POST-AUGUSTAN WRITERS.
VELLEIUS PATERCULUS.
C.[72] Velleius Paterculus was born at latest B.C. 19, as he was
quaestor-elect A.D. 6. He was descended from a distinguished family in
Campania (Vell. ii. 16, 2; Liv. xxiii. 7 _sqq._). His father was a
_praefectus equitum_ (ii. 104, 3). After some military experience in
Thrace and Macedonia, Velleius accompanied C. Caesar, the grandson of
Augustus, on his mission to the East, A.D. 1. His rank at this time
was _tribunus militum_.
ii. 101, 2 (of the meeting of C. Caesar and the Parthian king), 'Sub
initia stipendiorum meorum tribuno militum mihi visere contigit: quem
militiae gradum ante sub patre tuo, M. Vinici, et P. Silio auspicatus
in Thracia Macedoniaque, mox Achaia Asiaque et omnibus ad Orientem
visis provinciis et ore atque utroque maris Pontici latere, haud
iniucunda tot rerum, locorum, gentium, urbium recordatione fruor.'
In A.D. 4, as _praefectus equitum_, he accompanied Tiberius to
Germany: ii. 104, 3, 'Hoc tempus me, functum ante tribunatu, castrorum
Ti. Caesaris militem fecit; quippe protinus ab adoptione missus cum eo
praefectus equitum in Germaniam, successor officii patris mei,
caelestissimorum eius operum per annos continuos viii. praefectus aut
legatus spectator et pro captu mediocritatis meae adiutor fui.'
In A.D. 6, when quaestor-elect, he commanded reinforcements sent from
Rome to Tiberius in Pannonia, and at the expiration of his term of
office as quaestor in Rome, he returned to Tiberius as a _legatus_:
ii. 111, 3, 'Habuit in hoc quoque bello mediocritas nostra speciosi
ministerii locum. Finita equestri militia designatus quaestor necdum
senator aequatus senatoribus, etiam designatis tribunis plebei, partem
exercitus ab urbe traditi ab Augusto perduxi ad filium eius. In
quaestura deinde remissa sorte provinciae legatus eiusdem ad eumdem
missus sum.'
In A.D. 9 Velleius served in Dalmatia (ii. 115, 5), afterwards
spending two years in Germany (ii. 104, 3 above). In the winter of
A.D. 12-13 he took part in the triumph of Tiberius: ii. 121, 2, 'Ex
Pannoniis Delmatisque egit triumphum ... quem mihi fratrique meo inter
praecipuos praecipuisque donis adornatos viros comitari contigit.'
Velleius was praetor-elect in A.D. 14: ii. 124, 4, 'Quo tempore mihi
fratrique meo, candidatis Caesaris, proxime a nobilissimis ac
sacerdotalibus viris destinari praetoribus contigit, consecutis ut
neque post nos quemquam divus Augustus neque ante nos Caesar
commendaret Tiberius.'
The publication of his history, sixteen years later, is the only
circumstance recorded of Velleius after this date.
The _Historia Romana_, in two Books, was published A.D. 30, in the
consulship of M. Vinicius, to whom the book is addressed (i. 8, 1, and
often). The beginning of Book i. is lost; the first eight chapters in
our text are occupied with a rapid survey of the history of Greece
since the Trojan war, the Phoenician settlements in the Mediterranean,
and the chief events in the history of the world before the foundation
of Rome. C. 8 breaks off at the rape of the Sabine women, and there is
a great lacuna before we reach, in c. 9, the defeat of Perseus at
Pydna in B.C. 168. Ch. 9-13 carry the narrative down to the
destruction of Carthage and Corinth. Book ii. commences at that point,
and ends with the death of Livia, A.D. 29 (ii. 130, 5, 'cuius temporis
aegritudinem auxit amissa mater').
Velleius is constantly calling attention to the brevity and
compression of his treatment, in such phrases as 'omnia transcursu
dicenda' (ii. 55), 'artatum opus' (ii. 86), 'recisum opus' (ii. 89).
Much that the plan of his book compels him to omit, he promises to
publish later in a larger work, _e.g._ ii. 99, 3, 'iusto servemus
operi,' ii. 114, 4, 'iustis voluminibus ordine narrabimus.' Even as it
is, he occasionally pauses to describe a great character (ii. 41,
Caesar), or to express his personal opinion (ii. 66, 3, denunciation
of Antony for Cicero's murder). Specially noticeable are the
digressions on the Roman colonies (i. 14-15) and provinces (ii.
38-39), on the prominence of different types of genius at certain
epochs (i. 16-18), and on literary history (ii. 9, the chief writers
of the time of the Gracci; ii. 36, of the Ciceronian and Augustan
ages; i. 5, praise of Homer; i. 7, of Hesiod). As is natural in so
short a book, Velleius names very few authorities.
The motive of the history is evidently the glorification of the
author's old general, Tiberius, whose actual reign, however, he
dismisses in eight chapters. Probably he felt the subject too risky,
and devoted his strength to the earlier life of Tiberius, which
occupies the greater part even of the chapters nominally devoted to
the reign of Augustus (ii. 59-123). Tiberius is spoken of throughout
in terms of unqualified praise, and no hint is given of the darker
side of his character. Seianus also is extolled (ii. 127-8), as he was
in high favour at the time when Velleius wrote.
VALERIUS MAXIMUS.
Nothing is known of the life of Valerius Maximus beyond the fact that
he visited Asia in company with Sex. Pompeius, the friend of Ovid and
of Germanicus. Pompeius was consul A.D. 14, and between A.D. 27 and 30
became proconsul of Asia.
Val. Max. ii. 6, 8, 'Consuetudinem ... illam etiam in insula Cea
servari animadverti, quo tempore Asiam cum Sex. Pompeio petens Iulidem
oppidum intravi.'
Valerius dwells on his obligations to Pompeius in his chapter on
friendship (iv. 7, _ext._ 2).
His sole work, _Facta et Dicta Memorabilia_, in nine books, is a
collection of notable incidents and sayings, classified under
appropriate headings, for the convenience of speakers seeking
illustrations for their subject-matter. Cf. the preface, 'Urbis Romae
exterarumque gentium facta simul ac dicta memoratu digna, quae apud
alios latius diffusa sunt quam ut breviter cognosci possint, ab
illustribus electa auctoribus digerere constitui, ut documenta sumere
volentibus longae inquisitionis labor absit.'
The _illustres auctores_ from whom he draws most of his material are
Livy, Cicero (each mentioned only once), Sallust, and Trogus; but
thirteen Latin and twenty Greek authors are mentioned by name. He
frequently misrepresents his authorities.
Each book is divided into chapters on separate topics (_e.g._ _De
Pudicitia_), under each of which he gives (1) illustrations from Roman
history, (2) those from the history of other nations. The latter of
course are few in comparison.
Although Iulius Paris, the epitomizer of Valerius, speaks of ten
books, only nine are extant, and it may be doubted whether there ever
was a tenth. Book i. is mutilated.
There are only two passages which throw any light on the date of
composition--viii. 11, _ext._ 4, a denunciation of Seianus, obviously
written after his fall in A.D. 31; and vi. 1 praef., before the death
of Livia, A.D. 29. The work was published at latest in A.D. 37, for it
is dedicated to Tiberius, who is the object of the most servile
flattery (_e.g._ ii. 9, 6); similar language is used of Iulius Caesar
(iv. 5, 6), and Augustus (i. 7, 1), while Brutus and Cassius are
denounced as parricides (i. 5, 7; i. 8, 8).
Two abridgments of Valerius Maximus are extant.
CELSUS.
Of the life of Celsus nothing is known; but he was an older
contemporary of Columella. Colum. iii. 17, 4, 'Iulius Atticus et
Cornelius Celsus, aetatis nostrae celeberrimi auctores, patrem atque
filium Sasernam secuti.'
He wrote an encyclopaedic work on agriculture, medicine, war,
rhetoric, and philosophy, but only the section on medicine is extant.
Quint. xi. 12, 24, 'Cum etiam Cornelius Celsus, mediocri vir ingenio,
non solum de his omnibus conscripserit artibus sed amplius rei
militaris et rusticae et medicinae praecepta reliquerit.'
The first part consisted of five books on agriculture: cf. Colum. i.
1, 14, 'Cornelius totum corpus disciplinae quinque libris complexus
est.' This section of the work was probably written in the reign of
Tiberius, for it was known to Iulius Graecinus, whose execution took
place under Caligula. Plin. _N.H._ xiv. 33, 'Graecinus, qui alioqui
Cornelium Celsum transcripsit.'
There are eight books _De Re Medica_. The only indication of their
date is in iv. 7, where Celsus mentions a prescription as not found
'in monumentis medicorum.' As this prescription is given by Scribonius
Largus, who wrote about A.D. 47, Celsus must have written before that
year.
The section on war was used by Vegetius (_De Re Mil._ i. 8).
Rhetoric was also treated in the encyclopaedia. Quintilian, who
mentions him as one of the more careful writers on that subject (iii.
1, 21, 'accuratius scripsit Celsus'), frequently combats his opinions
and speaks of him rather contemptuously: _e.g._ ix. 1, 18, 'Cornelius
Celsus nimia profecto novitatis cupidine ductus. Nam quis ignorasse
eruditum alioqui virum credat,' etc. He may be the Celsus of Juv. 6,
245, who (according to the Scholiast) wrote a manual of rhetoric in
seven books.
There were also six books on the history of philosophy. Augustine _de
haeres. prol._, 'Opiniones omnium philosophorum qui sectas varias
condiderunt usque ad tempora sua vi. non parvis voluminibus quidam
Celsus absolvit; nec redarguit aliquem, sed tantum quid sentirent
aperuit. Cum ferme centum philosophos nominasset,' etc.
Celsus also wrote separate treatises (1) on philosophy, Quint. x. 1,
24, 'Scripsit non parum multa Cornelius Celsus, Sextios secutus, non
sine cultu ac nitore'; (2) on strategy (Lydus _de mag._ i. 47).
PHAEDRUS.
The title of Phaedrus' work, 'Phaedri Augusti liberti fabularum
Aesopiarum libri,' probably means that he was a freedman of Augustus.
Tiberius is called 'Caesar Tiberius' in ii. 6, 7; contrast the
reference to Augustus, iii. 10, 39, 'a divo Augusto.' Phaedrus was
born in Thrace, possibly in the district of Pieria; but the date is
unknown; iii. prol. 17,
'Ego, quem Pierio mater enixa est iugo,
in quo tonanti sancta Mnemosyne Iovi
fecunda novies artium peperit chorum';
_ibid._ 54,
'Ego, litteratae qui sum propior Graeciae,
cur somno inerti deseram patriae decus?
Threissa cum gens numeret auctores suos,
Linoque Apollo sit parens, Musa Orpheo.'
Some wrongly take these allusions to mean that he belongs to the realm
of poesy. That he came to Rome early is shown by the knowledge of
Latin literature he acquired in his boyhood. Cf. iii. epil. 33, where
he quotes Ennius,
'Ego, quondam legi quam puer sententiam,
"Palam mutire plebeio piaculum est,"
dum sanitas constabit, pulchre meminero.'
After publishing two books of fables, Phaedrus was persecuted by
Seianus, in some way unknown; iii. prol. 38,
'Ego porro illius [Aesopi] semita feci viam,
et cogitavi plura quam reliquerat,
in calamitatem deligens quaedam meam.
Quod si accusator alius Seiano foret,
si testis alius, index alius denique,
dignum faterer esse me tantis malis.'
This persecution may have arisen from references in his fables, such
as i. 1 (Lupus et agnus), l. 14,
'Haec propter illos scripta est homines fabula,
qui fictis causis innocentes opprimunt';
i. 6 (Ranae ad solem), which Nisard[73] thinks refers to the ambitious
marriage which Seianus projected with Livia, daughter of Germanicus,
'The sun dries up the ponds; what will happen if the sun marries and
has children?' l. 9,
'Quidnam futurum est, si crearit liberos?'
Phaedrus survived the attacks made on him, and Book v. was written in
his old age (see below).
Several personal points are clear from his writings:
(1) He had to meet the attacks of critics; ii. epil. 10,
'Si livor obtrectare curam voluerit,
non tamen eripiet laudis conscientiam.'
(2) His desire for fame and his self-consciousness; iii. prol. 60,
'Ergo hinc abesto livor, ne frustra gemas,
quoniam sollemnis mihi debetur gloria.'
(3) His contempt for money; iii. prol. 21,
'Curamque habendi penitus corde eraserim';
v. 4, 7,
'Huius respectu fabulae deterritus
periculosum semper vitavi lucrum.'
Phaedrus wrote five Books of fables. Many have certainly been lost.
Cf. his reference to tree-fables, none of which we have; i. prol. 6,
'quod arbores loquantur, non tantum ferae.'
There are, besides the five Books, thirty fables usually printed as an
appendix, and probably composed by Phaedrus. The fables are all in
'impure' iambic senarii, like those of Terence and Publius Syrus.
Phaedrus followed Aesop, but, as he affirms, not slavishly; i. prol.
1,
'Aesopus auctor quam materiam repperit,
hanc ego polivi versibus senariis';
iv. prol. 10,
'fabulis
quas Aesopias, non Aesopi, nomino.'
We have the Greek originals for about a third of the fables; but
Phaedrus speaks of his additions to Aesop; ii. prol. 8,
'Equidem omni cura morem servabo senis;
sed si libuerit aliquid interponere,
dictorum sensus ut delectet varietas,
bonas in partes, lector, accipias velim.'
Stories from contemporary or recent history are given in ii. 6, 7;
iii. 10; v. 7.
Books i. and ii. were published under Tiberius; Book iii. was
published after Tiberius' death (cf. iii. prol. 33), and is dedicated
to Eutychus, who has been identified with a favourite slave of
Caligula. Book iv. followed, addressed to Particulo (iv. prol. 10).
Book v., addressed to Philetes, was written in the poet's old age; v.
10, 7,
'Cui senex contra Lacon:
"Non te destituit animus, sed vires meae.
Quod fuimus, lauda, si iam damnas, quod sumus."
Hoc cur, Philete, scripserim, pulchre vides.'
Martial is the only classical writer who refers to Phaedrus; iii. 20,
5,
'An aemulatur improbi iocos Phaedri?'
SENECA THE YOUNGER.
(1) LIFE.
L. Annaeus Seneca, the son of Annaeus Seneca, the rhetor, was born at
Corduba in Spain. For information about his family see under 'Seneca
the elder,' pp. 226-7. He was probably born about the beginning of our
era, as he seems to have remembered Asinius Pollio, who died A.D. 5,
and had passed his boyhood in A.D. 19, when the Jewish and Egyptian
rites were expelled from Rome.
Sen. _de tranquill. animi_, 17, 7, 'Qualem Pollionem Asinium
meminimus, quem nulla res ultra decimam [horam] retinuit.'
_Ep._ 108, 22, 'In Tiberii Caesaris principatum iuventae tempus
inciderat: alienigena tum sacra movebantur.'
At an early age Seneca was brought to Rome by his mother's sister, who
was probably the wife of Vitrasius Pollio, prefect of Egypt for
sixteen years.
_Ad Helv._ 19, 2, 'Illius manibus in urbem perlatus sum.'
Seneca's mother took a great interest in his education, which was
conducted under Fabianus Papirius (cf. _Ep._ 100, 9, etc.) and Sotion
the Pythagorean, of Alexandria, pupils of Sextius (for Seneca's study
of whom see _Ep._ 64).
_Ad Helv._ 15, 1, 'Vera vis materni doloris oritur ... "ubi studia,
quibus libentius quam femina, familiarius quam mater intereram?"'
_Ep._ 108, 17, 'Dicebat [Sotion] quare ille animalibus abstinuisset,
quare postea Sextius ... § 22. His ego instinctus abstinere animalibus
coepi et anno peracto non tantum facilis erat mihi consuetudo, sed
dulcis.'
The elder Seneca put an end to this abstinence, which was associated
in the popular view with foreign superstitions (see _Ep._ 108, 17-23).
This must have happened about A.D. 19. The influence of Sotion is seen
in passages imitated from his book _de ira cohibenda_ by Seneca.
Seneca also studied under Attalus, a Greek Stoic, possibly about A.D.
20.
_Ep._ 108, 13-15, 'Ego certe cum Attalum audirem in vitia, in errores,
in mala vitae perorantem, saepe misertus sum generis humani et illum
sublimem altioremque humano fastigio credidi ... Inde mihi quaedam
permansere, Lucili. Magno enim in omnia inceptu veneram. Deinde ad
civitatis vitam reductus ex bene coeptis pauca servavi: inde ostreis
boletisque in omnem vitam renuntiatum est.'
Seneca speaks of his change of studies and occupations in _Ep._ 49, 2,
'Modo apud Sotionem philosophum puer sedi. Modo causas agere coepi.
Modo desii velle agere, modo desii posse.'
In A.D. 31 Seneca was probably still at Rome; cf. _N.Q._ i. 1, 3,
'Vidimus [prodigium] eo tempore, quo de Seiano actum est.' Lipsius'
inference[74] that Seneca made a voyage to Egypt about this time is
probable, though Seneca himself gives no direct information about it.
According to this theory his host was Vitrasius Pollio, prefect of
Egypt. While in Egypt, Seneca was attacked by illness, and escaped
death by his aunt's care. Cf. _ad Helv._ 19, 2, 'Illius pio maternoque
nutricio per longum tempus aeger convalui.' Seneca accompanied
Vitrasius when he resigned his office and returned with his wife to
Italy A.D. 32 (Dio, lviii. 19, 6). They suffered shipwreck, and
Vitrasius perished.
_Ad Helv._ 19, 4, 'Sed si prudentiam perfectissimae feminae novi, non
patietur te nihil profuturo maerore consumi et exemplum tibi suum,
cuius ego etiam spectator fui, narrabit. Carissimum virum amiserat,
avunculum nostrum, cui virgo nupserat, in ipsa quidem navigatione:
tulit tamen eodem tempore et luctum et metum evictisque tempestatibus
corpus eius naufraga evexit.'
This theory is supported by the fact that Seneca wrote a work 'de ritu
(al., situ) et sacris Aegyptiorum' (Serv. _ad Aen._ vi. 154).
Through his aunt's influence Seneca obtained the quaestorship.
_Ad Helv._ 19, 2, 'Illa pro quaestura mea gratiam suam extendit, et
quae ne sermonis quidem aut clarae salutationis sustinuit audaciam,
pro me vicit indulgentia verecundiam.'
Seneca's quaestorship must have been after the death of his aunt's
husband, in A.D. 32, as the above passage shows, and before the death of
Tiberius in A.D. 37, as it was with Tiberius that his aunt's influence
lay, on account of her husband's services. After his quaestorship Seneca
appears to have married (cf. _de ira_, iii. 36, 3, etc.). His wife must
have died before A.D. 57, as in that year Seneca married Pompeia
Paulina; cf. Dio, lxi. 10, 3, +gamon epiphanestaton egême+. By his first
wife he had three sons (_ad Helv._ 2, 5).
While senator, Seneca incurred the jealousy of Caligula, and in A.D.
39 narrowly escaped death.
Dio, lix. 19, 7, +ho de dê Senekas ... diephtharê par'
oligon, mêt' adikêsas ti, mête doxas, hoti dikên tina en tô
synedriô parontos autou kalôs eipe+. For Seneca's attacks on Caligula
cf. _ad Helv._ 10, 4; _Apocol._ 15, etc.
Sueton. _Cal._ 53, 'Peroraturus "stricturum se lucubrationis suae
telum" minabatur; lenius comtiusque scribendi genus adeo contemnens,
ut Senecam, tum maxime placentem, "commissiones meras" componere, et
"harenam esse sine calce" diceret.'
In A.D. 41 Seneca was banished to Corsica, through the agency of
Messalina, on the charge of adultery with Iulia Livilla, sister of
Caligula, but really because he was suspected of belonging to the
faction of Agrippina.
Tac. _Ann._ xiii. 42, 'Nec Suillius questu aut exprobratione
abstinebat ... et Senecam increpans infensum amicis Claudii, sub quo
iustissimum exilium pertulisset ... Se quaestorem Germanici, illum
domus eius adulterum fuisse.'
Seneca was tried before the Senate, and Claudius prevented his
execution.
_Ad Polyb._ 13, 2, 'Deprecatus est pro me senatum, et vitam mihi non
tantum dedit, sed etiam petiit.'
While in Corsica he devoted himself to literature and science. Cf. _ad
Helv._ 20, 1 (written in exile), 'Animus omnis occupationis expers
operibus suis vacat et modo se levioribus studiis oblectat, modo ad
considerandam suam universique naturam veri avidus insurgit: terras
primum situmque earum quaerit.'
The _Consolatio ad Polybium_, written during this time, is full of
flattery of Claudius.
Dio, lxi. 10, 2, +tên Messalinan kai tous tou Klaudiou
exeleutherous ethôpeuen hôste kai biblion sphisin ek tês nêsou
pempsai epainous autôn echon, ho meta tauta hyp' aischynês
apêleipse+.
Seneca was recalled at the beginning of A.D. 49, became Nero's tutor
(although he wished to visit Athens), and obtained the praetorship
through the influence of Agrippina, with whom his name was coupled by
popular rumour.
Tac. _Ann._ xii. 8, 'At Agrippina, ne malis tantum facinoribus
notesceret, veniam exilii pro Annaeo Seneca, simul praeturam inpetrat,
laetum in publicum rata ob claritudinem studiorum eius, utque Domitii
pueritia tali magistro adulesceret et consiliis eiusdem ad spem
dominationis uterentur, quia Seneca fidus in Agrippinam memoria
beneficii et infensus Claudio dolore iniuriae credebatur.'
Schol. on _Iuv._ 5, 105, 'Revocatus ... etsi magno desiderio Athenas
intenderet ab Agrippina tamen in palatium adductus.'
Dio, lxi. 10, 1, +ou gar apechrêsen autô tên Ioulian
moicheusai, oude beltiôn ek tês phygês egeneto, alla kai tê
Agrippinê eplêsiazen.+
For Seneca's tutorship cf. also Sueton. _Nero_, 52, 'Liberales
disciplinas omnes fere puer attigit. Sed a philosophia eum mater
avertit, monens imperaturo contrariam esse: a cognitione veterum
oratorum Seneca praeceptor, quo diutius in admiratione sui detineret.'
It is probable that Seneca was, like Nero, privy to the murder of
Claudius in A.D. 54. Cf. his sarcasms against Claudius in his
_Apocolocyntosis_.
Sueton. _Nero_ 33 (of Nero), 'Cuius [Claudi] necis etsi non auctor, at
conscius fuit: neque dissimulanter, ut qui boletos, in quo cibi genere
venenum is acceperat, quasi deorum cibum, posthac proverbio Graeco
conlaudare sit solitus.'
Seneca wrote for Nero a speech which he delivered on the occasion of
Claudius' death.
Tac. _Ann._ xiii. 3, 'Die funeris laudationem eius princeps exorsus
est; dum antiquitatem generis, consulatus ac triumphos maiorum
enumerabat, intentus ipse et ceteri; liberalium quoque artium
commemoratio, et nihil regente eo triste rei publicae ab externis
accidisse, pronis animis audita. Postquam ad providentiam
sapientiamque flexit, nemo risui temperare, quamquam oratio a Seneca
composita multum cultus praeferret, ut fuit illi viro ingenium amoenum
et temporis eius auribus accommodatum.'
He acted as a check on Nero (Tac. _Ann._ xiii. 6; 11), and baffled
Agrippina's vengeance and ambition.
Tac. _Ann._ xiii. 2, 'Ibaturque in caedes, nisi Afranius Burrus et
Annaeus Seneca obviam issent. (Ch. 5) Quin et legatis Armeniorum
causam gentis apud Neronem orantibus escendere suggestum imperatoris
et praesidere simul parabat, nisi ceteris pavore defixis Seneca
admonuisset, venienti matri occurreret.'
Seneca interfered to shelter Nero in his amour with Acte, A.D. 55, and
used the occasion to stir up feud between Agrippina and Nero (Tac.
_Ann._ xiii. 13). Hence followed an attack by Agrippina on Seneca.
Tac. _Ann._ xiii. 14, 'Audiretur hinc Germanici filia, inde debilis
rursus Burrus et exsul Seneca, trunca scilicet manu et professoria
lingua generis humani regimen expostulantes.'
It is unlikely that Seneca opposed the murder of Britannicus (Feb.
A.D. 55). Cf. Tac. _Ann._ xiii. 17, 'Facinus cui plerique iam hominum
ignoscebant, antiquas fratrum discordias et insociabile regnum
aestimantes.'[75]
Seneca took part shortly afterwards in the trial in which Agrippina
was found not guilty (Tac. _Ann._ xiii. 20-21). There are many
references to Seneca's great power and wealth at this time.[76]
Cf. Dio, lxi. 4, 1, +autoi+ (Seneca and Burrus) +tên
archên hapasan parelabon kai diôkêsan eph' hoson êdynêthêsan
arista kai dikaiotata.+
Tac. _Ann._ xiv. 53 (Seneca addressing Nero in A.D. 62), 'Quartus
decimus annus est, Caesar, ex quo spei tuae admotus sum, octavus, ut
imperium obtines: medio temporis tantum honorum atque opum in me
cumulasti, ut nihil felicitati meae desit nisi moderatio eius... At
tu gratiam immensam, innumeram pecuniam circumdedisti, adeo ut
plerumque intra me ipse volvam, "Egone, equestri et provinciali loco
ortus, proceribus civitatis adnumeror? ... Talis hortos extruit, et
per haec suburbana incedit, et tantis agrorum spatiis, tam lato
faenore exuberat?"'
Tac. _Ann._ xiii. 42 (speech of Suillius, A.D. 58), 'Qua sapientia,
quibus philosophorum praeceptis, intra quadriennium regiae amicitiae
ter miliens sestertium paravisset?' (Dio, lxi. 10, 2, gives his wealth
as 75,000,000 denarii).
Seneca had many estates both in Italy (_Ep._ 123, 1, etc.) and abroad,
and lent money abroad, even in Britain. His attraction to finance is
seen in the number of metaphors he draws from that subject.
Sen. _vit. beat._ 17, 2, 'Cur trans mare possides? cur plura quam
nosti?'
Dio, lxii. 2, 1 (of the rising of the Britons under Boudicca), +ho
Senekas chilias sphisi myriadas akousin epi chrêstais elpisi tokôn
daneisas, epeit' athroas te hama autas kai biaiôs eiseprassen.+
His attack on usury (_de ben._ vii. 10, 3) is a piece of theoretic
philosophy.
In A.D. 57 Seneca was consul suffectus (Ulpian, _Dig._ xxxvi. 1). In
A.D. 58 he brought about the downfall of the former delator, P.
Suillius. Cf. Tac. _Ann._ xiii. 42, 'Variis deinde casibus iactatus et
multorum odia meritus reus, haud tamen sine invidia Senecae damnatur.
Is fuit P. Suillius.' Seneca is thought to have been implicated in
Agrippina's murder in A.D. 59. He wrote to the Senate for Nero an
account of her death.
Tac. _Ann._ xiv. 7 (Nero says after the fruitless attempt of Anicetus
to kill Agrippina), 'Quod contra subsidium sibi nisi quid Burrus et
Seneca expedirent? Quos statim acciverat, incertum an aperiens, et
ante ignaros. Igitur longum utriusque silentium, ne inriti
dissuaderent; an eo descensum credebant, ut, nisi praeveniretur
Agrippina, pereundum Neroni esset? Post Seneca, hactenus promptius, ut
respiceret Burrum, ac sciscitaretur an militi imperanda caedes esset.
(Ch. 11) Ergo non iam Nero, cuius immanitas omnium questus anteibat,
sed Seneca adverso rumore erat, quod oratione tali confessionem
scripsisset.'
The death of Burrus in A.D. 62 weakened the power of Seneca, who
resolved to retire. His request, however, was not granted by Nero
(Tac. _Ann._ xiv. 55-6), but he reduced his establishment, and lived
in semi-privacy.
Tac. _Ann._ xiv. 52, 'Mors Burri infregit Senecae potentiam, quia nec
bonis artibus idem virium erat altero velut duce amoto, et Nero ad
deteriores inclinabat. Hi variis criminationibus Senecam
adoriuntur ... Certe finitam Neronis pueritiam, et robur iuventae
adesse. Exueret magistrum, satis amplis doctoribus instructus
maioribus suis. (Ch. 56) Instituta prioris potentiae commutat,
prohibet coetus salutantium, vitat comitantis, rarus per urbem, quasi
valetudine infensa aut sapientiae studiis domi attineretur.'
Later in A.D. 62, came an unsuccessful attempt to ruin Seneca. Tac.
_Ann._ xiv. 65, 'Romanus secretis criminationibus incusaverat Senecam
ut Gai Pisonis socium; sed validius a Seneca eodem crimine perculsus
est.'
In A.D. 64, on the occasion of the burning of Rome by Nero, Seneca
wished to retire. He is said to have offered money to repair the
disasters of the fire.
Tac. _Ann._ xv. 45, 'Ferebatur Seneca, quo invidiam sacrilegii a semet
averteret, longinqui ruris secessum oravisse, et postquam non
concedebatur, ficta valetudine, quasi aeger nervis, cubiculum non
egressus.'
Dio, lxii. 25, 3, +pasan autô tên ousian epi tê tôn
oikodomoumenôn prophasei kecharismenos.+
The story given in Tac. _Ann._ xv. 45 of the attempt to poison Seneca
probably arose from his abstemious habits.
'Tradidere quidam venenum ei per libertum ipsius cui nomen Cleonicus
paratum iussu Neronis, vitatumque a Seneca proditione liberti seu
propria formidine, dum persimplici victu et agrestibus pomis, ac si
sitis admoneret, profluente aqua vitam tolerat.'
In A.D. 65 Seneca was implicated in the conspiracy of Piso, and was
forced to commit suicide. His wife wished to die with him, but was
prevented by Nero's orders.
Tac. _Ann._ xv. 60, 'Sequitur caedes Annaei Senecae, laetissima
principi, non quia coniurationis manifestum compererat, sed ut ferro
grassaretur, quando veneno non processerat ... (Ch. 63) Post quae
eodem ictu brachia ferro exsolvunt. Seneca, quoniam senile corpus et
parco victu tenuatum lenta effugia sanguini praebebat, crurum quoque
et poplitum venas abrumpit. Saevisque cruciatibus defessus, ne dolore
suo animum uxoris infringeret atque ipse visendo eius tormenta ad
impatientiam delaberetur, suadet in aliud cubiculum abscedere. Et
novissimo quoque momento suppeditante eloquentia advocatis
scriptoribus pleraque tradidit ... (Ch. 64) At Nero nullo in Paulinam
proprio odio, ac ne glisceret invidia crudelitatis, inhibere
mortem. ... Seneca interim, durante tractu et lentitudine mortis,
Statium Annaeum, diu sibi amicitiae fide et arte medicinae probatum,
orat, provisum pridem venenum, quo damnati publico Atheniensium
iudicio exstinguerentur, promeret; adlatumque hausit frustra, frigidus
iam artus, et cluso corpore adversum vim veneni. Postremo stagnum
calidae aquae introiit, respergens proximos servorum, addita voce,
libare se liquorem illum Iovi liberatori. Exin balneo inlatus, et
vapore eius exanimatus, sine ullo funeris sollemni crematur.'
There was a rumour that some of the conspirators intended to make
Seneca emperor.
Tac. _Ann._ xv. 65, 'Fama fuit Subrium Flavum cum centurionibus
occulto consilio, neque tamen ignorante Seneca, destinavisse, ut post
occisum opera Pisonis Neronem Piso quoque interficeretur,
tradereturque imperium Senecae, quasi insontibus claritudine virtutum
ad summum fastigium delecto.'
(2) WORKS.
The following prose works are extant:
1. _Dialogorum libri_ xii.
(1) _ad Lucilium: quare aliqua incommoda bonis viris accidant cum
providentia sit; sive de providentia_. This was probably a late work.
(2) _ad Serenum: nec iniuriam nec contumeliam accipere sapientem; sive
de constantia sapientis_: written in the first years of Nero's reign.
(3-5) _ad Novatum de ira libri_ iii., probably written in the first
year of Claudius' reign.
(6) _ad Marciam de consolatione_: written to console Marcia, the
daughter of Cremutius Cordus, for the death of her son Metilius. The
work may have been written in A.D. 41, as Caligula's name is
studiously avoided.
(7) _ad Gallionem de vita beata_. This book, addressed to Seneca's
brother Gallio (Novatus), was probably written shortly after A.D. 58,
and justifies his having wealth though a philosopher.
(8) _ad Serenum de otio_. This work, like the next, was addressed to
Annaeus Serenus, and was written probably about A.D. 62. Only a part
of it is extant. The book discusses whether a wise man should engage
in state affairs.
(9) _ad Serenum de tranquillitate animi_, probably written soon after
Seneca's recall.
(10) _ad Paulinum de brevitate vitae_. For the date cf. 13, 8, 'Sullam
ultimum Romanorum protulisse pomoerium.' Now, Claudius extended the
pomoerium in A.D. 50, so this must have been written in A.D. 49, as
the book was brought out after Seneca's return from exile.
(11) _ad Polybium de consolatione_. This book was addressed in A.D. 43
or 44 to Polybius, a favourite of Claudius, on the occasion of his
brother's death. The date is fixed by the reference to Claudius'
expedition to Britain in 12, 2-3. Cf. § 3, 'Non desinam totiens tibi
offerre Caesarem. Illo moderante terras et ostendente, quanto melius
beneficiis imperium custodiatur quam armis, illo rebus humanis
praeside non est periculum, ne quid perdidisse te sentias.' For
similar flattery of Claudius, cf. 7,4; 12,5.
(12) _ad Helviam matrem de consolatione_, written during his
banishment.
2. _ad Neronem Caesarem de clementia_, in three Books, two of which
are extant. The work was written in A.D. 55-6, doubtless to show the
public what sort of instruction Seneca had given Nero, and what sort
of emperor they had to expect (cf. i, 1, 1). The date is settled by i.
9, 1, '[divus Augustus] cum hoc aetatis esset quod tu nunc es,
duodevicesimum egressus annum,' Nero having been born 15th December,
A.D. 37. The flattery contained in ii. 1, 1-2, and elsewhere, can be
justified to some extent by Nero's conduct at that time. Cf. Sueton.
_Nero_, 10, 'Neque liberalitatis, neque clementiae, ne comitatis
quidem exhibendae ullam occasionem omisit.'
3. _De Beneficiis_ in seven Books, addressed to Aebutius Liberalis of
Lugdunum. It is probable that Books i.-iv. were published first,
shortly after the death of Claudius (who is sneered at in i. 15, 6).
Books v.-vii. are probably a later addition. Cf. v. 1, 1, 'In
prioribus libris videbar consummasse propositum ... Quidquid ultra
moror, non servio materiae, sed indulgeo ... Verum quia ita vis,
perseveremus peractis.' The eulogy of Demetrius the Cynic in vii.
8-12, makes it probable that Book vii. at least was written in
Seneca's last years.
4. _Apocolocyntosis_, a political satire on Claudius, written shortly
after his death in A.D. 54. The explanation of the title is given by
Dio, lx. 35, 2, +Agrippina kai ho Neron ... es ton ouranon anêgagon
hon ek tou symposiou phoradên exenênochesan. hotheuper Loukios Iounios
Galliôn ho tou Seneka adelphos asteiotaton ti apephthenxato; synethêke
men gar kai ho Senekas syngramma, apokolokyntôsin auto hôsper tina
apathanatisin onomasas, ekeinos de en brachytatô polla eipôn
apomnêmoneuetai ... ephê ton Klaudion ankistrô es ton ouranon
anenechthênai+. The work does not bear this title in the MSS., and
there is no hint of the witticism in the book itself; the St. Gall
MS., however, has 'Divi Claudii +APOTHÊOSIS+ Annei Senecae per
Saturam,' which may be a corruption of the proper title. The title is
derived from +kolokyntê+, 'a gourd,' which was used to denote a fool.
Seneca (_Apocol._ 6) takes the official view that Claudius died of a
fever. The work may have been published at the Saturnalia, and written
shortly before, as Narcissus is represented as having just arrived in
Orcus. The personal animosity of Seneca against Caligula and Claudius
is everywhere apparent.
5. _Naturales Quaestiones_ in seven Books, addressed to Lucilius. Book
ii. was written after A.D. 57, as in ii. 9, 2 an amphitheatre is
mentioned which was built by Nero in that year. The work was finished
before the end of A.D. 64, for in Book vii. there is no mention among
other prodigies of the comet which appeared again at the end of that
year.
6. _Epistulae morales ad Lucilium_. These were addressed to Lucilius
Iunior, the author of 'Aetna' (see p. 277). There are extant one
hundred and twenty four letters, in twenty Books, but some Books have
been lost, as Gell. xii. 2, 3 quotes from Book xxii. Books i.-iii.
were probably published by Seneca, the rest after his death, generally
in chronological order.
The following poetical works are extant:
1. _Epigrams._--Nine on his exile are given in the editions; probably
only Nos. 1, 2, and 7 are genuine.
2. _Tragedies._--Some of these may have been composed during Seneca's
exile in Corsica. See _ad Helv._ 20 (quoted p. 243). The metrical
treatment is strict, especially in the senarii. Anapaestic, glyconic,
sapphic lines, etc., are used in the choral odes. There are only three
actors, except in the spurious _Octavia_. The plays are: (1) _Hercules
Furens_ and (2) _Troades_ or _Hecuba_, founded on Euripides. (3)
_Phoenissae_ or _Thebais_. The two parts do not correspond. In ll.
1-362, Oedipus and Antigone are on their way to Cithaeron; from l. 363
to the end we find Iocasta and Antigone in Thebes while it is besieged
by the Seven. (4) _Medea_, founded on Euripides. Ovid has also been
imitated; so ll. 56 _sqq._ from Ovid, _Heroides_, 12, 137. (5)
_Phaedra_ or _Hippolytus_. (6) _Oedipus_, after Sophocles. (7)
_Agamemnon_, after Aeschylus. (8) _Thyestes_. (9) _Hercules Oetaeus_,
of which the second part, at least, is spurious. (10) _Octavia_, a
praetexta, describing the death of Octavia, Nero's wife (A.D. 62).
Seneca himself appears in it. It cannot be by Seneca, as Nero's
downfall (A.D. 68) is mentioned in ll. 628-36.
The following works are lost or exist only in fragments:
i. Poems of a light nature (Pliny, _Ep._ v. 3). 2. _De motu terrarum_,
afterwards incorporated in _N.Q._ vi. (see _N.Q._ vi. 4, 2). 3. _De
lapidum natura_. 4. _De piscium natura_. 5. _De ritu et sacris
Aegyptiorum_ (see p. 242). 6. _De situ Indiae_. 7. _De forma mundi_.
8. _Exhortationes_. 9. _De officiis_. 10. _De immatura morte_. 11. _De
superstitione dialogus_. 12. _De matrimonio_. 13. _De amicitia_. 14.
_De vita patris_, along with an edition of his works. 15. Speeches by
himself or by Nero. 16. _Epistulae_ (a) _ad Novatum_, probably written
from Corsica, (b) _ad Caesonium Maximum_. 17. A book in praise of
Messalina, afterwards withdrawn (see p. 243). 18. _Moralis
philosophiae libri_ (see _Ep._ 106, 2). 19. _De remediis fortuitorum_,
addressed to Gallio. A synopsis with additions is extant. 20. _De
paupertate_. 21. _De formula honestae vitae_, probably founded on one
of Seneca's works. 22. _Notae_ (see Sueton. pp. 135-6 R.).
The following are spurious works:
1. 'Epistulae Senecae, Neronis imperatoris magistri, ad Paulum
Apostolum et Pauli Apostoli ad Senecam.' These letters, fourteen in
all, are accepted as genuine by Jerome, _de vir. illustr._ 12. 'Seneca
... quem non ponerem in catalogo sanctorum, nisi me epistulae illae
provocarent, quae leguntur a plurimis, Pauli ad Senecam et Senecae ad
Paulum.'
2. A work extant under the title of _Sententiae Rufi_ has been wrongly
thought to correspond to Seneca's dying words mentioned in Tac. _Ann._
xv. 63.
3. The book _De moribus_ or _Monita_ contains maxims by Christian
writers.
_Views and Character._--For Seneca's training in Stoic doctrines see
_Ep._ 108, 13 (quoted p. 241). With these views he generally
associates himself (cf. _Ep._ 113, 1; 117, 1), but does not bind
himself to one school.
Cf. _Ep._ 45, 4, 'Non enim me cuiquam emancipavi, nullius nomen fero.
Multum magnorum virorum iudicio credo, aliquid et meo vindico.'
Especially towards the end of his life, he came under the influence of
Demetrius the Cynic.
_Ep._ 62, 3, 'Demetrium, virorum optimum, mecum circumfero et relictis
conchyliatis cum illo seminudo loquor, ilium admiror. Quidni admirer?
vidi nihil ei deesse.'
In _de provid._ 5, 7, after quoting Demetrius' fatalistic views,
Seneca adds, 'Fata nos ducunt, et quantum cuique temporis restat,
prima nascentium hora disposuit.'
Seneca was one of the few Romans who condemned the butcheries
practised in the arena, and his views doubtless influenced Nero's
conduct in A.D. 58.
_Ep._ 95, 33, 'Homo, sacra res homini, iam per lusum ac iocum
occiditur et quem erudiri ad inferenda accipiendaque volnera nefas
erat, is iam nudus inermisque producitur satisque spectaculi ex homine
mors est.'
Tac. _Ann._ xiii. 31, 'Edixit Caesar ne quis magistratus aut
procurator, qui provinciam obtineret, spectaculum gladiatorum aut
ferarum aut quod aliud ludicrum ederet.'
For Seneca's love of wealth see p. 246. For his estimate of riches cf.
_De vita beata_, 22, 5. 'Apud me divitiae aliquem locum habent, apud
te summum ac postremum. Divitiae meae sunt, tu divitiarum es.'
His simplicity of life has been already dealt with.
Dio, lxi. 10, 2, gives a most unjust account of Seneca's character:
+panta ta enantiôtata hois ephilosophei poiôn êlenchthê. kai
gar tyrannidos katêgorôn tyrannodidaskalos egineto, kai tôn synontôn
tois dynastais katatrechôn ouk aphistato tou palatiou ... tois te
plousiois enkalôn ousian heptakischiliôn kai pentakosiôn myriadôn
ektêsato.+
Seneca followed no traditional style. Cf. _Ep._ 100, 6, 'De
compositione non constat'; _Ep._ 114, 13, 'Oratio certam regulam non
habet.' Quintilian, x. 1, 125-131, attacks his style, though admitting
his great powers.
CURTIUS RUFUS.
The full name is Q. Curtius Rufus, given in the MSS. of his work,
'Historiarum Alexandri Magni Macedonis Libri x.', the first two Books
of which are lost. Curtius is not referred to by name by any ancient
writer, but is probably identical with the Q. Curtius Rufus mentioned
in the list prefixed to Sueton. _de claris oratoribus_ between M.
Porcius Latro and L. Valerius Primanus. This order favours the view
that he belonged to the reign of Claudius, a view supported by the two
contemporary references in Curtius:
iv. 4, 21 (of Tyre), 'nunc tandem longa pace cuncta refovente sub
tutela Romanae mansuetudinis adquiescit.'
x. 9, 3-6, 'Quod imperium sub uno stare potuisset, dum a pluribus
sustinetur, ruit. Proinde iure meritoque populus Romanus salutem se
principi suo debere profitetur, qui noctis, quam paene supremam
habuimus, novum sidus inluxit. Huius hercule, non solis ortus lucem
caliganti reddidit mundo, cum sine suo capite discordia membra
trepidarent,' etc.
This passage probably refers to the tumultuous scene on the night
between 24th and 25th Jan., A.D. 41, before Claudius' accession, after
the murder of Caligula (cf. the pun in _caliganti_), when rival
claimants to the throne were put forward, and the Senate wished to
restore the republic (cf. _discordia membra trepidarent_). Sen. _ad
Polyb._ 13, 1, uses similar language of Claudius, 'Sidus hoc, quod
praecipitato in profundum et demerso in tenebras orbi refulsit, semper
luceat.'
As Curtius says nothing but good about the reign of Claudius, he
probably wrote shortly after his accession. The passage in iv. 4, 21
(above) also fits in with this view, as there was little fighting in
the Roman world from 17 to 43 A.D. His bold tone with regard to rulers
would also suit this time, while it would have been dangerous under
Caligula, or from 43 to 54 A.D.
Cf. viii. 5, 6, 'Non deerat talia concupiscenti perniciosa adulatio,
perpetuum malum regum, quorum opes saepius adsentatio quam hostis
evertit.'
This tone also renders it impossible to identify him with Curtius
Rufus, mentioned in Tac. _Ann._ xi. 21, as governor of Africa, and as
'adversus superiores tristi adulatione, adrogans minoribus, inter
pares difficilis.'
Seneca is supposed to have quoted his contemporary Curtius once or
twice. Cf. Sen. _Ep._ 56, 9, 'Nihil tam certum est quam otii vitia
negotio discuti'; and Curt. vii. 1, 4, 'Satis prudens, otii vitia
negotio discuti.' Cf. also viii. 10, 29 with Sen. _Ep._ 59, 12.
Curtius claims to transcribe his authorities carefully. Cf. ix. 1, 34,
'Equidem plura transscribo quam credo: nam nec adfirmare sustineo, de
quibus dubito, nec subducere quae accepi.'
Curtius' statements are usually parallel to those of one or other of
the historians of Alexander, but he appeals only twice to other
authorities by name.
ix. 8, 15, 'Clitarchus (c. 300 B.C.) est auctor.'
ix. 5, 21, 'Ptolemaeum (c. 300 B.C.), qui postea regnavit, huic pugnae
adfuisse auctor est Clitarchus et Timagenes (c. 55 B.C.). Sed ipse ...
afuisse se missum in expeditionem memoriae tradidit.'
The rhetorical tone of the work is seen in the speeches and letters.
For the latter cf. iv. 1, 10-74. Curtius has little technical
knowledge of war or politics. Thus Alexander's assumption of oriental
pomp to conciliate the Asiatics is looked on as +hybris+. Cf.
iii. 12, 18. Like Livy, he attempts to depreciate Alexander's
abilities by unduly accentuating his good fortune.
Cf. viii. 3, 1, 'Sed hanc quoque expeditionem, ut pleraque alia,
fortuna indulgendo ei numquam fatigata pro absente transegit.'
COLUMELLA.
L. Iunius Moderatus Columella was a native of Gades: x. 185, 'mea
[lactuca] quam generant Tartessi littore Gades.' On an inscription he
is styled 'trib. mil. leg. vi. ferratae' (_C.I.L._ ix. 325), and it
was probably in the course of his military service that he visited
Cilicia and Syria: ii. 10, 18, 'hoc semen Ciliciae Syriaeque
regionibus ipse vidi.'
His uncle, M. Columella, was a leading man in the province of Baetica
(v. 5, 15); and he himself possessed land in Italy: iii. 9, 2, 'cum et
in Ardeatino agro, quem multis temporibus ipsi ante possedimus, et in
Carseolano itemque in Albano generis Aminei vites huius modi notae
habuerimus.'
He was a contemporary of the younger Seneca, who is spoken of as alive
(iii. 3, 3).
His chief work is _De Re Rustica_ in twelve Books, dedicated to P.
Silvinus--a practical treatise on husbandry for 'negotiosi agricolae'
(ix. 2, 5). Book x., on gardening, is in hexameter verse, and was
written at the suggestion of Silvinus and another friend, to fill the
gap which Virgil had left in the Georgics (iv. 147-8); cf. the
preface, 'Cultus hortorum ... sicut institueram, prosa oratione
prioribus subnecteretur exordiis, nisi propositum expugnasset frequens
postulatio tua, quae pervicit, ut poeticis numeris explerem Georgici
carminis omissas partes, quas tamen et ipse Vergilius significaverat,
posteris se memorandas relinquere.'
The last two Books were added as an afterthought; xi. 1, 2, 'numerum
quem iam quasi consummaveram voluminum excessi.'
Columella wrote before A.D. 65 (see above); later than Celsus, but
earlier than the elder Pliny.
There is also extant a book _De Arboribus_, which formed Book ii. of
an earlier treatise on agriculture: cf. i. 1, 'Quoniam de cultu
agrorum abunde primo volumine praecepisse videmur, non intempestiva
erit arborum virgultorumque cura.' It covers the same ground as _De
R.R._ iii.-v.
Columella also wrote 'adversus astrologos' (xi. 1, 31), and projected
a treatise on the religious rites connected with agriculture (ii. 22,
5, 'lustrationum ceterorumque sacrificiorum, quae pro frugibus fiunt,
morem priscis usurpatum').
POMPONIUS MELA.
The geographer Pomponius Mela was a native of Tingentera in Spain (ii.
96). His date can be inferred from iii. 49; the 'principum maximus'
mentioned there as triumphing over Britain might be either Claudius
(in A.D. 40) or Caligula (in 44); but the earlier date is favoured by
Mela's division of Africa according to the system abolished by
Caligula in 42 (i. 25-30). The title of his work is _De Chorographia_,
in three Books: the dryness of its details (i. 1, 'opus impeditum et
facundiae minime capax') is relieved by word-painting, _e.g._ the
description of Britain, iii. 49. The only authors to whom he
acknowledges obligations are Nepos (iii. 45) and Hanno (iii. 90).
PERSIUS.
(1) LIFE.
We possess a very full account of the life of Persius, which,
according to the MSS., is taken from Probus' commentary on the poet,
and may therefore be looked upon as trustworthy. According to Probus
(from whom are taken the quotations throughout), he lived from 34 to
62 A.D.: 'Aulus Persius Flaccus natus est pridie Non. Decembr. Fabio
Persico L. Vitellio coss., decessit viii. Kal. Decembr. Rubrio Mario
Asinio Gallo coss.' These dates are confirmed by Jerome.
He was born at Volaterrae in Etruria, and was the son of a Roman
knight who died when Persius was quite young:
'Natus in Etruria Volaterris, eques Romanus, sanguine et affinitate
primi ordinis viris coniunctus. Pater eum Flaccus pupillum reliquit
moriens annorum fere sex.'
'Fulvia Sisennia (his mother) nupsit postea Fuscio equiti Romano.'
After the completion of his early education (for which see _Sat._ 3,
44-51) he studied at Rome, where he came under the influence of the
Stoic Annaeus Cornutus:
'Studuit Flaccus usque ad annum xii. aetatis suae Volaterris, inde
Romae apud grammaticum Remmium Palaemonem et apud rhetorem Verginium
Flavum. Cum esset annorum xvi., amicitia coepit uti Annaei Cornuti,
ita ut nusquam ab eo discederet; inductus aliquatenus in philosophiam
est.'
In _Sat._ 5, 21-24 and 30-51, he speaks in the highest terms of
Cornutus as his guide in life and close friend: cf. esp. ll. 36-7,
'teneros tu suspicis annos,
Socratico, Cornute, sinu.'
Among his other friends were Caesius Bassus (to whom _Sat._ 6 is
addressed), Lucan, Seneca, and his own relative, Paetus Thrasea:
'Cognovit per Cornutum etiam Annaeum Lucanum, aequaevum auditorem
Cornuti. Lucanus adeo mirabatur scripta Flacci ut vix retineret se
recitante eo cum clamore quin illa esse vera poemata diceret, sua ipse
ludos faceret. Sero cognovit et Senecam, sed non ut caperetur eius
ingenio ... Idem decem fere annis summe dilectus a Paeto Thrasea est,
ita ut peregrinaretur quoque cum eo aliquando, cognatam eius Arriam
uxorem habente.'
Persius was a man of considerable means, as is shown by his will and
his landed property:
'Reliquit circa HS vicies matri et sorori; scriptis tamen ad matrem
codicillis Cornuto rogavit ut daret sestertia ut quidam centum, ut
alii volunt ..., et argenti facti pondo viginti, et libros circa
septingentos sive bibliothecam suam omnem. Verum a Cornuto sublatis
libris, pecuniam sororibus, quas heredes frater fecerat, reliquit.'
'Decessit ad octavum miliarium via Appia in praediis suis ... vitio
stomachi anno aetatis xxviii.'
His character was lofty and disinterested:
'Fuit morum lenissimorum, verecundiae virginalis, formae pulchrae,
pietatis erga matrem et sororem et amitam exemplo sufficientis. Fuit
frugi, pudicus.'
(2) WORKS.
1. His early works, which Cornutus caused to be destroyed at his
death, were:
(_a_) A praetexta, called _Vescia_ (?).
(_b_) One Book of +hodoiporika+, no doubt referring to his
travels with Thrasea.
(_c_) Some verses on Arria, the wife of Paetus.
'Scripserat in pueritia Flaccus etiam praetextam Vesciam, et
+hodoiporikôn+ librum unum, et paucos in socrum Thraseae in Arriam
matrem versus ... Omnia ea auctor fuit Cornutus matri eius ut
aboleret.'
2. _Satires._ There are six of these (in hexameters), with a prologue
(in scazons). Persius wrote slowly, and the Book was left unfinished:
'Et raro et tarde scripsit. Hunc ipsum librum imperfectum reliquit.
Versus aliqui dempti sunt ultimo libro, ut quasi finitus esset.
Leviter retractavit Cornutus, et Caesio Basso petenti, ut ipsi
cederet, tradidit edendum.'
The prologue, and the first satire (on literary criticism)--the only
real satire he wrote--are said to be imitated from Lucilius. The other
five are largely Stoic dissertations in verse, and show throughout the
influence of Cornutus and Persius' other Stoic friends. Probus says he
attacked Nero's poetry in _Sat._ 1.
'Lecto Lucilii libro x. vehementer satiras componere instituit, cuius
libri principium imitatus est ... cum tanta recentium poetarum et
oratorum insectatione, ut etiam Neronem ... culpaverit, cuius versus
in Neronem cum ita se haberet:
'Auriculas asini Mida rex habet,'
in eum modum a Cornuto, ipso iam tum mortuo, est emendatus:
'Auriculas asini quis non habet?' [1, 121]
ne hoc Nero in se dictum arbitraretur.'
_Sat._ 1, 99-102 is said to be a travesty of Nero's poetry.
Very few passages, however, are quoted by the Scholiasts as modelled
on Lucilius.
Persius refers to Lucilius and Horace in 1, 114-8:
'Secuit Lucilius urbem,
te, Lupe, te, Muci, et genuinum fregit in illis;
omne vafer vitium ridenti Flaccus amico
tangit, et admissus circum praecordia ludit,
callidus excusso populum suspendere naso.'
His obligations to Horace are paramount, imitations--often
unintentional burlesques--occurring everywhere. Examples are: 1, 42,
'cedro digna locutus,
linquere nec scombros metuentia carmina nec tus.'
from Hor. _A.P._ 331,
'carmina ... linenda cedro';
and Hor. _Ep._ ii. 1, 269,
'Deferar in vicum vendentem tus et odores
et piper et quidquid chartis amicitur ineptis.'
Again, 5, 103,
'exclamet Melicerta perisse
frontem de rebus';
from Hor. _Ep._ ii. 1, 80,
'clament periise pudorem
cuncti paene patres.'
He even borrows Horace's names: Pedius (1, 85), Natta (3, 31), Nerius
(2, 14), Craterus (3, 65), Bestius (6, 37).
The statement of Joannes Lydus (i. 41) that Persius imitated the mimic
writer, Sophron, has little to support it.
Probus says the work became immediately popular: 'Editum librum
continuo mirari homines et diripere coeperunt.'
Cf. also Quint. x. 1, 94, 'multum et verae gloriae quamvis uno libro
Persius meruit'; Mart. iv. 29, 7,
'Saepius in libro memoratur Persius uno
quam levis in tota Marsus Amazonide.'
LUCAN.
(1) LIFE.
Besides references to Lucan in other writers, especially Statius,
Martial, and Tacitus, we have three biographies of him: (1) a short
and defective life, probably by Suetonius, and showing his well-known
hatred of the Annaei; (2) one by Vacca, a commentator on Lucan, who
lived probably in the sixth century, complete and favourable; (3) one
in Codex Vossianus ii. The last two are in part derived from the
first.
M. Annaeus Lucanus was born at Corduba in Hispania Baetica, and was
the son of M. Annaeus Mela, a Roman knight, and nephew of M. Annaeus
Novatus (the Gallio of Acts 18, 12-17) and L. Annaeus Seneca the
philosopher.
Vacca, _vit. Luc._, 'M. Annaeus Lucanus patrem habuit M. Annaeum Melam
ex provincia Baetica Hispaniae interioris Cordubensem equitem Romanum,
illustrem inter suos, notum Romae et propter Senecam fratrem, clarum
per omnes virtutes virum, et propter studium vitae quietioris ...
Matrem habuit et regionis eiusdem et urbis Aciliam nomine, Acilii
Lucani filiam ... cuius cognomen huic inditum apparet.'
Tac. _Ann._ xvi. 17, 'Mela, quibus Gallio et Seneca, parentibus
natus ... Idem Annaeum Lucanum genuerat, grande adiumentum
claritudinis.'
Lucan was born Nov. 3, A.D. 39, and was removed to Rome when eight
months old.
Vacca, _ibid._, 'Natus est iii. Non. Novembr. C. Caesare Germanico ii.
L. Apronio Caesiano coss. Octavum mensem agens Romam translatus est.'
He had a successful school and college career. One of his teachers was
Cornutus, through whom he knew Persius (see p. 261).
Vacca, _ibid._, 'A praeceptoribus tunc eminentissimis est eruditus
eosque intra breve temporis spatium ingenio adaequavit ... Declamavit
et graece et latine cum magna admiratione audientium.'
His first literary success was the _laudes Neronis_ in A.D. 60; this
led to his political advancement.
Sueton. _vit. Luc._, 'Prima ingenii experimenta in Neronis laudibus
dedit quinquennali certamine.'
Vacca, _ibid._, 'Ob quod puerili mutato in senatorium cultum et in
notitiam Caesaris Neronis facile pervenit et honore vixdum aetati
debito dignus iudicatus est. Gessit autem quaesturam, in qua cum
collegis more tunc usitato munus gladiatorium edidit secundo populi
favore; sacerdotium etiam accepit auguratus.'
Similarly Suetonius, who also tells us that Lucan had been in Athens.
Sueton. _ibid._, 'Revocatus Athenis a Nerone cohortique amicorum
additus atque etiam quaestura honoratus, non tamen permansit in
gratia.'
The reason of the strained relations between Lucan and the emperor
was, according to Suetonius, that Lucan had behaved rudely when
reciting in public. Vacca says the reason lay in the jealousy felt by
Nero, who forbade Lucan to write poetry or to plead causes.
Vacca, _ibid._, 'Quippe et certamine pentaeterico acto in Pompei
theatro laudibus recitatis in Neronem fuerat coronatus et ex tempore
Orphea scriptum in experimentum adversum conplures ediderat poetas et
tres libros, quales videmus. Quare inimicum sibi fecerat imperatorem.
Quo ambitiosa vanitate, non hominum tantum, sed et artium sibi
principatum vindicante interdictum est ei poetica, interdictum est
etiam causarum actionibus.'
Cf. Tac. _Ann._ xv. 49, 'Famam carminum eius premebat Nero
prohibueratque ostentare, vanus adsimulatione.'
Lucan replied by a poem satirizing Nero and his court.
Sueton. _ibid._, 'Sed et famoso carmine cum ipsum tum potentissimos
amicorum gravissime proscidit.'
Lucan joined the conspiracy of Piso which was started A.D. 62, but was
discovered, and compelled to commit suicide, 30th April, A.D. 65.
Sueton. _ibid._, 'Paene signifer Pisonianae coniurationis extitit.'
Vacca, _ibid._, 'A coniuratis in caedem Neronis socius adsumptus est,
sed parum fauste. Deceptus est a Pisone ... Sua sponte coactus vita
excedere venas sibi praecidit periitque pridie Kal. Maias Attico
Vestino et Nerva Siliano coss., xxvi. aetatis annum agens.'
Tac. _Ann._ xv. 70, 'Exin Annaei Lucani caedem imperat. Is, profluente
sanguine, ubi frigescere pedes manusque et paulatim ab extremis cedere
spiritum fervido adhuc et compote mentis pectore intellegit,
recordatus carmen a se compositum, quo volneratum militem per eius
modi mortis imaginem obisse tradiderat, versus ipsos rettulit, eaque
illi suprema vox fuit.'
Suetonius (corroborated by Tac. _Ann._ xv. 56) says that Lucan named
his mother as a fellow-conspirator.
'Verum detecta coniuratione nequaquam parem animi constantiam
praestitit. Facile enim confessus et ad humillimas devolutus preces
matrem quoque innoxiam inter socios nominavit, sperans impietatem sibi
apud parricidam principem profuturam.... Epulatus largiter brachia ad
secandas venas praebuit medico.'
Lucan married Polla Argentaria. Statius and Martial were her friends,
and seem to have kept up an observance of Lucan's birthday.
Cf. especially Statius, _Silvae_, ii. 7, on which the author, in his
preface to the book, says, 'Cludit volumen genethliacon Lucani, quod
Polla Argentaria, clarissima uxorum, cum hunc diem forte
consecraremus, imputari sibi voluit.'
Martial vii. 21, 22, and 23 are written on the subject of Lucan's
birthday.
(2) WORKS.
1. The only extant work of Lucan is _De Bello Civili_. This is the
title in the MSS., and in Petron. 118. The usual title comes from ix.
985, 'Pharsalia nostra vivet,' words which come after a list of places
in Greece and Asia immortalized by the poets, and which mean 'My story
of Pharsalus shall live.' There is no evidence that Lucan gave the
poem this title.
2. _Lost works._ Vacca mentions the following:
(_a_) In verse: Orpheus; Iliacon; Saturnalia; Catachthonion; Silvarum
x.; tragoedia Medea (imperfecta): Salticae Fabulae, xiv.; epigrammata.
(_b_) In prose: Oratio in Octavium Sagittam et pro eo; de incendio
urbis; epistulae ex Campania.
Suetonius also mentions 'Neronis laudes; famosum carmen in Neronem.'
Stat. _Silv._ ii. 7, 62, mentions another work--'allocutio ad Pollam'
(his wife).
Lucan's works became immediately popular.
Sueton. _ibid._, 'Poemata eius etiam praelegi memini, confici vero ac
proponi, non tantum operose et diligenter, sed et inepte quoque.'
Mart. xiv. 194,
'Sunt quidam qui me dicunt non esse poetam:
sed qui me vendit bibliopola putat.'
The epic poem _De Bello Civili_ in ten Books (the last incomplete)
carries the story of the Civil War down to the point where Caesar is
besieged in Alexandria. Vacca informs us that Lucan did not live to
correct the last seven Books.
'Ediderat ... tres libros quales videmus ... Reliqui vii. belli
civilis libri locum calumniantibus tamquam mendosi non darent, qui
tametsi sub vero crimine non egent patrocinio: in isdem dici, quod in
Ovidii libris praescribitur, potest: "emendaturus, si licuisset,
erat."'
_Lucan's political views._--The first three Books were published when
Lucan was still on good terms with Nero (cf. the gross flattery in i.
33-66), but practically the same view of the empire is taken
throughout the poem; only Lucan expresses his views with greater
vigour in the last seven Books; and, while in Books i.-iii. the
question is one between Caesar and Pompey, afterwards it is one
between Caesar and liberty. Even in Books i.-iii. Caesar is the
villain of the piece; Pompey embodies all that is good; Cato and
Brutus are highly spoken of; the former stands as the ideal Stoic. The
Senate, except in Book v. _ad init._, appears in a rather unfavourable
light, and so does the plebs. Lucan did not want the re-establishment
of the republican oligarchy, but acquiesced in the empire as being
ordained by fate. This is borne out by what we know of the Pisonian
conspiracy, the object of which was not to re-establish the republic,
but to put some leading man like Seneca on the throne. A few
quotations will exemplify these points:
(1) The empire; iv. 691,
'Libyamque auferre tyranno
dum regnum te, Roma, facit';
vii. 432,
'Quod fugiens civile nefas redituraque nunquam
libertas ultra Tigrim Rhenumque recessit';
vii. 442,
'Felices Arabes Medique eoaque tellus,
quam sub perpetuis tenuerunt fata tyrannis.
Ex populis qui regna ferunt, sors ultima nostra est,
quos servire pudet.'
(2) Pompeius; ii. 732-6,
'Non quia te superi patrio privare sepulchro
maluerint, Phariae busto damnantur harenae:
parcitur Hesperiae; procul hoc et in orbe remoto
abscondat fortuna nefas, Romanaque tellus
inmaculata sui servetur sanguine Magni.'
Cf. ix. 601-4 (where apotheosis is assigned him).
(3) Cato (the hero of Book ix.) and Brutus; ii. 234,
'At non magnanimi percussit pectora Bruti
terror';
ix. 554,
'Nam cui crediderim superos arcana daturos
dicturosque magis quam sancto vera Catoni?'
Cf. ix. 186-9.
(4) Caesar; ii. 439,
'Caesar in arma furens nullas nisi sanguine fuso
gaudet habere vias';
v. 242,
'perdere successus scelerum';
vii. 593,
'nondum attigit arcem
iuris et humanum columen, quo cuncta premuntur,
egressus meruit fatis tam nobile letum.
Vivat et, ut Bruti procumbat victima, regnet.'
Caesar's acts are sometimes unfairly represented, as in vii. 798
_sqq._, ix. 1035 _sqq._ (on viewing Pompeius' corpse); ll. 1038-9,
'lacrimas non sponte cadentis
effudit gemitusque expressit pectore laeto.'
_Lucan's philosophical and religious views._--His Stoicism comes out
strongly in the poem, ix. 566-84 (speech of Cato), especially 578-80,
'Estque dei sedes, nisi terra et pontus et aër
et caelum et virtus? Superos quid quaerimus ultra?
Iuppiter est, quodcumque vides, quodcumque moveris?'
vii. 814,
'Communis mundo superest rogus ossibus astra
mixturus.'
Note especially the very frequent references to fate; i. 263-4,
'cunctasque pudoris
rumpunt fata moras.'
The gods are not introduced as chief agents; cf. the censure of
Petronius quoted below. Lucan prides himself on despising the gods,
and substitutes for them his favourite divinity, Fortuna; i. 128,
'Victrix causa deis placuit, sed victa Catoni';
vii. 445,
'Sunt nobis nulla profecto
numina; cum caeco rapiantur saecula casu,
mentimur regnare Iovem.'
_Rhetorical treatment_ is seen in (1) the vast amount of hyperbole
employed; cf. the account of the siege of Massilia, iii. 538-762; (2)
the geographical and mythological learning introduced. This is
sometimes inaccurate; the best known instance is his confusion of
Pharsalus and Philippi; cf. i. 1 and 688.
_Lucan's models._--(1) For diction, chiefly Virgil.[77] Horace and
Ovid are also imitated.
(2) For history Lucan is supposed to have used Livy mostly. How far he
used other authorities is unknown. His history is sometimes inexact.
In ii. 478 _sqq._ the character of L. Domitius Ahenobarbus is falsely
portrayed. So the journey of Cato to the shrine of Hammon, ix. 511
_sqq._
(3) Seneca is one of his authorities for science and philosophy. Thus
in describing the Nile, x. 194-331, Lucan has used Seneca, _Nat.
Quaest._ iv. 1-2. The biographer of the _Codex Vossianus_ ii.
attributes (probably wrongly) the first seven verses of Book i. to
Seneca.
'Seneca, qui fuit avonculus eius, quia ex abrupto incohabat, hos vii.
versus addidit: "Bella per Emathios" usque "et pila minantia pilis."'
_Criticisms of Lucan._--Petronius, in introducing his parody of Lucan,
says, § 118, 'Ecce belli civilis ingens opus quisquis attigerit, nisi
plenus litteris, sub onere labetur. Non enim res gestae versibus
comprehendendae sunt, quod longe melius historici faciunt, sed per
ambages deorumque ministeria et fabulosum sententiarum tormentum
praecipitandus est liber spiritus.' See p. 275.
Quint. x. 1, 90, 'Lucanus ardens et concitatus et sententiis
clarissimus et, ut dicam quod sentio, magis oratoribus quam poetis
imitandus.'
PETRONIUS.
The _Satirae_ of Petronius are attributed in the MSS. to Petronius
Arbiter. It is practically certain that the author was C. Petronius,
once proconsul of Bithynia and afterwards consul, who was long a
member of Nero's inner circle, and who, in A.D. 66, when accused by
Tigellinus, anticipated execution by suicide.
Tac. _Ann._ xvi. 18, 'Proconsul Bithyniae, et mox consul, vigentem se
ac parem negotiis ostendit. Dein revolutus ad vitia, seu vitiorum
imitatione, inter paucos familiarium Neroni adsumptus est, elegantiae
arbiter, dum nihil amoenum et molle adfluentia putat, nisi quod ei
Petronius adprobavisset. Unde invidia Tigellini ... (Ch. 19) Forte ...
Campaniam petiverat Caesar, et Cumas usque progressus Petronius illic
attinebatur. Nec tulit ultra timoris aut spei moras. Neque tamen
praeceps vitam expulit, sed incisas venas, ut libitum, obligatas
aperire rursum, et adloqui amicos, non per seria aut quibus gloriam
constantiae peteret ... Flagitia principis sub nominibus exoletorum
feminarumque et novitatem cuiusque stupri perscripsit, atque obsignata
misit Neroni.'
The document mentioned above as sent to Nero has nothing to do with
the extant _Satirae_. That C. Petronius is the author of the work is
rendered even more certain from the fact that it was obviously written
in Nero's time by a man of high culture and knowledge of the world.
The novel contains an account of the adventures of a certain
Encolpius, as told by himself. Encolpius comes in contact with Priapus
in Massilia, Cumae, and Croton; and probably the wrath of Priapus (a
parody of the wrath of Poseidon in the Odyssey) is the leading motive
that binds the disjointed parts. Cf. ch. 139,
'Me quoque per terras, per cani Nereos aequor
Hellespontiaci sequitur gravis ira Priapi.'
The work, the extant parts of which are from Books xv. and xvi., is in
form a Satira Menippea,[78] alternately prose and verse. The longer
episodes, as the supper of Trimalchio and the story of the matron of
Ephesus, are exclusively prose. In the _Cena Trimalchionis_, where
Encolpius and his company are entertained by a rich freedman,
Petronius has given us a correct account of provincial life in South
Italy. Mommsen (_Hermes_, xiii. 106) has shown that Cumae was the town
where Trimalchio lived. It is a 'Graeca urbs' (ch. 81), and a Roman
colony (ch. 44, etc.), so that it cannot be Naples. The chief
magistrates are called _praetores_ (ch. 65), which suits Cumae alone
of the towns of this district. The only objection to Cumae being the
place is the passage in ch. 48, where an event at Cumae is given as
something wonderful and unusual:
'Nam Sibyllam quidem Cumis ego ipse oculis meis vidi in ampulla
pendere, et cum illi pueri dicerent: +Sibylla, ti theleis?+
respondebat illa: +apothanein thelo+.'
This, however, may simply be given for comic effect. Friedländer
thinks _Cumis_ is a wrong reading. The date of Encolpius' adventures
cannot be under Tiberius, for the emperor is called 'pater patriae'
(ch. 60), a title which Tiberius refused. Mommsen thinks the dramatic
date is under Augustus; Friedländer,[79] towards the end of Claudius'
or the beginning of Nero's reign. The cognomen of Trimalchio,
Maecenatianus (ch. 71), means that he was a freedman of the well-known
Maecenas. Trimalchio, therefore, came to Rome as a boy (ch. 29; 75)
before Maecenas' death (B.C. 8), and was probably born about B.C. 18.
He is represented as 'senex' (ch. 27), _i.e._ at least sixty, but may
have been over seventy. A.D. 57 is probably the later limit of date.
Mommsen thinks that the words (ch. 57), 'puer capillatus in hanc
coloniam veni: adhuc basilica non erat facta,' mean that when
Trimalchio came to Cumae it was not a Roman colony. Now, Cumae became
a colony between 43 and 27 B.C., and, on this supposition, the supper
of Trimalchio would have to be placed between A.D. 7 and A.D. 23, as
it is about fifty years since Trimalchio came to Cumae. Friedländer,
however, thinks that the basilica would not have been put up
immediately the town became a colony.
The language of the narrative is that of the educated classes of the
time, and is in close agreement with the style of Seneca the younger.
The diction of Trimalchio and his fellow-freedman is the South Italian
popular speech of the time, filled with grammatical mistakes and
provincialisms, and rich in proverbial expressions. The longest poems
in the work are: (1) _Troiae halosis_ (ch. 89), 65 senarii, supposed
to be a parody of Nero's poem of the same name; (2) _De bello civili_
(ch. 119-124), 295 hexameters, in which Lucan's style is imitated and
sometimes parodied. Cf. ll. 26-7,
'Et laxi crines et tot nova nomina vestis,
quaeque virum quaerunt,'
with Lucan, i. 164-5,
'Cultus gestare decoros
vix nuribus rapuere mares';
and ll. 51-2,
'Praeterea gemino deprensam gurgite plebem
faenoris illuvies ususque exederat aeris,'
with Lucan, i. 181,
'Hinc usura vorax, avidumque in tempora faenus.'
CALPURNIUS SICULUS.
Eleven eclogues used to be attributed to T. Calpurnius Siculus, but
only the first seven are his work, the last four being written by M.
Aurelius Olympius Nemesianus in the second half of the 3rd century
A.D. A MS. now lost gave before _Ecl._ 1, 'Titi Calphurnii Siculi
bucolicum carmen ... incipit'; and before _Ecl._ 8, 'Aurelii Nemesiani
poetae Carthaginiensis ecloga prima incipit.'
Some information about Calpurnius' life is got from his works. In 4,
17-8, he (as Corydon) mentions a brother; in 4, 155-6, he speaks of
his poverty; and in 4, 29 _sqq._, of Meliboeus as having come to his
assistance when about to leave for Spain; cf. _Ecl._ 4, 36-42,
Ecce nihil querulum per te, Meliboee, sonamus;
per te secura saturi recubamus in umbra,
et fruimur silvis Amaryllidos, ultima nuper
litora terrarum, nisi tu, Meliboee, fuisses,
ultima visuri, trucibusque obnoxia Mauris
pascua Geryonis.
The old theory was that Calpurnius lived in the time of Carus and his
sons (in the second half of the 3rd century A.D.), but the facts fit
in best with the view that he lived at the beginning of Nero's reign.
(1) Meliboeus in _Ecl._ 4 probably stands for Seneca (others suppose
Calpurnius Piso to be meant); 4, 53-7,
Nam tibi non tantum venturos discere nimbos
agricolis qualemque ferat sol aureus ortum,
attribuere dei, sed dulcia carmina saepe
concinis.
These lines agree with the fact of Seneca's being the author of
_Naturales Quaestiones_ and of tragedies. (2) _Ecl._ i. 77-83 refers
to the comet which appeared at the beginning of Nero's reign. (3)
References to Nero's youth and beauty, poetical gifts, the games he
gave, and the new era of peace he introduced; 1, 42-5,
Aurea secura cum pace renascitur aetas,
et redit ad terras tandem squalore situque
alma Themis posito, iuvenemque beata secuntur
saecula, maternis causam qui vicit in ulnis
7, 6,
quae patula iuvenis deus edit harena.
Cf. also 1, 84-8; 4, 84-9; 7, 83-4. _Ecl._ 7 used to be taken as
referring to the Colosseum, which was not commenced till about A.D.
77; but the games may be those mentioned in Sueton. _Nero_, 11, and
the wooden amphitheatre in 7, 23-4, may be that mentioned by Sueton.
_Nero_, 12, and Tac. _Ann._ xiii. 31.
The difference of authorship of _Ecl._ 1-7 and of _Ecl._ 8-11 is shown
by the following: (1) Final _o_ shows classical usage in 1-7, but in
8-11 we have _expecto_ (9, 26), _coniungo_ (10, 14), _ambo_ (9, 17),
and the like; (2) 1-7 show only eight elisions, 7-11 show thirty-nine;
(3) no ending like _montivagus Pan_ (10, 17) is found in 1-7; (4)
_fateor_ and _memini_ used parenthetically are common in 1-7, and not
found in 8-11; (5) there are no allusions to the emperor in 8-11; (6)
_Ecl._ 9 shows imitations of _Ecl._ 2 and 3; (7) 8-11 agree in many
points with Nemesianus' _Cynegetica_.
The _Eclogues_ are modelled chiefly on Virgil and Theocritus, _e.g._
_Ecl._ 3 on Verg. _Ecl._ 7 and Theocr. 3, 14, and 23.
The poem _de laude Pisonis_ is now generally attributed to Calpurnius
Siculus. One point of similarity with Calpurnius' other poems is the
rareness of elision, there being only two instances (ll. 24, 259). The
description of Piso's liberality and eloquence (ll. 32, 88, 97 _sqq._)
and of his skill in draughts (ll. 178-96) corresponds with the
information given by Tac. _Ann._ xv. 48 and the Schol. on Iuv. 5, 109,
about Calpurnius Piso, who flourished under Claudius.
AETNA.
This poem, in 645 hexameter lines, is attributed to Virgil in the
MSS., but is probably by Lucilius Iunior, to whom Seneca addresses his
_Epistulae Morales_, _De Providentia_, and _Quaestiones Naturales_.
Lucilius was younger than Seneca (Sen. _Ep._ 26, 7, 'iuvenior es'),
and was born at Naples or Pompeii.
Sen. _Ep._ 49, 1, 'Ecce Campania et maxime Neapolis ad Pompeiorum
tuorum conspectum incredibile est quam recens desiderium tui
fecerint.'
Lucilius had held procuratorial offices in Alpes Graiae et Poeninae,
Epirus, Creta et Cyrene, and Sicily.
_Ibid._ 44, 2, 'Eques Romanus es et ad hunc ordinem tua te perduxit
industria.' _Ibid._ 31, 9, 'Quo modo, inquis, isto pervenitur? Non per
Poeninum Graiumve montem, nec per deserta Candaviae, nec Syrtes tibi
nec Scylla aut Charybdis adeundae sunt, quae tamen omnia transisti
procuratiunculae pretio.'[80]
Sen. _N.Q._ iv. praef. 1, 'Delectat te, Lucili, Sicilia et officium
procurationis otiosae.'
For his life cf. also the words put into his mouth by Sen. _N.Q._ iv.
praef. 15-17, which show his loyalty to his friends, 'Non mihi in
amicitia Gaetulici (died A.D. 39) vel Gaius fidem eripuit, non in
aliorum persona infeliciter amatorum Messalla et Narcissus ...
propositum meum avertere potuerunt ... videbam apud Gaium tormenta,
videbam ignes.'[81]
Seneca speaks of him as a pupil in philosophy in _Ep._ 34, 2, 'Adsero
te mihi: meum opus es.'
A literary work of his is spoken of by Seneca, also a poem in which he
mentions Alpheus and Arethusa:
_Ep._ 46, 1, 'Librum tuum, quem mihi promiseras, accepi. Levis mihi
visus est, cum esset nec mei nec tui corporis, sed qui primo adspectu
aut T. Livi aut Epicuri posset videri ... Non tantum delectatus, sed
gavisus sum.'
_N.Q._ iii. 26, 6, 'Hoc et a te traditum est ut in poemate, Lucili
carissime, et a Vergilio, qui adloquitur Arethusam.'
A poem on Aetna is referred to in _Ep._ 79, 5-7, 'Donec pudor obstet,
ne Aetnam describas in tuo carmine et hunc sollemnem omnibus poetis
locum adtingas; quem quo minus Ovidius tractaret, nihil obstitit, quod
iam Vergilius impleverat ... Aut ego te non novi aut Aetna tibi
salivam movet: iam cupis grande aliquid et par prioribus scribere.'
Some authorities think that Lucilius had meant to incorporate this
description in a larger poem, but changed his mind, and wrote a poem
on Aetna alone.
As regards the date of the poem: (1) It was written at a time when
imitation of Ovid was common. Cf. Sen. _N.Q._ iv. 2, 2, 'Quare non cum
poeta meo iocor et illi Ovidium suum impingo?' (2) There is no mention
of Vesuvius in the list of volcanoes in 1. 425 _sqq._ The poem must
therefore have been written before A.D. 79.
The following are the arguments for Lucilius having been the author:
(1) The poem was written by one who knew Aetna and the vicinity. Now
Lucilius was long procurator of Sicily.
(2) Military metaphors, as ll. 464-74, would fit in with his having
been a soldier.
(3) The author speaks as if he knew the neighbourhood of Naples well.
(4) However, the argument that the writer shows Epicurean views, and
that Lucilius was an Epicurean, has little weight. (_a_) There are
Stoical doctrines in the poem. Cf. ll. 33-5, 68-70, on the divinity of
the stars; ll. 173-4, which maintain that the world would come back to
its former state; ll. 536-9, where Heraclitus' doctrine of fire is
recommended. (_b_) The _Epistulae Morales_ only show that Lucilius had a
leaning to Epicureanism, not that he was an Epicurean. Cf. _Ep._ 23,
9, 'Vocem tibi Epicuri tui reddere,' and other playful references.
(5) The views on natural science given in the poem are sometimes the
same as those in Sen. _N.Q._ This would fix the date of the poem
between 65 and 79 A.D. Cf. _Aetna_, 123,
'Flumina quin etiam latis currentia rivis
occasus habuere suos: aut illa vorago
derepta in praeceps fatali condidit ore
aut occulta fluunt tectis adoperta cavernis
atque inopinatos referunt procul edita cursus';
and Sen. _N.Q._ iii. 26, 3, 'Quaedam flumina palam in aliquem specum
decidunt et sic ex oculis auferuntur, quaedam consumuntur paulatim et
intercidunt. Eadem ex intervallo revertuntur recipiuntque et nomen et
cursum.' Cf. also _Aetna_, 96,
'Defit namque omnis hiatu,
secta est omnis humus penitusque cavata latebris
exiles suspensa vias agit';
and Sen. _N.Q._ v. 14, 1, 'Non tota solido contextu terra in imum
usque fundatur, sed multis partibus cava et caecis suspensa latebris.'
So the story of the Catanian brothers (ll. 624-45) is told by Sen. _De
Benef._ iii. 37, 2-3.
Imitations of Lucretius abound. Cf. ll. 219 _sqq._,
'Nunc quoniam in promptu est operis natura solique,
unde ipsi venti, quae res incendia pascit,' etc.
For the author's attacks on superstition, cf. ll. 91-3,
'Debita carminibus libertas ista; sed omnis
in vero mihi cura: canam quo fervida motu
aestuet Aetna novosque rapax sibi congerat ignes.'
A version of the _Phaenomena_ of Aratus is extant, the author of which
is called in the MSS. 'Claudius Caesar,' or 'Germanicus.' He is
generally identified with Germanicus, the adopted son of Tiberius (so
Jerome and Lactantius), though in modern times the poem has been
ascribed to Domitian, who had the title of 'Germanicus' from A.D. 84.
There are also fragments of _Prognostica_, which are independent of
Aratus.
PLINY THE ELDER.
(1) LIFE.
There is a very brief life of Pliny by Suetonius, but most of our
information about him is derived from his own writings and the letters
of his nephew (Plin. _Ep._ iii. 5; v. 8; vi. 16; vi. 20).
C. Plinius Secundus was born A.D. 23 or 24, for at the time of his
death in A.D. 79 he was in his fifty-sixth year (Plin. _Ep._ iii. 5,
7, 'decessisse anno sexto et quinquagesimo'). His birthplace was Comum
in Cisalpine Gaul, according to Sueton. _vit. Plin._ In an anonymous
Life he is styled 'Veronensis,' probably on account of the phrase in
_N.H._ praef. 1, 'Catullum conterraneum meum,' where, however, _terra_
means Gallia, the province, not the city.
Pliny was the son of an _eques_, and had a sister married to L.
Caecilius of Novum Comum (see p. 139). He came to Rome not later than
A.D. 35 (_N.H._ xxxvii. 81, 'Servilii Noniani quem consulem vidimus'),
and was trained in poetry and literature, probably by P. Pomponius
Secundus[82]; his instructors in rhetoric are not known, but he
mentions as rhetoricians Remmius Palaemon (xiv. 49) and Arellius
Fuscus (xxxiii. 152). In botany he learned much from Antonius Castor
(xxv. 9).
At the beginning of the reign of Claudius, Pliny was an eye-witness of
the building operations at the harbour of Ostia, A.D. 42 (ix. 14): in
44 he practised in the law courts. Having decided on a military
career, he would begin, according to the regulation of Claudius
(Sueton. _Claud._ 25), with the command of a cohort of infantry. He
was next _praefectus alae_ (Plin. _Ep._ iii. 5, 3) under Corbulo, who
was _legatus_ of Germania Inferior, A.D. 47, in his campaign against
the Chauci: cf. _N.H._ xvi. 2, 'Sunt vero in septemtrione visae nobis
Chaucorum [gentes]'; and in A.D. 50 fought under Pomponius against the
Chatti. His 'castrense contubernium' with Titus (born A.D. 41) was
probably in 55 or 56, when he was in the army of Pompeius Paulinus:
cf. xxxiii. 143, 'Pompeium Paulinum XII pondo argenti habuisse apud
exercitum ferocissimis gentibus oppositum scimus.' Personal knowledge
of Germany appears in several passages of the _N.H._, e.g. xii. 98,
'extremo in margine imperii, qua Rhenus adluit, vidi'; xxii. 8, 'quem
morem etiam nunc durare apud Germanos scio.'
Pliny was present at the festivities at Lake Fucinus in A.D. 52
(xxxiii. 63). During Nero's reign he spent some time in Campania (ii.
180) and Cisalpine Gaul (xxxv. 20), was a spectator at the Vatican
games in A.D. 59, and saw the building of Nero's golden house after
the fire of A.D. 64 (xxxvi. iii).
Under Vespasian Pliny was procurator in Italy, and in several of the
provinces: Sueton. _vit._, 'Procurationes splendidissimas et continuas
summa integritate administravit.' (_a_) Hispania Tarraconensis: Plin.
_Ep._ iii. 5, 17, 'cum procuraret in Hispania'; (_b_) Gallia
Narbonensis: _N.H._ ii. 150, 'ego vidi in Vocontiorum agro'; (_c_)
Gallia Belgica: xviii. 183, 'nec recens subtrahemus exemplum in
Treverico agro tertio ante hoc anno compertum'; (_d_) Africa: vii. 36,
'ipse in Africa vidi.' For his intimacy with Vespasian cf. Plin. _Ep._
iii. 5, 9, 'ante lucem ibat ad Vespasianum imperatorem ... inde ad
delegatum sibi officium.'
In A.D. 79 Pliny was in command of the fleet at Misenum, when his
scientific interest in the eruption of Vesuvius led him to approach
too near the volcano, with the result that he was suffocated by the
ashes (24th August). For a detailed account of his death, see Plin.
_Ep._ vi. 16 (to Tacitus). Cf. Sueton. _vit._, 'Periit clade
Campaniae. Cum enim Misenensi classi praeesset, et flagrante Vesuvio
ad explorandas propius causas liburnica pertendisset, neque
adversantibus ventis remeare posset, vi pulveris ac favillae oppressus
est, vel, ut quidam existimant, a servo suo occisus, quem aestu
deficiens ut necem sibi maturaret oraverit.'
(2) WORKS.
A chronological list of Pliny's writings is given by his nephew (_Ep._
iii. 5).
1. _De iaculatione equestri_.--'Hunc, cum praefectus alae militaret,
pari ingenio curaque composuit.' This manual on the javelin as a
cavalry weapon is mentioned by Pliny himself, _N.H._ viii. 162, 'Nos
diximus in libro de iaculatione equestri condito.'
2. _De vita Pomponii Secundi_, in two Books, a tribute to the memory
of a valued friend, the tragic poet Pomponius. Cf. _N.H._ xiv. 56,
'referentes vitam Pomponii Secundi vatis.'
3. _Bella Germaniae_, in twenty Books, a narrative of the Roman wars
in Germany; begun by Pliny when serving in that country, the
apparition of Drusus having besought him to rescue his name from
oblivion (so Pliny the younger). Cf. Tac. _Ann._ i. 69, 'Tradit C.
Plinius, Germanicorum bellorum scriptor.'
4. _Studiosus_, in three Books or six parts, a treatise on rhetoric
from the very rudiments. Quintilian, though surprised at some of
Pliny's views (xi. 3, 143; 148), numbers him among the more careful
exponents of the subject (iii. 1, 21, 'accuratius scripsit'). The book
contained models of good style: Gell. ix. 16, 1, 'refert plerasque
sententias quas in declamandis controversiis lepide arguteque dictas
putat.'
5. _Dubius Sermo_, in eight Books, published A.D. 67, towards the end
of Nero's reign, when purely technical subjects alone could be treated
without danger to an author. Cf. _N.H._ praef. 28, 'libellos quos de
grammatica edidi.'
6. _A fine Aufidii Bassi_, in thirty-one Books. At what point Bassus'
history ended and Pliny's began is not known: but the latter certainly
dealt with the closing years of Nero's reign (_N.H._ ii. 199, 'anno
Neronis principis supremo, sicut in rebus eius exposuimus'), as well
as with the times of Vespasian and Titus (_N.H._ praef. 20, 'Vos
omnes, patrem te fratremque diximus opere iusto, temporum nostrorum
historiam orsi a fine Aufidii Bassi'). The work was completed in A.D.
77, but not published till after the author's death. His nephew says
he wrote with scrupulous care: _Ep._ v. 8, 5, 'historias et quidem
religiosissime scripsit.' The book was used by Tacitus (_Ann._ xiii.
20; xv. 53; _Hist._ iii. 28).
7. _Naturae Historiae_, in thirty-seven Books, is Pliny's only extant
work. As he speaks of Titus as 'sexies consul,' the date of its
presentation to him was A.D. 77. Book i. consists of a dedicatory
epistle to Titus and a table of contents. The body of the work is
arranged as follows: Book ii., the universe and the elements;
iii.-vi., geography of Europe, Asia, and Africa; vii., anthropology
and human physiology; viii.-xi., zoology; xii.-xix., botany;
xx.-xxvii., the use of vegetable substances in medicine;
xxviii.-xxxii., the use of animal substances in medicine;
xxxiii.-xxxvii., mineralogy applied to medicine and the fine arts.
This work, which was meant not for continuous perusal, but for
consultation as a book of reference, contained twenty thousand facts;
and its preparation involved the reading of about two thousand volumes
by one hundred authors (see _N.H._ praef. 17). The extracts he had
made from these sources Pliny bequeathed to his nephew in one hundred
and sixty volumes. He makes a point of acknowledging his obligations
to other writers (praef. 21, 'in his voluminibus auctorum nomina
praetexui, est enim benignum ... et plenum ingenui pudoris fateri per
quos profeceris'); cf. the lists of authorities, Roman and foreign,
prefixed to the work. Such devotion to natural science was unusual in
men of Pliny's class, and not generally appreciated; cf. xxii. 15,
'Plerisque ultro etiam irrisui sumus ista commentantes atque frivoli
operis arguimur.' As a scientific writer Pliny fails because he is not
an original investigator, and because he lacks the critical faculty.
For his method of working see Plin. _Ep._ iii. 5.
Politically, Pliny recognizes the necessity of the empire, but his
heroes are old Romans such as Cincinnatus and Cato. His Roman and
Italian feeling is intense: cf. xxxvii. 201, 'In toto orbe ...
pulcherrima omnium est in rebusque merito principatum naturae obtinet
Italia, rectrix parensque mundi altera.'
His view of life is gloomy (_N.H._ ii. 25, 'nec quidquam miserius
homine'), and through the _Naturae Historiae_ there runs a monotonous
strain of condemnation of the immorality of his day. He is uncertain
as to divine providence, but considers the belief in it salutary, and
he accepts portents (ii. 92). His tendency is, in the main, Stoic; he
was probably acquainted with Paetus Thrasea, who corresponded with
Pomponius.
VALERIUS FLACCUS.
His full name is given in the Vatican MS. as C. Valerius Flaccus
Setinus Balbus. It is doubtful (even if the last two names really
belong to the poet) whether _Setinus_ means from Setia in Italy or
from Setia in Spain. The poet's Latinity gives no evidence on the
point. Quintilian is the only Roman writer who refers to him; x. 1,
90, 'Multum in Valerio Flacco nuper amisimus'; which shows that he
must have died about A.D. 90. In the beginning of the first Book of
the _Argonautica_ (written shortly after A.D. 70), Valerius addresses
Vespasian, referring to his exploits in Britain, and to the capture of
Jerusalem by Titus; i. 7 _sqq._,
'Tuque o, pelagi cui maior aperti
fama, Caledonius postquam tua carbasa vexit
oceanus Phrygios prius indignatus Iulos,
eripe me populis et habenti nubila terrae,
sancte pater, veterumque fave veneranda canenti
facta virum. Versam proles tua pandet Idumen
(namque potest), Solymo nigrantem pulvere fratrem
spargentemque faces et in omni turre furentem.'
i. 5 _sqq._ probably shows that Valerius was a quindecimvir sacris
faciundis,
'Phoebe, mone, si Cymaeae mihi conscia vatis
stat casta cortina domo, si laurea digna
fronte viret.'
Cf. the allusion in viii. 239 _sqq._ to Cybele's bath, which was under
the management of the xv.viri; and to the rites of lustration, iii.
417 _sqq._
There are several allusions to the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in A.D.
79, _e.g._ iv. 507.
The _Argonautica_ is in eight Books, the last being incomplete, and
the story breaking off shortly before the death of Medea's brother,
Absyrtus. Valerius probably meant to write twelve Books, but it is not
known how much farther he actually proceeded in his work. There is
evidence to show that the last Books would have differed considerably
from the story as given by Apollonius Rhodius; _e.g._ the visit to
Phaeacia was probably omitted, as Jason was married at Peuce (Book
viii.).
Apollonius is followed very closely, many passages being translated
from him; thus iv. 236 = Apoll. ii. 38; vii. 404 = Apoll. in. 966.
Valerius, however, amplifies where Apollonius is brief, and vice
versa. Thus Apoll. ii. 948 _sqq._ is dismissed by Valerius v. 110
_sqq._ in a few words. The character painting of Valerius is superior
to that of the original, cf. the character of Jason and of Aeetes. So
for his artistic work; thus his portraiture of the gradual progress of
Medea's love is superior to Apollonius' description, and to Virgil's
of Dido.
The obligations to Virgil are paramount.
(1) Verbal; as i. 55,
'Tu, cui iam curaeque vigent animique viriles,'
from _Aen._ ix. 311,
'Ante annos animumque gerens curamque virilem.'
Cf. 'horrentem iaculis, nec credere quivi, heu quid agat, libans
carchesia, summa dies, miscere polum, rumpere questus,' in Book i.[83]
(2) In matter. The description of Fame, ii. 116 _sqq._, is from _Aen._
iv. The character of Styrus, the betrothed of Medea, is modelled on
that of Turnus.
After Virgil, Homer (esp. in Book vi.), Ovid, and Seneca's tragedies
are chiefly imitated. Statius is full of imitations of Valerius.
Valerius often tries to connect his subject with Rome.[84] Cf. ii.
304,
'Iam nemus Egeriae, iam te ciet altus ab Alba
Iuppiter et soli non mitis Aricia regi';
ii 573,
'genus Aeneadum et Troiae melioris honores.'
SILIUS ITALICUS.
The full name of Silius is got from an inscription (_C.I.L._ vi.
1984), and is Ti. Catius Silius Italicus. Our chief information about
his life is found in Pliny, _Epist._ iii. 7, where his recent death is
mentioned. It was probably written A.D. 101, and as it states that
Silius was then 75 years old, the year of his birth was A.D. 25. His
birthplace is unknown, but was not Italica in Spain, otherwise Martial
would have claimed him as a countryman. Pliny tells us that Silius had
risen by acting as a _delator_ under Nero, who made him consul A.D.
68. He had taken the side of Vitellius in the war of the succession
A.D. 69[85] and had afterwards, as proconsul, governed Asia with
success (under Vespasian). After this he possessed great social
influence. Towards the end of his life, he retired to Campania, and
gave himself up to study. The account of his learned retirement,[86]
his reverence for Virgil,[87] the consulship of his son,[88] the death
of his younger son,[89] and other details, are corroborated by his
contemporary Martial.
The passage of Pliny is as follows:
'Modo nuntiatus est Silius Italicus in Neapolitano suo inedia finisse
vitam. Causa mortis valetudo. Erat illi natus insanabilis clavus,
cuius taedio ad mortem inrevocabili constantia decucurrit, usque ad
supremum diem beatus et felix, nisi quod minorem ex liberis duobus
amisit, sed maiorem melioremque florentem atque etiam consularem
reliquit. Laeserat famam suam sub Nerone, credebatur sponte accusasse:
sed in Vitelli amicitia sapienter se et comiter gesserat, ex
proconsulatu Asiae gloriam reportaverat, maculam veteris industriae
laudabili otio abluerat. Fuit inter principes civitatis sine potentia,
sine invidia: salutabatur, colebatur, multumque in lectulo iacens
cubiculo semper non ex fortuna frequenti doctissimis sermonibus dies
transigebat, cum a scribendo vacaret. Scribebat carmina maiore cura
quam ingenio, non numquam iudicia hominum recitationibus experiebatur.
Novissime ita suadentibus annis ab urbe secessit, seque in Campania
tenuit, ac ne adventu quidem novi principis inde commotus est ... Erat
+philokalos+ usque ad emacitatis reprehensionem. Plures isdem
in locis villas possidebat adamatisque novis priores neglegebat.
Multum ubique librorum, multum statuarum, multum imaginum, quas non
habebat modo verum etiam venerabatur, Vergilii ante omnes, cuius
natalem religiosius quam suum celebrabat, Neapoli maxime, ubi
monimentum eius adire ut templum solebat. In hac tranquillitate annum
quintum et septuagensimum excessit, delicato magis corpore quam
infirmo; utque novissimus a Nerone factus est consul, ita postremus ex
omnibus quos Nero consules fecerat decessit.'
Silius' career as an orator is mentioned by Martial vii. 63, 5-8,
'Sacra cothurnati non attigit ante Maronis,
implevit magni quam Ciceronis opus.
Hunc miratur adhuc centum gravis hasta virorum,
hunc loquitur grato plurimus ore cliens.'
The _Punica_ is an Epic in seventeen Books on the Second Punic War,
and treats of events down to the battle of Zama, B.C. 202. The
historical treatment is founded mainly on Livy, and in point of style
Silius has followed Homer and Virgil, imitations of whom are found on
every page. For Silius' reverence for Virgil, see above, and cf. viii.
593,
'Mantua Musarum domus, atque ad sidera cantu
evecta Aonio, et Smyrnaeis aemula plectris.'
Silius also follows Homer and Virgil in their mythology, bringing in
supernatural motives in a way unsuitable to a historical subject,
_e.g._ in xv. 20, where Scipio has, like Hercules, to choose between
Voluptas and Virtus.
The example of Hannibal's dream, iii. 163-182, will show these
different points. The story of the dream is got from Livy xxi. 22,
but, for _iuvenis divina specie_, Silius, like Virg. _Aen._ iv. 222
_sqq._ and 259 _sqq._ substitutes Mercury. Individual imitations in
the passage are: l. 172, 'Turpe duci totam somno consumere noctem,'
from _Il._ ii. 24, +ou chrê pannychion heudein boulêphoron
andra+; l. 168, 'umentem noctis umbram' is from _Aen._ iv. 7,
'umentemque Aurora polo dimoverat umbram'; l. 174, 'iam maria effusas
cernes turbare carinas,' from _Aen._ iv. 566, 'iam mare turbari
trabibus ... videbis'; l. 182, 'altae moenia Romae' is from _Aen._ i.
7; l. 181, 'respexisse veto' from _Ecl._ 8, 102, 'nec respexeris.'
The Epitome of the Iliad (in 1075 hexameters), which passes under the
name of _Homerus Latinus_, has been attributed to Silius. It is a
close adaptation from the original.
STATIUS.
(1) LIFE.
P. Papinius Statius was born at Naples (_Silv._ i. 2, 260, 'mea
Parthenope'), probably about A.D. 60, for he speaks of himself as on
the threshold of life at the time of his father's death, about A.D. 80
('limine primo fatorum,' _Silv._ v. 3, 72). The apparent discrepancy
in _Silv._ iv. 4, 69 (written A.D. 94-5), 'Nos facta aliena canendo
vergimur in senium,' may be explained by observing that 'senium' is
very often used for premature age induced by study (cf. 'insenuit,'
Hor. _Ep._ ii. 2, 82).
The father of Statius came of a distinguished but not wealthy family:
_Silv._ v. 3, 116,
'Non tibi deformes obscuri sanguinis ortus
nec sine luce genus, quamquam fortuna parentum
artior expensis.'
He taught first at Naples (_ibid._ l. 146) and then at Rome (l. 176);
and died at the age of sixty-five (l. 252) soon after the eruption of
Vesuvius, which he had intended to make the subject of a poem (l.
205). It was from his learned father ('genitor perdocte,' l. 3) that
Statius derived his first impulse towards poetry, and to his training
he acknowledges deep obligations (ll. 209-214).
Statius won two prizes for poetry, at the _Augustalia_ in Naples and
at Alba; but was unsuccessful at the Capitoline competition, probably
in A.D. 94 (_ibid._ 225-232). In that year he seems to have removed
from Rome to Naples, and spent there the remainder of his days:
_Silv._ iii. 5, 12,
'Anne quod Euboicos fessus remeare penates
auguror et patria senium componere terra?'
The date of his death is unknown. The latest event mentioned in his
poems is the seventeenth consulship of Domitian, A.D. 95 (_Silv._ iv.
1).
Statius was married to a widow named Claudia (_Silv._ iii. 5, 51
_sqq._), but had no children (v. 5, 79).
He enjoyed the favour of Domitian ('indulgentissimus imperator,'
_Silv._ i. praef.) who granted him a supply of water for his country
house at Alba, and occasionally invited him to his table: _Silv._ iii.
1, 61,
'Ast ego, Dardaniae quamvis sub collibus Albae
rus proprium magnique ducis mihi munere currens
unda domi curas mulcere aestusque levare
sufficerent.'
_Silv._ iv. praef., 'Sacratissimis eius epulis honoratus.'
He more than once promises to write an epic on Domitian's career (e.g.
_Theb._ i. 32). The emperor's freedman Earinus (_Silv._ iii. 4) was
one of Statius' patrons.
His regard for the poet Lucan produced _Silv._ ii. 7, which is a poem
on Lucan's birthday, addressed to his widow (see p. 267). But his
chief admiration was reserved for the memory of Virgil: Naples and
Alba were endeared to him by their associations with the 'great
master' and the story of Aeneas: _Silv._ iv. 4, 53,
'Tenues ignavo pollice chordas
pulso, Maroneique sedens in margine templi
sumo animum et magni tumulis adcanto magistri.'
For Alba cf. _Silv._ v. 3, 37. The _Thebais_ must recognize its
inferiority to the _Aeneid_: _Theb._ xii. 816,
'Vive, precor; nec tu divinam Aeneida tempta,
sed longe sequere et vestigia semper adora.'
(2) WORKS.
1. The _Thebais_, an epic poem in twelve Books, occupied Statius for
twelve years: xii. 811,
'O mihi bis senos multum vigilata per annos
Thebai.'
Cf. _Silv._ iv. 7, 26,
'Thebais multa cruciata lima.'
The twelve years were probably 79-91 or 80-92 A.D. _Silv._ i. praef.
(written 91 or 92), 'Adhuc pro Thebaide mea, quamvis me reliquerit,
timeo.' The publication apparently did not take place till A.D. 95
(cf. _Silv._ iv. 4, 87 _sqq._ written in that year).
The subject of the poem is the strife between the brothers Eteocles
and Polynices, and the subsequent history of Thebes to the death of
Creon. The dedication is to Domitian. For the popularity of the
_Thebais_ cf. Juv. _Sat._ 7, 82,
'Curritur ad vocem iucundam et carmen amicae
Thebaidos, laetam cum fecit Statius urbem
promisitque diem. Tanta dulcedine captos
afficit ille animos tantaque libidine volgi
auditur; sed, cum fregit subsellia versu,
esurit, intactam Paridi nisi vendit Agaven.'
2. The _Achilleis_, also dedicated to Domitian, is an incomplete epic,
consisting of one Book and part of a second. It was later than the
Thebaid, for Statius was working at it in A.D. 95: _Silv._ iv. 4, 93,
'Nunc vacuos crines alio subit infula nexu:
Troia quidem magnusque mihi temptatur Achilles.'
The poem was intended to cover the whole career of Achilles, including
his retreat in Scyros before the Trojan War, and his exploits after
the death of Hector, which did not enter into the plan of the _Iliad_:
cf. l. 3,
'Quamquam acta viri multum inclita cantu
Maeonio, sed plura vacant: nos ire per omnem
(sic amor est) heroa velis.'
3. The _Silvae_, which represent the poet in his less serious mood,
are occasional poems on miscellaneous subjects, published in five
separate Books. Cf. 1, praef. 'Diu multumque dubitavi ... an hos
libellos, ... cum singuli de sinu meo prodierint, congregates ipse
dimitterem.' Many of them were thrown off in haste at the command of
the Emperor or the request of friends: cf. such expressions as 'stili
facilitas' (ii. praef.), 'libellorum temeritas,' 'hanc audaciam stili
nostri' (iii. praef.). Of the poems in Book i. he says, 'nullum ex
illis biduo longius tractum, quaedam et in singulis diebus effusa' (i.
praef.). Each of the Books is introduced by a prose preface.
None of the _Silvae_ appeared before A.D. 92; for Rutilius Gallicus,
for whom i. 4 was written, died in that year, and the poem was not
published till after his death (i. praef.). Book v. was probably a
posthumous work: there is no proper preface, and the third and fifth
poems are incomplete.
Hexameter verse is employed for all the _Silvae_ except six. Of these,
four are in hendecasyllabics, one in the Alcaic and one in the Sapphic
stanza.
4. The only other poem of which there is distinct evidence is the
pantomime _Agave_, written not later than A.D. 84, the year in which
the player Paris was put to death (Juv. _Sat._ 7, 86, quoted above).
MARTIAL.[90]
(1) LIFE.
M. Valerius Martialis (Coquus is added in the old glossaries) was born
at Bilbilis in Hispania Tarraconensis on 1st March in one of the years
A.D. 38-41. His tenth Book, written A.D. 95-8, contains a poem (x. 24)
written on his fifty-seventh birthday. Cf. ll. 4-5,
'quinquagesima liba septimamque
vestris addimus hanc focis acerram';
ix. 52, 3,
'ut nostras amo Martias Kalendas';
x. 103, 1,
'Municipes, Augusta mihi quos Bilbilis acri
monte creat, rapidis quem Salo cingit aquis.'
His parents' names are given, v. 34, 1, 'Fronto pater, genetrix
Flaccilla.' Martial went through the usual education at Bilbilis or at
a neighbouring town; ix. 73, 7,
'At me litterulas stulti docuere parentes:
quid cum grammaticis rhetoribusque mihi?'
Martial went to Rome A.D. 64, for in A.D. 98, when he left Rome, he
gives the length of his stay as thirty-four years; x. 103, 7,
'Quattuor accessit tricesima messibus aestas,
ut sine me Cereri rustica liba datis,
moenia dum colimus dominae pulcherrima Romae.'
At Rome Martial became the client of the house of the Senecas, and was
on intimate terms with L. Calpurnius Piso, Memmius Gemellus, and
Vibius Crispus; xii. 36, 8,
'Pisones Senecasque Memmiosque
et Crispos mihi redde sed priores.'
The failure of Piso's conspiracy in A.D. 65 and the consequent
downfall of the Senecas must have affected Martial's position. In A.D.
96 Martial addresses as his patroness Argentaria Polla, Lucan's widow,
the only surviving member of the family; x. 64, 1,
'Contigeris regina meos si Polla libellos,' etc.
From her he may have got the small vineyard near Nomentum which he
possessed by A.D. 84 (xiii. 42 and 119).
Little is known of Martial's life before the reign of Domitian. He may
have practised at the bar; cf. ii. 30, 5,
'Is mihi "dives eris, si causas egeris" inquit';
and Quintilian appears to have advised this course (ii. 90). He
probably lived as a client of great houses to which he was recommended
by his early-developed poetical talents. Cf. i. 113, 1,
'Quaecumque lusi iuvenis et puer quondam.'
In A.D. 80 he commemorated the opening by Titus of the Flavian
Amphitheatre by a collection of poems sent to the emperor. Cf.
_Spectac._ 32,
'Da veniam subitis: non displicuisse meretur,
festinat, Caesar, qui placuisse tibi.'
Martial received the 'ius trium liberorum' from two of the emperors.
This probably means that Titus bestowed it and Domitian ratified it.
Cf. ix. 97, 5,
'tribuit quod Caesar uterque
ius mihi natorum.'
Martial became a titular tribune, and consequently an _eques_, an
honour probably given him by Titus; iii. 95, 9
'vidit me Roma tribunum';
v. 13, 1,
'Sum, fateor, semperque fui, Callistrate, pauper,
sed non obscurus nec male notus eques.'
Martial is unsparing in his flattery of Domitian and his freedmen. Cf.
ix. 79, iv. 45, of Parthenius, the emperor's chamberlain; vii. 99,
viii. 48, of Crispinus, the emperor's favourite. In A.D. 86 we find
his poems eagerly read by the emperor. Cf. iv. 27,
'Saepe meos laudare soles, Auguste, libellos.'
He obtained citizen rights for several applicants; cf. ix. 95. 11,
'Quot mihi Caesareo facti sunt munere cives';
and was occasionally invited to the emperor's table; cf. ix. 91.
Domitian, however, refused to assist him pecuniarily (vi. 10). A
description of Martial's life as a client of great houses is found,
_e.g._, in v. 20. Among the friends of high rank whom Martial made
after A.D. 86 were the poet Silius Italicus (iv. 14), the future
emperor Nerva (v. 28), the author S. Iulius Frontinus (x. 58), the
younger Pliny (x. 19). Martial also mentions Quintilian (ii. 90) and
other literary men from Spain, and Juvenal (vii. 24, etc.). Statius he
never mentions, and was probably at enmity with him; cf. his sneers at
mythological epics (x. 4, etc.), which hint indirectly at the
_Thebais_. Martial also attacks his critics (i. 3; xi. 20, etc.),
plagiarists (_e.g._ xi. 94), and those who wrote scurrilous verses in
his name (_e.g._ x. 3).
Martial received rewards in return for his poetry, and often begs for
gifts, and complains of his poverty and the unproductiveness of his
estate at Nomentum (xii. 57); v. 36,
'Laudatus nostro quidam, Faustina, libello
dissimulat, quasi nil debeat: imposuit';
vii. 16,
'Aera domi non sunt, superest hoc, Regule, solum,
ut tua vendamus munera: numquid emis?'
From 86 to 90 A.D. Martial lived in lodgings on the Quirinal, three
stairs up; i. 117, 6,
'Longum est, si velit ad Pirum venire,
et scalis habito tribus, sed altis.'