Ancient Authors 289

T Ancient authors 289 book on farming, De Agricultura (On including Bacchae and Medea. Agriculture). Cato was famous for ANCIENT AUTHORS Homer: Homer is traditionally the his strictness and his criticism of author of the Greek epic poems contemporary morality. He wanted Antipater: Antipater (2nd century the Iliad and the Odyssey, which to return to the old Roman values BC) came from Sidon in Phoenicia were composed about 750–700 Bc. of frugality and simplicity. and spent the last years of his life Nothing is known about his life. in Rome. He was a poet who wrote Catullus: Gaius Valerius Catullus Both poems deal with the Trojan epigrams in Greek. (c.84–c.54 BC) was born in Verona, War, a ten-year war between the Apuleius: Lucius Apuleius (c.AD 155) in northern Italy, to a wealthy Greeks and the Trojans, and its was born in the Roman province of family. Very little is known about his aftermath. The subject of the Iliad is Africa and lived in Carthage. He was life. He came to Rome as a young the anger of the hero Achilles and the author of the Metamorphoses, man and spent some time in the its effects, an episode in the final also known as The Golden Ass, a province of Bithynia on the staff of year of the war. The Odyssey tells novel about the adventures of a the governor. He is best known for of the adventures and sufferings young man who is turned into an his love poems. of Odysseus after the war, and his return home from Troy to Ithaca. ass. Celsus: Aulus Cornelius Celsus (first AD Augustus: Augustus (63 BC–AD century ), who lived in the reign of Horace: Quintus Horatius Flaccus 14) was born Gaius Octavius Tiberius (AD 14–37), wrote a treatise (65–8 BC) was born in Apulia, in the and became Gaius Iulius Caesar on medicine, De Medicina. south of Italy. He was of humble origins, the son of a freedman who Octavianus when he was adopted Cicero: Marcus Tullius Cicero worked as a collector of payments by his great-uncle, Julius Caesar. He (106–43 BC) was a politician and at auctions. His father sent him to was known by the title Augustus lawyer, who was a leading figure Rome and Athens to be educated, after 27 BC when he became Rome’s in events at the end of the Roman and he became one of the most first emperor. The Res Gestae Divi Republic. He was born in a town not celebrated poets of his day. Augusti (Deeds of the Divine Augustus) far from Rome and came to Rome Maecenas, the friend and adviser of is an account of the career of to study. Although not born into Emperor Augustus, was his patron. Augustus written in the first person. the senatorial class, he reached His most famous works are the Augustus left the document with his the highest office of state, the Odes, short poems on a variety of will, with instructions to the Senate consulship. He was executed on the subjects, but he also wrote Epodes, to set up the text as an inscription. orders of Mark Anthony during the Satires, and Epistles. It was engraved on a pair of bronze unrest following the assassination pillars in front of Augustus’ tomb in of Julius Caesar in 44 Bc. His Josephus: Flavius Iosephus (AD the Campus Martius. The original surviving writings include speeches 37– c.100) was born in Jerusalem, has not survived, but copies were for the law courts, political in the Roman province of Judaea, carved in stone on monuments and speeches, philosophical essays, to a wealthy, aristocratic family. temples all over the Roman Empire, and personal letters to friends and His Hebrew name was Yosef ben and parts of these have survived. family. Matityahu. He was captured in the Jewish Revolt against the Romans Cassius Dio (also Dio Cassius): Epictetus: Epictetus (mid–1st (AD 66–70), then, after the fall of Cassius Dio Cocceianus (c.AD 164– to 2nd century AD) was born in Jerusalem, he lived in Rome and after 229) was born in Bithynia. He Hierapolis in Phrygia and came was given Roman citizenship. His had a political career as a consul to Rome when he was enslaved. history of the Jewish War (Bellum in Rome and as governor of the His owner was Epaphroditus, Iudaicum) was originally written provinces of Africa and Dalmatia. Nero’s freedman. After gaining his in Aramaic, then translated into His history of Rome, written in freedom, Epictetus studied Stoic Greek. His other works were written Greek, covers the period from philosophy and taught in Rome in Greek: they include a history of Aeneas’ arrival in Italy to AD 229. until he was banished by Emperor the Jews, Antiquitates Iudaicae (Jewish Domitian in AD 89. A summary of Cato: Marcus Porcius Cato (234–149 Antiquities). BC) was born at Tusculum, a town his ideas, the Manual, has survived about sixteen miles from Rome. along with records of his oral Julius Caesar: Gaius Iulius Caesar He had a distinguished military teachings (Discourses). (100–44 BC), the general, politician, and dictator, belonged to an and political career, reaching Euripides: Euripides (c.480–c.407/6 aristocratic Roman family. He was the consulship and the office of BC) was a Greek playwright from assassinated on the Ides (15th) of censor, despite not being born Athens. He wrote tragedies, of March 44 BC, by a group of senators into a senatorial family. He wrote a which eighteen have survived, who feared that he intended to put T 290 Ancient authors an end to the republican system Lucretius: Titus Lucretius Carus southern Italy. The main episode is of government and keep supreme (c.94–c.55 BC) was the author of the Cena Trimalchionis (Trimalchio’s power for himself and his family. De Rerum Natura (On the Nature Dinner Party). Trimalchio is a Caesar wrote an account of his of Things), a long poem about wealthy freedman to whose dinner campaigns in Gaul and Britain Epicureanism. Very little is known party the three main characters (58-52 BC), the Commentaries (also about his life. are invited. Petronius mocks and known as the Gallic Wars). They are grotesquely exaggerates the vulgar Martial: Marcus Valerius Martialis written in the third person, as if to extravagance and bad taste of (c.AD 40–c.104) was born at Bilbilis give an objective account of events. Trimalchio, and his ostentatious in Spain and came to live in Rome display of wealth. Juvenal: Decius Iunius Iuvenalis in about AD 64. He is best known (early 2nd century AD) was born in for his short poems, known as Pliny the Elder: Gaius Plinius a town in Italy, but lived in Rome. Epigrams, which often criticize and Secundus (AD 23/24–79) was born He was the author of sixteen mock the faults and vices of his at Comum (modern Como) in Satires, long poems criticizing and fellow Romans. His De Spectaculis northern Italy. He is known as attacking the vices of his fellow (On the Spectacles) is a collection of Pliny the Elder to distinguish him Romans. The Satires have a bitter epigrams written to celebrate the from his nephew, known as Pliny humor and pessimistic attitude, opening of the Colosseum in AD 80, the Younger. He had a career in and there is much exaggeration. in the reign of Emperor Titus. military and government service, Nevertheless, Juvenal sheds light serving as procurator in several Ovid: Publius Ovidius Naso (43 on contemporary Roman society provinces before his final post as BC–AD 17) was born in a town near and provides lots of detail about commander of the fleet at Misenum Rome and educated in the city. everyday life. in Italy. He dedicated his spare He abandoned a public career to time to research and writing, and Livy: Titus Livius (59 BC–AD 17) was become a poet. Emperor Augustus among his many learned works is born at Patavium (modern Padua) banished him to Tomis on the his Natural History, an encyclopaedic in north-east Italy. Little is known Black Sea (in modern Romania). collection of facts and stories about about his life, but he probably came According to Ovid, there were a huge variety of subjects. It is a to Rome as an adult. He wrote A two reasons for his exile, carmen very useful source of information History of Rome, starting with its (a poem) and error (a mistake). on many aspects of Roman life. In foundation and going up to his own The poem was Ars Amatoria (The Suburani ‘Pliny’ refers to Pliny the lifetime. Originally there were 142 Art of Love) which fell foul of laws Younger. books, of which about twenty-five introduced by Augustus to improve have survived. the morals of contemporary Pliny the Younger: Gaius Caecilius society. The mistake was probably Plinius Secundus (AD 61/2–c.112) Lucan: Annaeus Lucanus Marcus connected to the love affairs was the nephew of Pliny the Elder. (AD 39–65) was born in Corduba of Augustus’ granddaughter, He was born at Comum (modern (modern Cordoba), in Spain. He was Julia. Among his other works are Como) in northern Italy. He had from a well-connected equestrian love poems such as the Amores a successful career as a lawyer, family; his uncle was Nero’s adviser, (Loves) and a long epic poem, politician, and administrator, and Seneca. After studying rhetoric and the Metamorphoses, which is a his final post was as governor of philosophy in Rome and Athens, collection of stories from mythology Bithynia.

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