained of the wrongs of his profession (Sueton. _Gramm._ 4 and 9).
[53] Maecenas wrote, besides smaller prose works, a history of his own
times (Hor. _Od._ ii. 12, 9; Pliny, _N.H._ vii. 148).
[54] For Horace's relations to Propertius see _Ep._ ii. 2, 91-101, and
under '_Propertius_,' p. 196.
[55] See G. Boissier, _Nouvelles Promenades Archéologiques: Horace et
Virgile_ (Paris, 1886).
[56] Dr. A. W. Verrall's argument (_Studies in Horace_, pp. 25 _sqq._)
that _Od._ i.-iii. were published B.C. 19 is not convincing.
[57] Ed. by Mommsen in _Ephemeris Epigraphica_, 1892, p. 225.
[58] For Horace's eclectic position in philosophy, cf. _Ep._ i. 1,
14-15,
'Nullius addictus iurare in verba magistri,
quo me cumque rapit tempestas, deferor hospes.'
[59] As suggested to us by Prof. W. M. Ramsay. For Horace's opinion of
Catullus cf. _Sat._ i. 10, 18-9,
'Simius iste,
nil praeter Calvum et doctus cantare Catullum.'
[60] See Th. Mommsen, _Sitzungsberichte der königl. preuss. Akad. der
Wissenschaften zu Berlin_. 24 Jan. 1889.
[61] A Peripatetic of the third century B.C., who wrote a popular
account of the literary and philosophical views of his school.
[62] E. Voss, _Die Natur in der Dichtung des Horaz_ (Düsseldorf,
1889).
[63] As pointed out by A. W. Verrall, _Studies in Horace_, p. 134
_sqq._
[64] This poem is probably referred to by Hor. _Od._ iv. 4, 19-22.
[65] M. Valerius Messalla Corvinus, author of memoirs of the Civil War
(Tac. _Ann._ iv. 34), love poems (Pliny, _Ep._ v. 3, 5), and works on
grammar (Quint. i. 7, 35).
[66] Dessau, _Inscr. Lat. Sel._ 2925. _Serg._ stands for _Serg[ia
tribu]_, and is not a cognomen _Sergio_.
[67] See Pliny, _Ep._ v. 9, 2.
[68] This question was first satisfactorily worked out by T. Dyer,
_Classical Museum_ for 1847, p. 229 _sqq._
[69] See under 'Juvenal,' p. 323.
[70] Pollio accused him of Patavinitas, _i.e._ the use of
provincialisms (_verba peregrina_, as opposed to _Latina_, Quint. i.
5, 55, _curiose loqui_ rather than _Latine_, Quint. viii. 1, 2).
[71] By A. Diepenbrock, _L. Annaeus Seneca_, p. 12 (Amsterdam, 1888).