Google
This is a digital copy of a book that was preserved for generations on Hbrary shelves before it was carefully scanned by Google as part of a project
to make the world's books discoverable online.
It has survived long enough for the copyright to expire and the book to enter the public domain. A public domain book is one that was never subject
to copyright or whose legal copyright term has expired. Whether a book is in the public domain may vary country to country. Public domain books
are our gateways to the past, representing a wealth of history, culture and knowledge that's often difficult to discover.
Marks, notations and other maiginalia present in the original volume will appear in this file - a reminder of this book's long journey from the
publisher to a library and finally to you.
Usage guidelines
Google is proud to partner with libraries to digitize public domain materials and make them widely accessible. Public domain books belong to the
public and we are merely their custodians. Nevertheless, this work is expensive, so in order to keep providing this resource, we liave taken steps to
prevent abuse by commercial parties, including placing technical restrictions on automated querying.
We also ask that you:
+ Make non-commercial use of the files We designed Google Book Search for use by individuals, and we request that you use these files for
personal, non-commercial purposes.
+ Refrain fivm automated querying Do not send automated queries of any sort to Google's system: If you are conducting research on machine
translation, optical character recognition or other areas where access to a large amount of text is helpful, please contact us. We encourage the
use of public domain materials for these purposes and may be able to help.
+ Maintain attributionTht GoogXt "watermark" you see on each file is essential for informing people about this project and helping them find
additional materials through Google Book Search. Please do not remove it.
+ Keep it legal Whatever your use, remember that you are responsible for ensuring that what you are doing is legal. Do not assume that just
because we believe a book is in the public domain for users in the United States, that the work is also in the public domain for users in other
countries. Whether a book is still in copyright varies from country to country, and we can't offer guidance on whether any specific use of
any specific book is allowed. Please do not assume that a book's appearance in Google Book Search means it can be used in any manner
anywhere in the world. Copyright infringement liabili^ can be quite severe.
About Google Book Search
Google's mission is to organize the world's information and to make it universally accessible and useful. Google Book Search helps readers
discover the world's books while helping authors and publishers reach new audiences. You can search through the full text of this book on the web
at |http : //books . google . com/|
uc
r^'?" -•:. Tcy.2oo
'barvar^ Colieae Xil>rar]?
FROM
th© library of
Henry fllllaffis on
3 2044 097 074 108
c
j^^ /^, ^aL^^z<^
c^/. /^.c^^i^f;^^^.
A BRIEF HISTORY
OF
Roman Literature
FOR
SCHOOLS AND COLLEGES.
Translated and Edited from the German of
HERMANN BENDER
BY
E. P. CROWELL and H. B. RICHARDSON,
reOFBSSOKS OP LATIN IN AMHBXST COLLBGB.
BOSTON:
PUBLISHED BY GINN & HEATH.
1880.
":( HAlVAltOeOUECE UBBASY
H ? V . 6^ , a OC FMII TM^ ueRARY OF
HENHY WILUAMSON HAYNEf
IttMC 13, t9?7
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1879, by
H. a RICHARDSON,
In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.
y, S, Cushw^, Printer, is Milk St., Boston.
PREFACE.
THE ^vorable reception given to Professor Hermann Ben-
der^s **Grundriss der Romischen literaturgeschichte,"
published a few years since in Germany, and its extensive
adoption as a text-book in the secondary schools of that
country, suggested its translation for the use of schools and
colleges in America.
The author enjoyed peculiar advantages in the preparation
of the work, from the fact that he was a pupil of the late
Professor Dr. Teuffel, of the University of Tubingen, • the cele-
brated author of a complete History of Roman Literature,
lately made accessible to English scholars in a translation.
In preparing the present manual, the aim has been to £uth-
fully reproduce the original, both in subject-matter and form,
with only such slight changes and omissions as seemed to
be demanded for clearness of expression.
For the convenience of teachers and students, numerous
references have been made to the best English works on
Roman Literature, and also to valuable treatises on particular
authors.
The somewhat meager table of contents has been greatiy
enlarged, so as to furnish a complete analysis of the work.
Also the charts at the end have been thrown into much
more convenient form than in the German edition.
in
IV PREFACE.
It is hoped that the work, as thus constituted, will meet a
want, long felt by classical teachers, of a text-book on Roman
Literature, which should contain, in compact and convenient
form, what every student ought to know, and which at the
same time should serve as a basis for courses of lectures or
for more extended study.
No reference has been made to American editions of Latin
authors, since it has been taken for granted that teachers are
well acquainted with them. For a complete bibliography of
Latin Literature, teachers are referred to the admirable work
of Professor Mayor, published by Macmillan & Co.
Special acknowledgements are due to Mr. G. H. Stock-
bridge, late of the University of Leipzig, for very valuable
assistance in the work of translation and in the revision of the
proof-sheets, and also to Mr. W. G. Hale, Tutor in Harvard
University, for many timely suggestions.
AmHBRST Ck>LLBGB,
Dec. 20, 1879.
ABBREVIATIONS.
C. — Cruttweirs History of Roman Literature.
CfOn. — Conington's Miscellaneous Writings.
Diet. Antiqq. — Smith's Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities.
Mer. — Merivale's History of the Romans under the Empire.
Mom. — Mommsen's History of Rome.
Parry. — Parry's Commentary on Terence.
Pn. — Papillon's Comparative Philology applied to Latin and Greek
Inflections.
B. — Roby's Grammar of the Latin Language.
By. — Ramsay's Roman Antiquities.
S. — Sellar's Roman poets of the Republic.
T. — Teuffel's History of Roman Literature, translated by Wagner.
W. — Wordsworth's Fragments and Specimens of Early Latin.
Wh. — Whitney's Language and the Study of Language.
ANALYSIS.
INTBODUOTION.
1. Late development of Roman
Literature z
Character of the Romans . . z
Their lack of imagination . . z
Their practical tendency . . z
Comparison with the Greeks . z
Attitude of contempt towards
Greek culture z
Want of time for literary pur-
suits z
Character of Roman Litera-
ture in the first five centuries a
Comparatively late develop-
ment of poetry a
Lack of a native Heroic Epos ;
the reason for this .... a
Need of an impulse fi:om with-
out a
Indebtedness of Roman Liter-
ature to the Greek .... a
Gradual advance of Greek
ideas 3
2. The Italic language .... 3
The Latin language .... 3
The Alphabet 3
Slow development of the Ian-
guage ......a.
Influence of Ennius and Cicero
Special adaptation to prose .
Characteristics of the Latin .
Stages of its decline ....
3. Periods of Roman Literature
FIRST PERIOD.
Pre-Historic to 240 B.a
Struggle for political supremacy 7
Independent development of the
Romans 7
The practical direction of prose
and poetry 7
Character of archaic Latin . . 8
Literary barrenness of this period 8
I. Poetry.
Lack of a national Epos .... 8
Niebuhr's theory refuted ... 8
The Carmen. Versus Satumius 8
Songs on historical subjects . . 8
Hymns to the dead 9
Carmina triumphalia .... 9
Sacred songs 9
Carmen Saliare, Carmen Ar-
valium 9
Ritual precepts 9
Epitaphs 9
The Drama 9
Its origin zo
Fescennini zo
Satura zo
Atellana zo
Rude character of the above . . zz
Vll
:
vm
ROMAN LITERATURE.
II. Prose.
Crude and fragmentary nature
of early prose zz
Conservative spirit of the Ro-
mans II
Official Documents :
Treaties ii
Leges regiae 12
Commentarii regum . . . . la
Commentarii magistratuum . la
Libri magistratuum . . . . la
Priestly Literature :
Libri pontificum . . .
Commentarii pontificum
Fasti
Annales pontificum
Private chronicles •
Laudationes funebres
Leges XII Tabularum
I us Flavianum . .
First prose-writer:
Ap. Claudius Csecus .
12
la
la
la
13
13
13
13
13
SECOND PEBIOD.
From Livius Andronicus to Cicero, 240-70 B.a
General character ..... 14
Growing influence of Greek
culture 14
Causes contributing to it . . . 15
Opposition to it unsuccessful . 15
Its restriction to the aristocracy 15
Growing unpopulari^ of the
national writers 15
Influence of Ennius 15
Prominence of comedy ... 15
Beginnings of oratory, history,
and legal writings 16
I. Poetry.
a. — Tka Drama,
The national popular comedy.
Satura and Atellana .... 16
Chief representatives :
Novius 16
L. Pomponius 16
Popular character of comedy 16
The Hellenistic Drama.
The Roman Theatre .... 17
Unpopularity of the actor's
profession 17
Classes appealed to by the
drama 17
Hellenistic comedy.
Fabulapalliata. 17
Its prototypes 17
Its general character. ... 17
Scene of the palliata .... 18
Different varieties 18
Combination of two or more
plays 18
Chief repr^entatives :
Livius Andronicus ... 18
Ennius 18
Cn. Naevius 18
T. Maccius Plautus ... 19
His life and extant writings 19
Characterization of Plau-
tus 20
His wit and vivacity • . ao
Character of his verse . . ao
His fame in later times . ao
P. Terentius ao
His life and writings . . ao
Comparison between Ter-
ence and Plautus . . . ai
His defects and excellences az
Elegance and dignity of
his language . . . . az
His fame 21
ANALYSIS.
U
Statius CaeciUos . . . . az
Luscius Lavinius . . , . 21
The National Drama.
Fabulatogata 32
Its general character ... 2a
Chief authors :
Titinius 22
T. Quinctius Atta .... 22
L.Afranius .... .^ , 22
Tragedy.
Hellenistic tendency . ... 22
Comparatively slight cultiva-
tion . ... 22
Faults of the Roman tragic
writers , ,' .22
Fabula praetexta 22
Chief authors :
Livius Andronicus. ... 22
Cn. Naevius 22
Q. Ennius 22
M. Pacuvius ,.,.., 22
L. Accius 23
h^—The Epos.
Its character 23
Chief authors :
Livius Andronicus .... 23
Cn. Naevius ..,.,., 24
Q. Ennius 24
His life and chief work , , 24
Character of the Annales , 24
Use of the hexameter . , 24
Genius of Ennius .... 25
His work a great national
Epos 25
His estimation in later
times 25
Satura ; its new meaning ... 25
Chief representative :
C. Lucilius 25
His life 25
His sharp criticism of pul>
lie afiairs 35
II. Proae.
General character rude and un-
developed 26
Comparison with early German
prose 26
«. — History,
Annalistic character 26
Discussion of its trustworthi-
ness , ... 26
Writers in Greek :
Q. Fabius Pictor 26
L. Cincius Alimentus ... 27
C. Acilius Glabrio . . , , 27
A. Postumius Albinus ... 27
Latin writers :
M. Porcius Cato 27
His life and character . . 27
His versatility 27
The Origines ..... 27
Character of the narrative . 27
Introduction of speeches . 28
Cato's authorities .... 28
Cicero's estimate of him . 28
Cassius Hemina ..... 28
L. Calpumius Piso Frugi . . 28
C. Sempronius Tuditanus . . 28
L. Caelius Antipater .... 28
Writers of contemporary history :
P. Rutilius Rufus 28
Q. Lutatius Catulus .... 28
Sempronius Asellio .... 28
L. Cornelius Sulla .... 28
L. Cornelius Sisenna ... 29
Claudius Quadrigarius ... 29
Valerias Antias 29
C. Licinius Macer .... 29
h. — Oratory,
Favored by the character of the
Romans, and by the freedom
of their political life .... 29
ROMAN LITERATURE.
Necessity to the political aspirant 29
Cicero's requirements for the
orator 30
Most important orators :
M. Porcius Cato ..... 30
S. Sulpicius Galba .... 30
C Gracchus 30
M. Antonius 30
L. Crassus 30
Q. Hortensius 30
Rhetor ica ad Herennium ... 31
Comificius 31
c, — Special Sciences,
Jurisprudence 31
Development of Roman law
normal 31
Beginnings of legal science . 31
Legal tradition in certain fam-
ilies 31
Chief writers :
S. iElius Psetus 31
P. Mucins Scaevola ... 32
Q. Mucins Scaevola ... 32
Archaeology 32
Chiefly occupied with linguis-
tic'matters 32
Zealous pursuit of philologi-
cal studies 32
First Roman philologist :
L. i£lius Stilo 32
Domestic economy 33
Cato 33
Agriculture 33
Mago 33
THIRD PERIOD.
Golden Age of Roman Literature, 70 B.C.-14 a.d.
Predominance of Greek culture 34
Roman students in Greece . • 34
Greek teachers in Rome ... 34
Contempt for the Greeks ... 34
Real dependence upon them . 34
Translation of Greek works in
the schools 34
Development of the book-trade 34
Founding of public libraries. . 35
Consequent increase of literary
activity 35
Diverse character of the Cicero-
nian and Augustan Ages . . 35
Freedom of literature imder the
Republic 35
Its restraint under the Empire . 36
Withdrawal of poetry to the
court 36
Importance of oratory in the
Ciceronian Age 36
Its highest development in Cicero 36 I
Cultivation of rhetoric, history,
and philosophy 36
Comparative unimportance of
poetry 36
Diplomatic character of litera-
ture under the Empire ... 36
Supression of individuality . . 36
Cautious treatment of oratory
and history 36
Prominence of the professions . 37
Courtly tone of poetry .... 37
Increased attention to literature
in the provinces 37
None of the great Augustan
authors native Romans ... 37
I. Poetry.
a, — The Drama.
The artistic drama little culti-
vated 38
Its restriction to limited circles . 38
ANALYSIS.
XI
Its retreat before the Mime and
Pantomime 38
The Mime: its character and
subjects 38
Chief representatives :
Decimus Laberius .... 39
Publilius Syms 39
The Pantomime :
Its development by Bathyllus
and Pylades 39
Its general character - • • 39
b,— Tke Epos.
Its extensive cultivation ... 39
t\s varieties 39
Chief representatives :
Cicero 40
P. Terentius Varro .... 40
L. Varius 40
Pedo Albinovanus . . •. . 40
Rabirius 40
Lucretius Cams 40
His didactic poem de rerum
natura 40
The poet's purpose ... 40
His difficulties and success 41
His literary importance . . 41
P. Vergilius Maro .... 41
His life and character . 41-42
Order of his poems ... 42
1. Bucolica 42
Their character and fame . 42
2. Georgica 43
Their subject 43
Aim of the poet 43
Degree of independence . 43
Their general character. . 43
3. iEneis 43
Subject of the poem ... 44
Virgil's purpose .... 44
Defects of the poem ... 44
Its finest parts 44
Its great fame ..... 44
Minor poems of Virgil. ... 45
Virgil in the Middle Ages . . 45
Gratius Faliscus 45
Manilius 45
c, — Satire and Epistle,
Character of the satire .... 45
Its poetic form 45
Deviation from this form by
Varro 45
Q. Horatius Flaccus .... 46
His life 46
Description of his person . . 46
Varieties of his poems ... 47
Probable order of publication 47
1. Satires 47
Varied character of their
contents 47
Their careless style ... 48
Their effect upon the reader 48
2. Epistles ....*... 48
Their beauty of style ... 48
Questions discussed in them 48
The finest ones 48
3. Odes 49
Their time of publication . 49
Imitation of Greek poets . 49
Growing independence of
Horace 49
Reflective character of the
odes 49
Their beauty of thought and
expression 50
4. Epodes 50
Their relation to the odes
and satires 50
Subjects of the epodes . . 50
General estimate of Horace . . 50
Reflective cast of his mind . 50
His sound common sense . . 50
His aim ........ 50
His independence in social
relations 50
xu
ROMAN LITERATURE.
His importance as a poet . . 51
Comparison between Horace
and Virgil . 51
d. — LyHc Poetry,
Its growth in importance ... 5a
Copying the elegy from the
Alexandrian poets .... 52
Introduction of the erotic elegy
by Catullus ...... 52
General character 52
Lyric poets of the Ciceronian
Age :
C. Licinius Calvus . . • • 52
C. Valerius Catullus .... 52
His life 52
Subjects of his poems . . 52
Character as a poet ... 53
Lyric poets under Augustus :
Cornelius Gallus 53
P. Ovidius Naso 53
His life in Rome • • • • 53
Banishment by Augustus . 53
Cause assigned by Ovid . 54
His writings 54
His fsicility in versification . 55
Lack of earnestness • . • 55
Comparison with the Ger-
man poet Heine ... 56
Superficiality of Ovid's po-
etry 5^
Popularity of the Metamor-
phoses in the Middle Ages 56
Albius Tibullus 56
His life and writings ... 56
His elegiac nature. . • • 57
S. Propertius 57
Subjects of his poems . . 57
Cultivation of the erotic
elegy 57
Smoothness and finish of
his poetry 58
Quintilian on the Roman elegy . 58
II. Proee.
a, — Oratory.
The genus Asiaticum .... 58
The genus Atticum 58
The genus Rhodium .... 58
Their most prominent repre-
sentatives 58
Restriction of oratory in the
Augustan Age • 5^
Supplanted by Rhetoric . • . ' 58
Oratory of the schools .... 59
Orators of the Ciceronian Age :
Caesar 59
M. Calidius 59
C. Mummius •59
C. Curio 59
M. Caelius Rufiis 59
Asinius PoUio 59
M.Valerius Messala. ... 59
Chief representative in the Au-
gustan Age :
Cassius Severus 59
Quintilian's characterization of
these orators 59
M. TuUius Cicero 59
Survey of his life and writ-
ings 59-61
His activity in different de-
partments ...... 61
1. Orations 62
Quintilian's judgment of
Cicero as an orator , . 6a
Cicero's oratorical endow-
ments 62
His zeal for knowledge . . 62
Character of his orations . 62
Most important ones . . 62-63
2. Rhetorical writings .... 63
Cicero's acquaintance with
the theories of the schools 63
His dissatisfaction with
them 63
ANALYSIS.
XIU
Practical nature of his own
system 63
His rhetorical works in de-
tail 64
^. — Cicero and Philosophy in Rome,
Unfriendly reception of Greek
philosophy by the Romans . 64
Expulsion of Greek philosophers
from Rome 64
Later popularity of Greek phil-
osophy 65
Predominance of Stoicism . . 65
The different systems, with their
representatives 65
Dependence of the Romans in
philosophy 65
Constraint of Cicero's political
life 6s
His wide but superficial ac-
quaintance with the Greek
philosophers 66
His preference for the New
Academy 66
His hostility to Epicureanism . 66
Cicero's chief service .... 66
Form of his writings .... 66
List of his philosophical works . 66
c, — Cicero* s Letter s»
The four collections 68
Their publication by Tiro and
Atticus 69
General character of the letters 69
Their value as an historical
authority 69
The diverse nature of the let-
ters 69
Description of the collections . 70
Popularity of Cicero's letters in
antiquity 70
General criticism of Cicero • . 70
Existing spirit of hypercriticism 70
Defects of Cicero's character • /z
His historical significance . . 71
Virtues and services of Qoero . 71
of
d, — History,
Activity in this department .
Artistic treatment of history .
The writers chiefly men en
gaged in politics ....
Diversity of subjects in the Cice-
ronian and Augustan Age
Writers of the Ciceronian Age
T. Pomponius Atticus
M. Tullius Cicero .
Q. ^lius Tubero . .
C. lulius Caesar . .
HisUfe
His position as an orator
Works on various subjects
His most important works
Survey of their contents.
General characterization
Caesar ......
His literary style . . .
His motives in writing .
Continuation of Caesar's his-
tories by Aulus Hirtius .
Cornelius Nepos ....
His life and writings . .
His purpose in writing .
His sincerity and aim at im
partiality
Defects of his works . .
Theory to account for them
C. Sallustius Crispus . .
His life and chief writings
z. Catilina ......
Most interesting portions
a. Bellum lugurthinum .
Its general character
3. Historiae
7a
7a
7a
7a
7a
72
7a
IZ
73
73
73
73
73
74
74
74
75
75
75
76
76
76
76
76
76
77
77
77
77
77
XIV
ROMAN LITERATURE.
Martial's judgment of Sal-
lust 77
Sallust's historical insigfat . 78
Contrast between his life
and his writings .... 78
His impartiality 78
His strength and his weak-
ness ........ 78
Peculiarities of his lan-
guage 78
Writers of the Augustan Age :
Augustus 78
M. Vipsanius Agrippa ... 79
M. Valerius Messala ... 79
Asinius PoUio 79
T. Livius 79
His life and writings ... 79
His aim in writing history . 79
Livy's qualities of mind . . 80
Judgment of the ancients
concerning him .... 80
His stand in religion and
politics 80
Defects of his work ... 80
His authorities 81
Excellences of his work . . 81
His popularity 81
The acta senatus and acta populi 8a
e, — Special Sciences.
M. Terentius Varro 82
His life and learning ... 82
The scope of his works ... 82
List of his most important
works 82
General criticism 83
Value of Varro's works ... 83
S. Sulpicius Rufiis ..... 83
A. Ofilius 84
C. Trebatius Testa 84
M. Antistius Labeo 84
C. Ateius Capito 84
Writers on Archaeology and
Philology :
P. Nigidius Figulus .... 84
M. Verrius Flaccus .... 84
Pompeius Festus 84
lulius Hyginus 84
Architecture 84
Vitruvius PoUio 85
Geography 85
Agrippa 85
fourth pbbiod.
The Silver Age of Roman Literature, 14-117 aj>., from
Tiberius to the Death of Trajan.
Imperial despotism unfavorable
to literature 86
Suppression of freedom in
speaking and writing ... 86
Consequent insincerity ... 86
Character of the language . . 87
Changes in style 87
Influences favorable to literature 87
Prominence of poetry and rhet-
oric 88
Learned character of the for-
mer 88
Predominance of the Epos . . 88
Its cultivation by the emper-
ors 88
Its artificiality 88
School oratory and learning . . 88
History still under constraint . 88
Literary importance of Spain
and Gaul 89
ANALYSIS.
XV
I. Poetry.
a, — TA^ Drama,
Predominance of the Mime and
Pantomime 89
Absence of acting dramas . . 89
Tragic poets : .
Pomponius Secundus ... 89
Curiatius Matemus .... 89
Seneca 89
His ten tragedies .... 89
Their authenticity . ... 89
French imitators of Seneca 90
Lucanus 90
b,—The Epos.
Nero 90
M. Annaeus Lucanus .... 90
His life and writings .... 90
His poem, Pharsalia ... 90
His republican bias .... 90
His Stoicism 91
General character of his works 91
C. Valerius Flaccus 91
C. Silius Italicus 91
His life and writings .... 91
C. Papinius Statins 91
Character of his poems . . 92
TheSilvae 9fl
Writers of Didactic Epos :
Germanicus 92
Caesius Bassus 92
Lucilius Junior 92
c, — Satire and Fable,
Abundance of materials for Sat-
ire
Its restriction to literary and so-
cial matters ....
Crabbedness of its tone
Its chief representatives
A. Persius Flaccus .
Nature of his satires
92
93
93
93
93
93
Seneca 93
His attack on the emperor
Claudius 93
Petronius Arbiter 94
His satirical romance . . 94
Abstract of the story ... 94
Its coarseness and wit . . 94
Question of idendty dis-
cussed 94
Decimus Junius Juvenalis • 95
Subjects of his satires • . 95
Their origin 95
His views on mankind and
religion 95
His power of vivid portrayal 95
Languidness of his later
satires 95
The most interesting satires 96
The Fable :
Phaedrus 96
His fables 96
Aim of the poet 96
d, — Lyric Poetry and Epigram,
Artificiality of Lyric Poetry . . 96
Caesius Bassus 97
Statins 97
Aruntius Stella 97
Sulpicia 97
The Epigram 97
M. Valerius Martialis ... 97
His life 97
Character of his epigrams . 97
His excellences 97
Lessing's estimate of him . 97
His defects ..;... 97
II. Prose.
a, — History,
Suppression of free thought . . 98
Fate of A. Cremutius Cordus . 98
XVI
ROMAN UTERATURE.
Writers on contemporary history :
Augustus 98
.Tiberius 98
Claudius 9^
Agrippina the Younger . . . 99
Vespasian 99
Aufidius Bassus 99
Pliny the Elder 99
Fabius Rusticus 99
Cluvius Rufiis 99
Velleius Paterculus .... 99
His life and writings . * . 99
His summary treatment of
the earliest history ... 99
Diffuseness of the latter part
of his work 99
Its subjective character . . 99
Its artificial style .... 99
Excellences of the work . . 99
Valerius Maximus .... 100
His collection of models for
rhetoricians 100
Arrangement of the work . 100
The absurdity of its style . 100
Its value as a compilation . 100
Q. Curtius Rufits ..... 100
His history of Alexander the
Great zoo
General belief respecting the
time of writing .... 100
Defects of the work . . . 100
The author's purpose. . . zoo
His imitation of Livy . . . zoz
His skill in dramatic group-
ing zoz
Cornelius Tacitus zoz
Discussion respecting the
place of his birth . . . zoz
His life and writings . . . zoz
I. Dialogus de oratoribus . . zoz
General character . . . zoz
Discusssion of its authen-
ticity 102
a. De vita et moribus lulii
Agricolae ..... zoa
General character . . . zoa
5. Germania Z02
The monographic charac-
ter of the work . . . zoa
Its satirical purpose . . zoa
4. Historiae zoa
Most interesting portions Z03
Time of composition . . Z03
' 5. Annales Z03
Its relation to the His-
toriae Z93
General character . . . Z03
Characterization of Tacitus . Z03
His carefulness in research zq3
Nature of his authorities . Z03
His ruling political princi-
ple Z03
His admiration of the Re-
public ZP4
His reluctant recognition of
the Empire ZC4
The underlying bitterness in
his writings ZC4
His conscientiousness and
chief excellences. . • . Z04
Laclc of philosophical creed ZC4
His position in religious
matters Z04
His doubt concerning the
divine government. . . ZC4
Development of Tacitus'
style Z05
Its dignity and solemnity . Z05
b, — Oratory,
The great number of rhetorically
educated men Z05
Lack of freedom and opportuni-
ty of speaking ...... Z05
Restriction of oratory .... Z05
Its retirement into the schools . Z05
ANALYSIS.
XVU
Seneca the Elder xo6
Character of his writings . . zo6
Their importance for the his-
tory of oratory io6
M. Fabius Quintilianus . . . io6
His life and character . . . io6
His InsHtuHo oratoria . . . xo6
His preference for Cicero . . 107
Scope of the work .... 107
Pliny the Younger Z07
His life and writings . . « . Z07
His letters Z07
Comparison with Cicero's let-
ters X07
The man as seen in his works zo8
Most interesting letters . . . zo8
c, — Philosophy,
Activity in this department . . 108
Character of philosophical wri-
ters Z08
Predominance of Stoicism • . zo8
Punishment of Greek philoso-
phers 108
Seneca the Younger zo8
His life and character . . . zo8
His sincerity of purpose . . X09
Loftinessof moral view. . . 109
Tradition concerning him . . 109
His style Z09
Varieties of his works . . . Z09
The Epistuke ad LucUium . zzo
Seneca's views compared with
Christianity zzo
d, — Special ScUnces^
Writers on Law :
Masurius Sabinus zzo
Sempronius Proculus . . .zzo
The two schools of law . . .zzo
Science of language zzo
Interest of the Emperors in
it zzo
Claudius zzo
Grammarians and Conmienta-
tors:
Q. Remmius Palsemo . . . zzz
Q. Asconius Pedianus . . . zzz
M. Valerius Probus .... zzz
iEmilius Asper zzz
Flavins Caper zzz
Velius Longus zzz
Mathematical writers :
Sextus lulius Frontinus . . zzz
Life and writings .... zzz
Hyginus zzz
Their works on military sub-
jects zzi
Geography zza
Pomponius Mela zza
Pliny the Elder zza
His life and writings . . . zza
Scope of his work .... zza
His style ZZ3
Cornelius Celsus ZZ3
Scribonius Largus . . . . ZZ3
Moderatus Columella . . ZZ3
fifth period.
The Later Empire, after the Death of Trajan, 117 a.d.
Comparative unimportance of
Decline in politics and literature ZZ4
Lack of independence .... 114
Artificiality of literature . . • ZZ4
Ped^try 114
Archaistic tendency IZ4
poetry ZZ4
Literary importance of the prov-
inces ZZ4
Style of the provincial writers . zz5
xvm
ROMAN LITERATURE.
Political confusion of the third
century Z15
Triumph of Christianity . . . 115
Decay of the old Roman charac-
ter 115
General estimate 115
I. Poetry.
a, — Lyric,
The Pervigilium Veneris ,
Decimus Magnus Ausonius
His life and writings . .
Variety of his works . .
His Idyll Mosella , . .
Aurelius Prudentius Qemens
116
116
116
116
116
116
d.—Epic.
General character . . . . .117
Claudius Claudianus . . . .117
Character of his poems . . .117
Christian poets :
C. Vettius Aquilius luvencus . 117
Flavins Merobaudes .... 117
Apollinaris Sidonius . . . .117
Dracontius 118
Venantius Fortunatus
118
c. — Didactic,
Nemesianus 118
Festus Avienus 118
Claudius Rutilius Namatianus . 118
His descriptive poem . . . 118
Fable 119
Avianus Z19
II. Prose.
a, — Oratory,
Cornelius Fronto 119
His life and character . . . Z19
His reliance upon rhetoric . Z19
His archaistic preferences . . 1x9
119
lao
lao
120
120
Z20
zao
Z20
L. Apuleius
His life
Character as a writer
His Metamorphoseott .
Imitation of Lucian .
Other works of Apuleius
Q. Aurelius Symmachus .
His orations and epistles
b, — PhilosopJ^,
Opposition to it zaz
Marcus Aurelius Z2Z
Mystic character of philosophy . Z2Z
Apuleius Z2Z
Christianity opposed to philos-
ophy Z2Z
Effect of this opposition . . . Z22
Boetius Z22
His life and works .... Z22
His de consolatione .... Z22
c. — History.
Activity in this department
Lack of freedom . . .
Influence of rhetoric .
Biographical treatment .
Compendia
Ecclesiastical history .
C. Suetonius Tranquillus
His hfe and writings .
His biographical works
Importance of his extant work
Its anecdotical character
Defects of the work
Florus
His writings . . .
L. Ampelius ....
Granicius Licinianus
Marius Maximus . .
Scriptores Historiae Augustae
Their biographies of the Em
perors
Value of their writings . .
Z22
Z22
Z22
Z22
Z22
Z22
Z22
Z22
Z23
Z23
Z23
Z23
Z23
Z23
Z24
124
Z24
Z24
Z24
Z24
ANALYSIS.
XIX
Aurelius Victor 124
His historical works .... 125
Works ascribed to him . . . 125
Eutropius 125
Ammianus Marcellinus . . . 125
His life and writings .... 125
The author's standpoint . . 126
His style 126
Defects of the work .... 126
Sulpicius Severus 126
Orosius 126
Magnus Aurelius Cassiodorius . 126
His works 126
lordanis 126
Gildas 126
Gregorius of Tours 126
Official state-records .... 126
d, — Special Sciences.
Law Z27
Highest development under the
Emperors 127
Civil law Z27
Later codification of legal au-
thorities 127
Most important jurists :
Salvius lulianus 127
Sextus Pomponius 127
Gains 127
His introduction to legal
science 127
^milius Papinianus .... 128
His responsa and quas- 128
Hones 128
Domitius Ulpianus 128
lulius P&ulus Z28
Herennius Modestinus . . • • 128
Collections of constitutiones :
Codex Gregorianus .... 128
Codex Hermogenianus . . • Z28
Fragmenta Vaticana . , • . 128
Codex Theodosianus . . . zaS
Corpus iuris 128
Its separate parts :
Codex lustinianeus. . . Z28
Institutiones Z29
Digesta or Pandects . . Z29
Novellae Z29
Philology and Archaeology . . Z29
Their high standing Z29
Encyclopaedic character . . . Z29
z. Compilers:
Aulus Gellius Z99
His Noctes AUica .... Z30
Importance of the work . . Z30
Nonius Marcellus .... Z3o
Macrobius Theodosius . . . Z30
Martianus Capella .... 130
His writings Z30
2. Writers of text-books and
commentaries :
Terentius Scaurus . . . . Z3Z
C. Sulpicius Apollinaris . . Z31
Helenius Aero Z3Z
Pomponius Porphyrio . . . 13Z
Plotius Sacerdos Z3Z
Terentianus Z3Z
luba Z3Z
Marius Victorinus .... Z3Z
iElius Donatus Z3Z
Flavins Charisius Z3Z
Diomedes ........ Z32
Servius Honoratus .... Z32
Priscianus Z32
His grammatical works . . Z32
Geography Z32
C. lulius Solinus ..... Z32
^thicus Ister Z32
The Uineraria Z32
NotiHa and curiosum urbis
RonuB Z32
Maps Z32
Astronomy Z32
Firmicus Matemus (pagan) . 132
Firmicus Matemus (Christian) Z33
ROMAN LITERATURE.
Military science . .
Flavins Vegetius .
Scope of his work
Medicine
Marcellus Empiricus
Caelius AuFclianus
Agriculture ....
Gargilius Martialis
P^dladius Rutilius .
133
133
133
133
133
133
133
133
133
e, — Patristic Literature,
The Church Fathers .... 134
Minucius Felix 134
His Octavius 134
Tertullianus 134
His character and writings . 134
Cyprianus 134
Amobius 134
LActantius Firmianus • . . 135
Beauty of his style . . . . 135
His acquaintance with the
classics 135
Ambrosius 135
His personal character . . 135
Hish3rmns 135
Hieronymus 135
His learning 135
His translation of the Bible 135
Aurelius Augustinus .... 135
His versatility 135
His ecclesiastical impor-
tance X35
The de civitate Dei . . .135
Tht con/essumes • • . . 136
Pope Leo I 136
Pope Gregory 1 136
INTRODUCTION.
IT was only at a late period that Roman literature rose to
any thing like a high plane, namely, after the time when
the Romans came into more active intercourse with the
Greeks, and received from them abundant and varied in-
citement. The Roman character was in itself poorly adapted
to literary development. There were wanting just those
qualities which fit a people for literary and especially for
poetical productions, and by which the Greeks were distin-
guished, — wealth and creative power of imagination, fine
sense of form and instinctive appreciation of the beautiful,
tendency towards the ideal, and free development of indi-
viduality. The' peculiarities which make up the Roman
character lie in the domain of the practical, — keen intel-
lect, dispassionate reflection, a cast of mind masculine in
its earnestness yet not youthful, inclination to work, ener-
getic striving after the real, restraint of individuality by the
interests of the whole, strict subjection of the individual to
the state.
The literary activity of the Greeks appeared to the Ro-
mans as an aimless pastime and as busy idleness ; even the
Roman otium — at least in the earlier times — was filled
with a more earnest activity than the firee and easy oHum
Grcecum, and the lively TroXvTrpayfxooiJvrj (busy curiosity)
of the Athenians. On this account' the Romans stood for a
8 ROMAN LITERATURE.
long time in an exclusive and contemptuous attitude towards
the Greek mind ; indeed, even when the higher circles had
long begun to allow themselves to be penetrated by the
elements of Greek culture, they displayed, in public at
least, in view of the continued unpopularity of such Grecian
tendencies, an aristocratic disdain and an often affected con-
sciousness of their own superiority. With their conscien-
tiousness in the service of the family and the community,
the Romans had neither time nor inclination for purely
literary occupations. For more than five centuries, there-
fore, nothing was produced except in such departments as
from the outset made no demand for artistic perfection, as,
for example, the popular farce, or such as served a defi-
nite practical purpose, as, for example, the sacred lyric,
the writing of matter-of-fact chronicles, and the collection
of legal formulae.
In close connection with this stands the fact that among
the Romans — in distinction from most other nations —
prose, which can confine itself more to essentials, was de-
veloped to classical perfection before poetry, for which
beauty of form is a chief consideration.
The reason why the heroic Epos, which forms the earliest
and at the same time the brightest ornament of Greek poetry,
did not make its appearance in Rome as a native produc-
tion, is found in this fact, that the unimaginative Romans
had no mythology rich in imposing figures and events, and
that in their religion the idea outweighed the synibol.
Since, thus, literature found unfavorable soil with the
Romans, a strong impulse firom without was necessary in
order to set Roman literature in motion ; accordingly, Ro-
man poetry in its highest forms rests in reality upon Greek
foundations ; and also prose, even in those departments
which in their nature and origin were peculiar to the
INTRODUCTION. 3
Roman nation, particularly in oratory, has derived its artistic
form from the Greeks. This permeation with Greek ele-
ments did not find its full and unhindered completion until
in the sixth and seventh centuries of the city, and there-
fore all that was produced before this time, though often
possessing originality and strength, is still crude and unde-
veloped, only an attempt at and beginning of artistic sym-
metrical production.
The Italic language, like its sister languages, Greek
and Sanskrit, is a member of the Indo-European family of
languages.* The Latin is a dialect of the Italic language.
By its side stand the coordinate Umbrian and Sabellian
(Oscan) dialects, which, however, gradually fell into disuse.^
The alphabet of the Latin language was borrowed from
the Greek, probably before the founding of Rome. It con-
sisted originally of twenty-one letters, but suffered in the
course of time many changes, k, for example, disappear-
ing, and g being added. There were changes, also, in the
orthography and pronunciation, r, for example, being often
substituted for s, while the aspiration of. the mutes first
appeared in the time of Sulla, and the doubling of the con-
sonants not before Ennius.^
Thus the Latin language did not obtain rules and perma-
nency in orthography, pronunciation, and grammar until the
time when literature at Rome had begun to take a loflier
flight, i.e., in the sixth and seventh centuries of the city.
Moreover, the acquaintance with the Greeks had a great
1 Pn. II ; Wh. 192.
« C. 9; Mom, i. 33: Pn. 12; W. 2.
s C. II ; Mom. i. 281 ; Pn. 46; R. i. 21 ; W. 5.
4 ROMAN LITERATURE.
influence upon the development of the language. Among
the Romans themselves, Ennius marks an epoch in the
formation of the language by introducing the hexameter.
Not until the time of Cicero, however, did classical Latin
take the place of archaic.
The entire character of the Latin language, as well as
of the Romans in general, was peculiarly suited to prose.
In earlier times, especially, the language was too stiff and
angular to serve as a light and flowing dress for poetry ; and
in general those qualities do not prominently belong to the
Latin language which are found in the Greek, and which led,
of themselves, to their use in poetry. These are lightness
and elegance, freedom and flexibility, natural euphony and
rhythm.
The qualities which characterize the language of the
Romans are, rather, an intelligence aiming at precision of
expression, logical accuracy and syntactical completeness,
rhetorical dignity and moderation, and an immobility
amounting almost to clumsiness. Thus the Latin language
was especially suited to use in prose in the practical de-
partments of jurisprudence, legislation, oratory, and annal-
writing, which has chiefly to do with the statement of facts..
Prose reached its highest development among the Ro-
mans in Cicero, but it was not until the Augustan Age that
it acquired the roundness, grace, and flexibility necessary for
poetry. If, therefore, we call the Ciceronian-Augustan Age
the classical period of prose and poetry, from that time on
a gradual decline in the language becomes noticeable. Sim-
plicity and naturalness disappear more and more ; the lin^
guistic sense, as well as the clearness of distinction between
prose and poetry becomes turbid ; artificial adornment and
rhetorical .overloading get the upper hand ; the cultivated,
literary language becomes more widely separated from the
INTRODUCTION.
language of the people ; provincial elements win themselves
a place. Thus arise successive periods of decline, which
have been termed the Silver, Brass, and Iron Ages of the
language. ^
The following periods of Roman literature are to be dis-
tinguished : 1 —
I. — The Pre-Historic Period, to Livius Andronicus, 240 B.C.
II. — The Archaic Period, from livius Andronicus to Cicero,
240-70 B.C.
III. — The Golden Age, 70 B.C.-14 aj>.
I. The Ciceronian Period.
3. The Augustan Period.
IV. — The Silver Age, 14-117A.D.
V. — The Period of Positive Decline (Brass and Iron Ages),
117A.D. to the Sixth Century.
ROMAN LITERATURE.
FIRST PERIOD.
PRE-HiSTORIC, to 240 B.C.
IN the first five centuries the Romans had too little time
and too little culture and fi-eedom of movement to be
able to achieve any thing important in literature. It was a
time of contest and struggle ; externally, for the existence of
the city and state, and for winning and maintaining the su-
premacy over Italy; internally, for placing the constitution
on a firm basis and fixing the rights of the patricians and
plebeians.^ The Roman people were in great measure cast
upon their own resources; they advanced according to
their own national standards and laws ; not, however, as if
isolation had taken place, — there was no lack of contact
with the Greeks in Lower Italy ; but this contact was not
continuous, not sought, and not understood, and hence it
lacked that deeper influence without which the Romans
could not attain to a literary development. Poetry was still
a thing of natural growth, without art or form, and having
no ideal content. The practical ends of social life, of his-
torical and family tradition, and of religion, gave it direc-
tion. In like manner, prose served only practical interests
and needs. No genius had yet appeared to furnish rule and
1 — ■■- ■■!! .. I ■■■■ ■■■ m^^ ^m I -^ - - - - ,^^ ,^^ I ■ ^M I ^m 1 ■ 1 ^^m i ■
10.23.
8 ROMAN LITERATURE.
form to the language and literature, or give them a higher
content. The language of this early period was scarcely or
not at all understood in the time of Cicero and Horace ;
and while it has for us a high historical and linguistic inter-
est, it has none from a literary and aesthetic point of view.
I. POETRY.
In Epic poetry the Romans have nothing which is worthy
to be mentioned beside the writings of Homer among the
Greeks. Neither in this nor in any subsequent period did
the national spirit of the Romans produce such an Epos.
Niebuhr's theory of a national Epos containing the oldest
Roman legends presupposes a poetic endowment, and espe-
cially a myth-creating imagination, such as the Romans did
not possess.*
On the other hand, a rhjrthmic form is not wanting, which
was employed in all cases outside of the simplest notices and
records. This is the carmen (casmen, from cano), some-
thing intermediate between prose and poetry.^ This carmen
employed the so-called versus Saturnius, which appears
most frequently in the form
and which is characterized by a division into an Iambic
and a Trochaic half, as well as by a certain proportion of
accented syllables (the unaccented syllables can be sup-
pressed), while, in other respects, it appears to be well-nigh
without rules.3
This rhythm was used in the oldest songs on histori-
cal subjects, which — perhaps generally with musical
1 C. 36 ; Monx. i. 291. 2 C. 25 ; T. i. 79.
* C. 30 ; Mom. i. 296 ; W. 396.
FIRST PERIOD. 9
accompaniment — were sung at table ; * also in hymns to
the dead (nenia), sung originally, perhaps, by the rela-
tives, later by professional mourners ; in the carmina
triumphaliaf both as responsive song and with the re-
frain Jo triumphe I and especially, also, in $acred songs,
such as the Carmen Saliare^ which the Salii chanted in
their festal processions in honor of Mars, and the song of
ike Arval Brethren, sung in May on the occasion of the
ambarvalia (circuit of the fields), which, by a discovery
made in Rome in 1777, has been in part rescued firom
oblivion.3
Besides the above, there were rhythmic ritual precepts,
of which an example is seen in the tabulm Iguvinas^ found
at Iguvium in 1444, oracles, formulae relating to the weather,
incantations, and the like. Also, epitaphs employed the
same rhythm ; for example, that of L. Com. Scipio, consul
298 B.C. : ^ —
Com^fids Lucius | Sc(pi6 Barbatus
Gnaiv6d patr6 prognitus | fdrtis v{r sapi^nsqtie,
Quoids f6nna virtu- | tei partsuma fdit,
Consul cens6r aidiHs | quei fuit apdd vos,
Taurasia Cisatina | Samni6 c^pit,
Subigit Diaxii Loucinam | 6psid6sque abdoticit.
The Drama appeared early in the form of a popular
play, which found fruitful soil in the bantering disposition
1 Cic Tusc. i. 3; iv. 2. Hor. Od. iv. 15, 25, seqq., and elsewhere.
2 C. 15; T. i.8i; W. 564.
* The beginning reads —
Enos, Lases, juvate !
Neve lue rue, Mannar sins tncurrere in pleores;
i.e., No9, Lares, juvate neve iuem ruem (= ruinam), Mamers, sinas inteur-
rere in plures. C. 14; Mom. i. 294; W. 385.
* T. i. 83 ; Diet. Geog. s. Iguvium.
* G. 17 ; Mom. i. 579 ; Pn. 237 : R, i. 418 ; T. i. 97 ; W. 397.
lO ROMAN LITERATURE.
inherent in the character of the people, and in the talent for
observation and improvisation peculiar to the Italians.^ The
germ of this lay already in the form of the responsive song
(for example, that of the Arval Brethren) ; and when music,
dancing, and disguises were added, the national comedy
was complete, though it was, indeed, without plan, and im-
provised at will as a sort of carnival play.
The Fesccnnini^ (so called from the town Fescenni-
num,3 in the southern part of Etruria) possessed a like sim-
plicity, and so were as yet not suited to stage representation.
They were exhibitions of a rather loose character at countrjr
festivals, abounding in rude personal jokes, and confined in
later and more cultivated times to wedding occasions.
The Satura^ had also a primitive character. This was
a comic representation, accompanied with song, dance, and
flute-playing, conducted at first by the country youth, but
after the erection of a theatre in Rome, 364 B.C., it was
placed in the hands of professional ballad-singers and actors
{histrivnes). It was thus somewhat more subject to rules,
and better suited to the stage, than the Fescennini.^
After the drama as based on rules of art came into vogue,
the Satura was employed as a lively after-play (exodiutn).
The same fate was also suffered by the Atellana,^ a play
introduced into Rome soon after 210 B.C., that is, not until
the Second Period. This, in other respects similar to the
Satura, was characterized by certain standing figures,"'^ and
1 T. i. 2. 2 C. 28 ; Mom. i. 295. « Cf. Hor. Epp. n. i, 139, seqq.
* Either scil. lanx, a dish filled with all sorts of fruits, i.e., tutti/rutti
potpourri; or = song, masquerade of the Saturi, " full people."
'6 T. i. s; C. 29.
« Sc. fabula^ so called from the Campanian town Atella; also called
ludtQrum Oscum. T. i. 12 ; Mom. i. 297.
7 These were Maccus, the harlequin ; Bucco, the gourmand ; Pappus, the
bamboozled old man = pantaloon ; Dossenus, the sly pickpocket » dottore.
FIRST PERIOD. II
was represented not by regular actors, but by masked Ro-
man youth, and so had a higher character than the Satura.
All these representations depended, for the most part,
upon improvisation and not upon written compositions, and
from their lack of plan and unity, as well as from their
rough and uncouth nature, had no real literary importance.
Not until the following period did tlie Satura and Atellana
receive artistic treatment.
n. FROSE.
Literary prose was not developed in Rome until in the
course of the sixth century of the city. The pioneer writer in
prose literature was the elder Cato. All the literary remains
of the earlier period consist, with few exceptions, of short,
crude records of events, laws, formulae for worship, and the
like, in which also the Saturnian verse was not unfrequently
employed.^ The conservative spirit of the Romans, the
tenacity with which they held to tradition, prompted them
to make official as well as private records of past events, for
the most part, indeed, with a panegyric tendency and with-
out historical conscientiousness.
Official documents of an historical nature were : a few
treaties^ belonging to the earliest times, — for example,
that of Tarquinius Superbus with the Gabii, written upon
bullock's hide, and the treaty with the Latins (493 B.C.),
engraved upon a brazen pillar.^
Ancient in subject matter, but in respect to the time
of their writing incorrectly referred to the kings, were the
1 C.35; T.i4o. « T. i.84.
* The commercial treaty with Carthage, usually assigned to the year
509, is referred by Mommsen and others to the year 548.
19 ROMAN LITERATURE.
leges regiae,^ old laws established by precedent, later
called JUS Papirianum ; also the commentarii regum,
which, without doubt, contained formulae and instructions
concerning the official duties of the kings.
The commentarii magistratuum ^ were a sort of
business hand-book for those fiUiug the secular offices^ and
among these the statistical tables of the censors, tabulcR
censoricey were of special importance. The names of the
officers were recorded in the libri magistratuum, of
which those written on linen were called liM linteu
Priestly literature was more extensive than secular. To
this belonged the libri pontificum,^ which contained the
ritual for religious services and the axioms of priestly law ;
also the commentarii pontificum, probably a collection
of legal decisions. In like manner, ^so, libri and com-
mentarii of other colleges of priests are mentioned, — for
example, those of the augurs.
The priests also had charge of the fasti,* which were lists
of the festivals, court-days, and games, together with brief
historical notices, and from which the calendar took its
origin. Under the nzxa^ fasti are included, also, lists of
the consuls {fasti consuiares), of the triumphs (fasti trium-
phales)y and of the priests {fasti sacerciotales) .
The annales pontificum^ — also called annates maximi
— were intended for public use. They were brief records
of the most remarkable events, in particular of the prodigies,
posted up on a white tablet in a public place. Copies of
these annals afterwards formed a collection of eighty books,
1 W. 253 1 C. IS ; Clark : Early Roman Law.
« C. 88 ; T. i. 93 ; Mom. i. 586.
« C. 88, 104 ; Diet. Antiqq. 941 ; Ry. 328 ; T. i; 86.
* Diet. Antiqq. 522 : Ry. 366; T. i. 87; W. 539.
* Mom. i.,588; C. 103^ T. u 91.
FIRST PERIOD. 1 3
and were considered a main authority for the earliest his-
tory, though they were not so in reality, on account of their
prevailingly priestly character and standpoint, and especially
since the oldest annals were destroyed in the Gallic con-
flagration, 390 B.C. On the other hand, several private
chronicles * reached back without doubt beyond this time,
having probably been begun in the noble families at a very
early period. Though the main purpose of these records
was the glorification of some particular family, yet they were
more reliable than the taudationes funebres,^ or funeral
orations, which were likewise written and preserved in the
family archives^ and contributed not a little to the corrup-
tion of Roman history.
The leges XII tabularuin,^ which were committed to
memory in the schools as late as Cicero's time, and which
were destroyed in the Gallic conflagration, were yet in exist-
ence in a restored copy in the second century^ a.d. The
legis actiones, commonly called jus Flavianum,^ and pub-
lished, together with the fasti, in 304 B.C., by Cn. Flavius,
served as a commentary to the laws of the twelve tables.
These actiones were originally in the exclusive possession of
the Patricians.
The first and only Roman that appeared in this period as
a prose writer was Ap. Claudius Cseeus,'* Censor in 312-,
whose oration against the peace with Pyrrhus, held in the
senate in 280 e.g., was extant for a long time after.
1 C.325; T.i.94.
3 Diet Antiqq. 559; Ry. 426.
« W. 503; C. 15; Mom. i. 365; Ry. 151; T. i. 99; Hadley: Roman
Law, 74.
* Mom. i. 598 ; Ry. 244 ; T. i. loa
^ C. 34; Mom. i. 58a
SECOND PERIOD.
Livius Androniojs to Cicero, 240-70 b. c.
THIS period, in which Rome attained the summit of
its poMtical greatness, was, in a literary point of view,
still incomplete and immature.^ The national productions
still remained clumsy and crude ; the language itself needed
to be shaped and moulded, but, to that end, the imitation
of Greek models permitted as yet too little independence
and freedom of movement, and only near the close of this
period did Greek culture become so far present as to
gradually fit the Romans for original productions of a
higher order.
The artistic literature of the Romans rests, however, en-
tirely upon a Greek basis.^ Greek influence, which had
never been entirely wanting, became ever deeper, more
general, and more potent. Intercourse with the Greeks in
Lower Italy, and, after the first Punic war,^ in Sicily, and
also, after the second Punic war, in Greece and Asia Minor ;
the influence of Ennius in Rome after 204 ; the warm re-
ception of the new culture on the part of most of the noble
families, especially by the Scipios ; the presence of numer-
ous Greeks in Rome ; the spread of the Greek language and
i C. 23 ; T. i. 103. « C. 36. Mom. i. 398, 600 ; u. 492. S. $, 8.
« Cf. Gell. N. A. xvii. 21 : —
Poenico bello secundo musa pinnato gradu
Intulit se bellioosam in Romuli gentem feram.
14
SECOND PERIOD. 1 5
the multiplication of Greek authors; the employment of
Greek poets in the instruction of the youth ; the increasing
intercourse of the nations consequent upon the extension of
the Roman empire ; — all these causes naturally contributed
to this result, that the unyielding nature of the Romans bent
or gradually gave way before the power of the higher for-
eign culture. The opposition of the conservative element
(hke that of the elder Cato) against innovations, and the
repeated banishment of Greek philosophers and orators
from Rome, was no longer of any avail.*
This process of development brought with it, however,
this result, that only the aristocracy, on the one hand, were
caught and permeated by this incoming stream of culture,
while, on the other hand, those literarj' workers who kept to
the national track could no longer maintain their place on a
level with the culture of the time, and lost their attractive-
ness for the more refined circles. Ennius, as an apostle
of Greek culture, exerted a revolutionizing influence, not
only on the form of Kterature, but also on the language
itself.^ The hexameter, which he introduced, since it fixed
the quantity, compelled the giving up of the prevalent laxity
and variety of the Satumian verse and the scenic metre
as to quantity, position, and the like, and aided much in
forming the literary language.
In poetry the drama, and especially comedy, still occu-
pied the foreground, but with a prevailing tendency to
follow Greek models ;3 by its side the epos, represented
especially by Ennius.
- — - - — - - - - . — . — ^
1 Cf. Hor. Epp. ii. i,.i56, seq. : —
Graecia capta ferum victorem cepit et aites
Intulit agresti LaUo.
T. i. xo6; C. 91, 134; M. u. 563.
a C. 71 ; T. i. 109, 133. « T. i. 16; Mom. ii. 303.
f
l6 ROMAN UTERATURE.
In the field of prose we find beginnings of oratory, his-
tory, and legal writings, which are, in part, very respectable ;
nevertheless, in spite of the great advance made by the
Romans in this period, everything still bore an archaic
stamp, for which the later, classical period had little taste
and understanding,^ and which did not again find a lively
appreciation until the second century, a.d.
Of the poets of this archaic period only the patriarch of
poetry, Ennius, enjoyed the honor of such men as Cicero.
In point of time, however, Livius Andronicus stands at
the head of this period.
I. POETRY.
a.— The Drama.
Although the national popular comedy still con-
tinued, yet it was gradually giving way before the Hellenistic
drama. The Satiira and the Atellana were not, indeed^
suppressed, but they were only attached as afterpieces (<rjc-
odia) to the artistic drama, and, to that end, they, also, were
composed according to rules of art.* This was done, near
the close of this period (about 90 B.C.), by the poets
Novius and L. Pomponius, otherwise not known to
us." It lay, however, in the nature of these farces that they
should preserve a popular character, calculated to excite
general merriment ; that they should be rude, and evenj at
times, obscene, as well as retain the standing figures and
certain stereotyped subjects.^
• »
1 Cf. Hor. Epp. i. I, so, ff. a C. 82; T. i. 5, 14.
> The ridicule of certain classes, such as peasants, fullers, dl&d pimps;
also, in connection with these, mythological subjects.
SECOND PERIOD. 1 7
Far more important, however, became the Hellenistic
drama. At the same time, it may be noted as character-
istic.of Rome that, in spite of the great production of these
plays, and in spite of the fact that women were admitted
to the exhibitions, where the attendance was free, and so,
at all events, not small, yet a permanent and conveniently-
arranged theatre, such as was first built by Pompey, 56 B.C.,
did not exist in this period.^ It is also worthy of note
that the actor's profession remained in disrepute, and,
moreover, that only freedmen and slaves appeared upon
the stage.
The artistic drama, like the other varieties, still reckoned
upon the taste of persons in general less cultivated, and
having little appreciation for serious and deep subjects;
hence comedy occupied decidedly the foreground, and
especially the fabula palliata,^ i.e., the comedy com-
posed after Greek models.
This style of poetry found its prototypes in the New Attic
Comedy of the third and fourth centuries, B.C., the chief
representatives of which were Menander, Philemon, and
Diphilos. For the most part, a love story forms the subject
of these pieces, and the characters are rather stereotyped :
fathers, sometimes over-strict and avaricious, sometimes in-
dulgent and generous ; young men, some light-minded and
some discreet; parasites, courtesans, and finally slaves,
tricky, but faithful to their love-sick young masters, and
ready to serve them in all kinds of dirty work. The ma-
terials for the plays are taken from everyday life ; they are
not lofty in tone, and they avoid all reference to politics ;
hence the subject was always a general one, of wide appli-
1 C. 41 ; Mom. ii. 500.
3 C. 46 ; M. ii. 509 ; T. i. 19 ; Schlegel : Dramatic Lit. 004,
1 8 ROMAN LITERATURE.
cation, easily understood, and suited to mimic representa-
tion, — all the better adapted to Rome, since the government
did not favor political allusions on the stage.
Although the scene of the palliata was laid on Greek soil,
still additions of a local character are not wanting. The
technical arrangements are lentirely Greek; the chorus is
wanting, and the text is divided into dialogue {diverbium)
and chants {cantica)y with flute accompaniment. The
metre is, for the most part, handled with skill, but not yet
fixed in form. According to a greater or less vivacity of
movement are distinguished, ^^«/<^ motorics (especially in
Plautus), statori(By and mixta.
Not unfrequently one Latin play is put together from two
or more Greek ones, a proceeding which was called contam-
ination {contathinare) y
The following are the chief representatives of the palliata :
Livius Andronicus^ (about 284-204 b.c), who came
at an early age to Rome as a prisoner of war, was set
at liberty by a certain Livius (Salinator?), and became
a writer of comedies and tragedies^ as well as of epic
poems (see p. 23). He was also an actor. — Ennius (see
p. 24). — Cn. Nsevius^ (about 264-194), a native of
Campania. He was punished at Rome with imprisonment
and banishment for his plain-speaking on political matters,
and died at Utica. His first piece was produced in the
year 225. He was a popular, bold, and original genius,
and his consciousness of his own literary importance is ex-
pressed in his epitaph composed by himself in Satumian
verse : —
1 C.53; Wr.9.
2 C. 37; T, i. Ill ; Mom. ii. 498 ; S. 56; Con. i. 298.
» C. 38 ; T, 1 1x3 ; Mom. ii. 519 ; S. 58 ; Con. i. 30a.
SECOND PERIOD. tj
Imm6rtal^s tnortales | s( for^t fas fl6fe»
Fler^nt divs Cam^nae | Nsevitiin po^tam
itaqae postquam ^st orcino | traditds thesadro,
Obliti sdnt Romai | loquier lingua latfna.
Far more important, however, is T. Maccius Plautus,
a native of Sassina in Umbria. He was of humble birth,
and was forced by poverty to become a common laborer
(factotum to bands of actors, and a worker in mills), and
aflerwairds a play-writer to gain his support.^ He died
in 184.
His pla)^s are, Without exception, palliata. From about
130 which have been ascribed to him, the learned Varro
selected 21 as genuine. These, with one exception, are
extant.^ They are entitled : Amphitruo (a parody on a
mythological subject, the so-called fabula rhinthonica)?
Asinaria (comedy of the ass), Aulularia (comedy of thci
money-pot, imitated in Moli^re's "PAv^e"), Bac chides
(treating of the twin, sisters Bacchis), Captivi (without love-
plot, very moral in tone, and declared by Lessing to be
the most excellent play ever put upon the stage), Cur-
culio (corn-worm, name of the parasite), Casina (proper
name), Ctstellaria (little chest: half the play extant),
Epidicus (proper name), Mostellaria (ghost comedy) j
MencBchmi (proper name, imitated by Shakspeare in the
^'Comedy of Errors'*), Miles Gloriosus (the braggart sol-
dier, imitated by A. Gryphius in the "Horribilicribrifax"),
JS:r^rrtfA7r (merchant), Pseudolus (proper name), Poenuius
(remarkable for several Punic words), Persa, Rudens (the
cable), Stichus (proper name : half the play extant), Tri-
nummus (the treasure), Truculentus (the grumbler).
1 C£ Hon Epp. ii. i, 175. » C. 46 ; T. i. 117.
« C.44; T. 1.115.
«0 ROMAN LITERATURE.
The best plays are, perhaps, Bacchides, Captivi, Aulularia,
Menaechmi, Miles Gloriosus.^
The following epitaph, said to have been written by him-
self, may serve to characterize Plautus : —
Postquam est mortem aptus (adeptus) Plautus, comoedia luget,
Scsena est deserta (ac) dein risus jocus ludusque
£t numeri innumeri simul omnes coUacrimarunt.
Plautus is distinguished by a popular, ever-ready wit
adapted for a rude public, by genuine, telling humor, by
vivacity of dialogue and skill in handling the language and
metre.2 On the other hand, the arrangement and complica-
tion of the plot is not always satisfactory. In prosody,
Plautus forms an intermediate grade between the Satumian
verse and the Greek metres. In the freer treatment of the
metre is seen the influence of the popular speech.^ Plautus
was ranked high in later times, especially by Cicero and
Varro. He was less acceptable to Horace."* Single plays,
particularly the Captivi, were long read in the schools, and,
in the earlier times, were brought out on the stage.
P. Terentius, bom at Carthage in 185, was somewhat
younger than Plautus. He was brought as a slave to Rome,
and there set at liberty. The fact that he was received into
the society of Scipio Africanus and C. Laelius gave rise to
the opinion that they were the authors of his plays.* He
died at the early age of twenty-six (in 159), while on a
journey in Greece. Of the works of Terence we have six
palliat<Zy mostly imitated from Menander, and in part com-
1 Other critics add the Trinummus and Rudens.
* C. 47 ; T. i. 12$ ; Mom. ii. 523.
* Wagner's Aulularia of Plautus : Introduction.
* Cf. Epp. ii. 1, 170, seqq. ; ii. 270, seqq.
» C. 50 ; Mom. iii. 542 ; Wagner's Terence : Introd. a ; Party : Introd.
SECOND PERIOD. 21
binations of two or more plays : Andria (maid of Andros),
Eunuchus (the Eunuch^ a play which brought 8000 ^t,^-
\.txct%) y Heautontimorumenos (the self-tormentor), /%^r/«/^,
Hecyrd (mother-in-law), Adelphi (the brothers, the most
successful play of all).
Terence forms, in many respects, a contrast to Plautus.^
In Plautus we find the natural, popular tone, in Terence,
the colloquial language of the cultivated circles ; in Plautus,
originality and inventive faculty, in Terence, dependence
and imitation; in Plautus, sparkling wit, in Terence, re-
flection and study; in Plautus, nature, in Terence, art;
in Plautus, roughness and boldness, in Terence, smooth-
ness and moderation ; in Plautus, a vivacity often farcical,
but always telling, in Terence, measured calmness.
In general, Terence is lacking in the virtus ac vis comica;
he excels in cultivated, elegant language, dignity, artistic
arrangement, and correct delineation of character.^ For this
reason he was a favorite author in the Middle Ages. He
was much read and played, especially in the schools, on
account of his moral tone.^
Among the remaining composers oipalliatce were Statius
Caecilius^^ an Insubrian, who came as a prisoner of war to
Rome, and appears to have taken a position, in respect to
time and style of composition, intermediate between Plautus
and Terence; and Lruscius Lravinius (or Lanuvinus), a
rival and enemy of Terence.
1 Mom. iii. 538 ; Wagner, 8 ; Parry, xvii.
2 Cr 51 ; T. i. 146 ; Parry, xxiii. On the metres and prosody of Terence,
see Parry, xxvii. ; Wagner, 12 ; and on the relation of Terence to the " New
Comedy," Parry, 487.
' The Eunuchus was translated into German as early as Z486, and all
the plays in 1499.
* C. 48 ; T. i. 135 ; Mom. ii. 523.
22 ROMAN LITERATURE.
Before th& much-fostered palliata, the national comedy^
fabula togata,^ retired into the background. This had
for its subject the daily life of the lower classes, espe*
cially the small gossip of the municipal towns ; and since
Rome and its citizens could not be brought upon the
stage, the scene was customarily laid in a Latin country
town.
Little has been preserved of the togata. Its chief authors
were Titiniua, a contemporary of Terence ; T. Quinctius
Atta» who died in 77 ; and especially L. Afranius, who
wrote somewhere about the year 100.
In tragedy,^ also, the Hellenistic tendency prevailed,
but the greater expense of production, as well as the pub-
lic taste, which sought after fun and entertainment, caused
tragedy to be less cultivated than comedy.* Moreover, the
Roman tragic writers did not strike the right tone, in that,
with them, seriousness and pathos too often degenerated
into heaviness and bombast. Their model was, for the most
part, Euripides.
Beside the tragedy based upon Greek models, the Ro-
man national play, fabula praetexta,^ which dealt with
historical subjects, could attain to no very important posi-
^tion. In the department of tragedy are to be mentioned :
Livius Andronicus, whose plays treated of mythological
subjects, taken chiefly from the legends centering about
Troy; Cn. Naevius, who also yrxoit prcetextce ; Q. Ennius;^
especially, however, M. Pacuvius,^ who was bom at Brun-
disium about 220, was brought to Rome by his uncle Ennius,
^ C. 55 ; T. i. 25 ; Mom. ii. 525.
3 C. 56 ; T. i. 16 ; Mom. iii. 536 ; S. 139 ; Con. i. 294.
» C. 38; T. i. 19.
4 C. 58; S. 89; T. i. 131; Con. i. 394.
SECOND PERIOD. 23
was paintier as well as author, died at Tarentum about 132,
was author of twelve tragedies and one prcetexta entitled
Paulus (probably referring to -^milius Paulus) ; and L.
Accius^ (Attius), who lived about 170-94, and was author
of about forty tragedies and several pratextce^ of which, for
example, the Decius treats of the voluntary death of the
younger P. Decius Mus, near Sentinum. Cicero, Horace,
and others give Accius high rank as gravis^ ingeniosuSy alius
poeta. He also wrote Didascalica (a history of Greek and
Roman poetry), Pragmatica (treating of literary history),
and Annales,
Of all these tragedies and prsetextse only fragments are
extant.
ft.— The Epos.
The Romans could not possess an heroic epos of their
own, like the Homeric, because the needful legendary
material, as well as gods and heroes, were wanting. Hence
the national epic writers were obliged to confine themselves
to historical subjects instead of mythological.
Livius Andronicus, indeed, the first epic writer in
point of time, contented himself with a heavy translation
of the Odyssey^ in the Saturnian metre, which was in later
times no longer readable, though, according to Horace,^ it
was used by Orbilius as a school-book.
The following epic writers turned their attention resolutely
1 C. 62 ; T. i. 134 ; .S. 143 ; Con. i. 309.
* C. 65 ; T. i. 167 ; Mom. iii, 537 ; S. 153 ; Con. i. 317.
*- The first verse reads, according to Gellius, N. A. zviii. 9 : —
Virum mihf Camena | Insece versiitum.
^ £pp. U. I, 69, seqq.
24 ROMAN LITERATURE.
and with success to the history of their native land. Thus,
in the first place, Cn. Nsevius,i still, however, in the
Satumian metre, treated of the First Punic War? This
work, of which only fragments remain, has been well com-
pared to the rhyme-chronicles of the Middle Ages.
Naevius was far surpassed by Q. Ennius.^ The latter
was bom, 239, at Rudiae in Apulia, was taken to Rome by
Cato on his return from Sardinia, found there an apprecia-
tive reception in aristocratic circles favorable to Hellenic cul-
ture, especially from Scipjo Africanus the Elder, and from M.
Fulvius Nobilior, obtained Roman citizenship, and died 169.
His chief work (besides comedies^ tragedies^ and saturce)
was the Annales^ which treated, in 18 books, of the history
of Rome from ^Eneas to his own times. In respect to
metre, forms of speech, inflections, and word-formations,
this work marked an era through the introduction of the
hexameter in place of the Satumian verse.* It is tme, the
hexameter of Ennius was somewhat awkward ; for example.
Gives Romani tunc facti sunt Campani,
or,
Introducuntur legati Minturnenses ;
likewise insipid, as
O Tite, tute, Tati, tibi tanta tyranne tulisti,
and forced, as in the well-known tmesis :
Cere comminuit brum.
But we also find places of great poetic power and beauty ; '
1 C. 39 ; Mom. ii. 540.
s According to Cicero, Brut. 19, 75, luculente sed minus polite.
* C. 68 ; T. i. 129 ; Mom. ii. 542 ; S. 68 ; Con. i. 329.
* C. 71 ; S. 91, 107.
* See Cic. de Div. i. 20, 40, seqq. 48, Z07, seq. de 0£f. L 12, 38.
SECOND PERIOD. 9$
for Ennius was a man of remarkable talent ; he possessed a
lively imagination, warm feeling, and a great faculty for
moulding forms and language.^ His work, though it was
long looked upon by the Romans as their greatest national
epic, put the artistic, Hellenic epos in place of the naive
national one. Ennius was particularly admired by Cicero.
Quintilian says of him,^ "Ennium sicut sacros vetustate
lucos adoremus, in quibus grandia et antiqua robora jam
non tantam habent speciem quantam religionem."
The Satura? too, acquired a new meaning through En-
nius, inasmuch as he gave this name to a collection of
miscellaneous poems of a didactic nature, written in different
metres. His successor in this department was C. Luci-
lius,* bom about 150 at Suessa Aurunca in Campania of
equestrian family. He was a friend of the younger Scipio
Africanus, and died 103. In his poems, varied, indeed, in
form and contents, but without elegance and finish, Lucilius
subjected, in a bold and witty manner, public affairs and
personages to sharp and searching criticism ; and in so
doing, he gave to the Satura the character which has since
been associated with the name Satire; to wit, that of an
invective poem. In this respect Horace gave it its com-
plete form.
n. PBOSE.
Prose, in both oral and written form as necessity or pre-
ference dictated, was, indeed, employed in the senate and
in the forum, by orators and jurists, historians and profes-
1 S. no; T. i. 133.
s Inst Orat. x. i, 88.
• C. 75 ; T. i. 32 ; Mom, ii. 539 ; S. 159.
* T. i. X71 ; Mom. iii. 551 ; S. x68.
26 ROMAN LITERATURE.
sional men, but it had not been brought to any high perfec-
tion of style. ^ For this reason, the prose writers before
Cicero, whose continuous succession began with Cato, and
of whom our knowledge is very incomplete on account of
the relatively small range of what has come down to us,
were, with few exceptions, even in Cicero's time, regarded
as rough, antiquated, and scarcely readable. To this archaic
prose, German prose before the Reformation presents an
analogy.
s.— History,
For a long time historical composition was mere annal-
writing, a dry chronological recording of the events of the
year,2 — a plane of literature which corresponds in some
degree to the chronicle-writing of the Greeks before Herod-
otus. These annals were, for the most part, written by men
active in politics, or, at least, interested in them. The older
chronicles, down to the time of the Gracchi, though by no
means entirely accurate, were yet, on account of their naive
simplicity, more trustworthy than the later ones, which,
although or because gradually more attention was paid to
form and critical treatment, displayed a more conscious
distortion of history in the interest of the state and of par-
ticular families and persons, and betrayed the prominence
of party considerations. Some of these annals were, to all
intents and purposes, autobiographies.
The earlier annalists wrote in Greek, doubtless on account
of the clumsiness of the Latm language. Thus Q. Fabius
Pictor,^ the same that was sent to consult the Delphic ora-
cle in 216, wrote, after the Second Punic War, a History of
1 Mom. ii. 544 ; T. i. 40 ; C. 87. « C. 89 ; T. i. 149.
« T. i. 43 ; Mom. ii. 550 ; S. 193.
SECOND PERIOD. 27
Rome from ^Eneas to his own time^ of which much use was
made by later historians, especially by Livy. It is uncertain
whether the Latin annals which bore his name were a sepa-
rate production, or a re-shaping of his Greek work by himself
or some one else. Other writers in Greek were, L. Cin-
cius Alimentus, a younger contemporary of Fabius, and,
somewhat later, C. Acilius Glabrio and A. Postumius
Albinus.
The first to write in Latin, and the one who thus became
the real foimder of Latin prose literature, was M. Porcius
Cato,^ bom at Tusculum 234. He was consul in 195,
censor (hence called Censorius) 184, died 149. He was
the last genuine type of the old Roman character, yet in
connection with his laborious political and military activity,
he was not only a copious and many-sided writer, the first
prose author that could be read in later times,^ but, also,
— and nothing gives a more striking proof of the irre-
sistibility of Greek culture, — in spite of his anti-Hellenic
prejudices, he condescended in extreme old age to master
Greek.
He wrote a historical work in 7 books, which he entitled
Origines (Beginnings), because the first three books con-
tained an account of the rise and growth of Rome under
the kings, as well as of the origin of the Italian cities, prob-
ably in connection with their subjection to the Roman
dominion. Book IV contained the Eirst, Book V, the
Second Punic War, Books VI and VII, the later wars
down to 149.
The narrative, though enlivened by geographical and
mythological notes and curiosities, was still imeven and
crude, and perhaps, also, not impartial to the nobility. The
1 T. i. 153 ; C. 91 i Mom. ii. 546. * Cic. Brut. 18, 69.
s8 ROMAN LITERATURE.
introduction of speeches, especially those delivered by the
writer himself, was an innovation. As authorities, the old
Roman legends and traditions were used; also his own
experiences, and probably Italian municipal records. The
work was highly valued by later writers ; Cicero ^ styles Cato
gravissimus auctor. Only a few fragments of the work are
extant — Cato also prepared a collection of witty sa3dngs
(diro^^ey/iara) ; those of his own which were particularly
apt and pungent were collected afterwards.
Concerning Cato as an orator, see p. 30 ; as an agricul*
turist, see p. 33.
To the earlier annalists, who, in the old, established way,
treated in archaic language of tradition and history j&om
iEneas to their own time, belonged Cassius Hemina^
a contemporary of Cato, Lr. Calpurnius Piso Frugi,
Censor 120, and C. Seixipronius Tuditanus. The list
of younger annalists began with L. Caelius Antipater,^
who, about 120, wrote a History of the Second Punic
War, with somewhat more attention to style and rhetorical
form.
Among writers of autobiographies or contemporary his-
torieSy may, be mentioned, P. Rutilius Rufus, who was
consul in 105, was banished as an aristocrat, and died about
77 in Asia, — a man of the noblest character and well edu-
cated in philosophy and law ; Q. Lutatius Catulus, who
was consul in 102, and died in 87 ; Sempronius Asel-
lio, who aimed at objective treatment, and wrote with
special reference to the internal relations of the state ; L.
Cornelius StiUa, the dictator, who wrote memoirs from a
one-sided, personal, and party standpoint ; L. Cornelius
1 Tusc. iv. 2, 3,
* 1 use. IV. z, 3.
s C. 100; T. 190; Mom. iii. 56a.
SECOND PERIOD. 39
Sisenna^ (119-67), who wrote a History of ihe Marsian
War and that of SuUa^ and who^ in spite of his artificial^
antiquated style, was preferred by Cicero to all earlier
annalists.
On the other hand, more comprehensive works^ reaching
down to their own times, were written by contemporaries of
Sulla: Claudius Quadrigarius, who wrote at least 23
books, beginning with the Gallic conflagration ; Valerius
AntiaSy who began with the earliest times, and is notorious
for his exaggerations, especially in numbers, which were only
gradually recognized as such by livy, who cited him often.
Hence he exerted an injurious influence upon the trust-
worthiness of later writers. C. Licinius Macer (died
in 66) y likewise beginning from the earliest times, wrote
firom a democratic standpoint, and distinguished himself
by industrious use of the old records. He was much used
by livy.
i&.— Oratory,
The natural talents and character of the Romans, their
practical nature, their bent toward precision, pathos, and
effect, were all favorable to oratory. Especially the open
and free character of their political life early led to the
frequent employment of oratory .^ A certain degree of ora-
torical readiness was indispensable to every one that de-
sired to make himself popular and to advance in the
political career. Hence, even before the more intimate
acquaintance with the Greeks, oratory was esteemed and
cultivated; for a long time, it is true, without art and
method, although instruction and practice in oratory went
1 T. i. 213 : Mom. iv. 7x5. * T. 1 5a; C- 105 ; S, X90.
30 ROMAN LITERATURE.
with the Roman from youth through his entire public life.^
Only through the influence of Greek rhetoric did Roman
oratory acquire form, system, and artistic treatment, both in
theory and practice.
But seldom or never could an orator unite in himself all
the qualities which Cicero ^ requires, — a broad culture,
especially in philosophy, knowledge of law and history, die
power to change from grave to gay speech, the ability to be
at one time abstract and at another concrete, and, according
to necessity or pleasure, to convince and charm the hearers,
and put them into any mood.
Those orators who marked epochs in the history of
oratory were, according to Cicero (Brut.) : M. Porcius
Cato,^ the first (after App. Claudius Caecus) to commit
his orations (over 150 in number) to writing. His char-
acter as an orator is set forth by such expressions as :
Orator vir bonus est dicendi peritus ; Rem tene, verba se-
quentur ; S. Sulpicius Galba, consul in 144, who, under
Greek influence, made use of rhetorical adornment; C.
Gracchus,^ who, though not a man of thorough culture,
was yet as eloquent as he was rich in thought; the two
orators, M. Antonius, consul in 99, and Lr. Crassus,^
consul in 95, of whom the former was remarkable rather
for natural gifts, memory, imagination, and vivacity of ac-
tion ; the latter for a finer culture, legal knowledge, choice
language, and wit.
The transition to the perfection of Roman oratory in
Cicero is formed by Q. Hortensius^ (114-50), the repre-
sentative of the genus Asiaticuniy which, in contrast to the
1 Mom. ii. 553; iii. 529. * Mom. iii. 563; C. 1x4; T. i. 185.
« Brut. 93, 322. « C. 118 ; T. i. 204.
« C. 109; T. i. 154. • C. 124; T. i. 251.
SECOND PERIOD. 3 1
simplicity of the genus Atticuniy was marked by a florid, and
often overloaded style.
Of the works of all these orators only a few fragments are
extant We possess a hand-book of Rhetoric, in 4 books,
entitled Rhetorica ad Herenniuni^ which was compiled for
practical pmposes, from Greek sources, but from an inde-
pendent Roman standpoint It was written about 80 B.C.,
probably by a certain Cornificius, at all events, not by
Cicero.
c — Special Soienoes.
Among these, Jurisprudence^ stands at the head, for
which, as well as for oratory, the Romans were especially
adapted. Roman law developed itself in a normal manner,
with a national character and independence. The syste-
matic development of criminal and especially civil law kept
pace with the mainly consistent development of the Roman
constitution. After the legal code had become generally
known through the Jus Flavianum (see p. 13), there soon
appeared a succession of learned men, who, by collecting
and publishing explanations, legal opinions, judgments, rul-
ings, and the like, foimded the science of law with a success
and influence all the greater from the fact that legal knowl-
edge was absolutely necessary for the political career.
Gradually there was formed a legal tradition, which was
cherished in single families, as especially among the Mucii,
Aelii, and Sulpicii, and which was passed down like an in-
heritance, as it were, from father to son.
S. ^lius Paetus,^ consul in 198, was the author of the
first law-book, imder the tide Triperiitay an interpretation of
1 C. 132 ; T. 1 22a ; Mom. iii. 565. • T. i. 163 ; Mom. ii. 555.
« T. i. 61, 208 ; C. 129.
32 ROMAN LITERATURK
the Laws of the Twehre Tables, later called the jus /Elianum^
and regarded as the cradle of Roman law. Also^ Cato and
his son Marcus wrote legal works.
From the family of the Mucii came the celebrated jurists
and authors, P. Mucius Scaevola,^ consul in 133, and
afterwards pontifex maximus, and his still more famous
son, Q. Mucius Scaevola, consul in 95, who also be-
came pontifex maximus, and was murdered in 82. The
latter was the first to lay down a uniform and well-arranged
system, and, by this means, as well as by training a large
number of pupils, he exercised a great influence upon the
following period.
Archaeology^ busied itself partly with linguistic matters,
and partly with antiquities in general. In the former case,
it had to do with fixing the written language, with etymology
and the interpretation of words; in the latter, with the
explanation of the antiquities referred to in the earlier
literary productions. Grammatical studies received a power-
ful impulse from the Greek Crates of Mallos, who taught
in Rome 159 B.C. Antiquarian studies, particularly those
pertaining to language, gradually became the fashion, and
were pursued with zeal ; especially since the Latin language
was brought into close connection with the Greek. The
real founder of these studies in language and antiquities, and
the first Roman philologist, was Lr. ^lius Stilo,^ bom at
Lanuvium about 150, the most learned man of his time,
teacher of Varro and Cicero. He interpreted the oldest
literary remains, such as the song of the Salii, the Twelve
Tables, and the early poets.
1 C. 131 ; Mom. iii. 566-568 ; H. 62.
3 T. i.so; M.ii.ssa.
» T. i. 200; C. 133 ; Mom. iii. 564.
SECOND PERIOD. 33
In Domestic Economy and Agriculture, Cato wrote
a complete hand-book, entitled de re rustical which is still
extant \ also a work on the same subject by the Carthaginian
Mago was translated into Latin by order of the senate^ after
the conquest of Carthage.
Other sciences, such as Geography, Mathematics, and As-
tronomy, were not treated in a literary way in this period,
although many Romans were not without a knowledge of
them. It was not until the time of the Emperors that mili-
tary science found systematic treatment
— — — ^-^■^^— I ^^^— ^— ~^— ■ ^— -^^^
IT. i. 159; C.9S.
THIBD PERIOD.
The Golden Age of Roman Literature, 70 B.C.-14 aj>.
THE most flourishing period of Roman literature is
characterized and measured by the positive predomi-
nance of the Greek mind. The amnis abundantissimus
grcecarum disciplinarutn et artium ^ showed at this time its
fructifying power in all directions.* An acquaintance with
Greek works in art and science, with their home and places
of nurture, especially with Athens, became more and more
a necessity, or, at least, the fashion, for Romans in good
society, who generally spoke and wrote Greek with ease,
and were wont to pursue their studies in Athens, Rhodes,
and other parts of Greece.
On the other hand, a great number of Greeks made their
appearance in Rome, and were employed as teachers of
rhetoric, tutors, readers, and the like. It is true they were
often held in light esteem (Graecuh) on accoimt of their
windy and bombastic style of talk, yet they were indispen-
sable. For, with all the apparent prudery towards everything
Greek, which was manifested even by men like Cicero, with
all their boasting of the superiority of the Roman mind and
nature, there yet prevailed an utter dependence in everything
pertaining to artistic form. Greek writings, especially ora-
tions, were translated as exercises in the schools and else-
where. By means of the increasing book-trade, Greek
1 Cic. de Rep. ii. 19, 34.
s T. i. 227 et seqq. ; C. 141 ; Mom. iv. 68z ; Mer. ii. 53a
34
THIRD PERIOD. 35
authors received a quicker and more general distribu-
tion. Public libraries were founded by Asinius Pollio and
Augustus. Hence arose a lively, and, indeed, irresistible
impulse to literary activity. The otiunty devoted to the
Muses, gained its rightful place beside the negotium, in
the service of the state. On a lower plane, beside this
Hellenistic tendency, was the national literature, represented
by only a few, as Lucretius and Varro. It was, however, by
no means independent of Greece.
Within this unity of character, however, there was mani-
fest, both in politics and in literature, a wide difference
between the first and the second half of this period, between
the Ciceronian and the Augustan Age, the last stage of the
Republic, and the beginning of the Empire.* On the one
hand, extreme activity in political life; on the other, a
S3^tematic quieting and suppression of the same; there,
freedom even to license ; here, limitation and restraint, — a
shaping of thought and word with an eye to court favor ;
there, an almost exclusive bent toward public life ; here, an
accommodation to the will and tacste of the court and the
emperor ; there, the studies which have to do with political
life — oratory and political literature — prevailed ; here, those
departments (particularly poetry) in which the peaceful de-
velopment of artistic form, namely, the aesthetic principle is
prominent ; there, practical results and material success were
kept in view ; here, perfection of form and the satisfaction of
the aesthetic sense were all important. Thus each half of
the Golden Age serves to supplement the other ; what the
one has in a greater degree appears less prominently in the
other, — the excellence of the one is the lack of the other.
Under the circumstances, however, it was inevitable that,
1 T. i. 384.
36 ROMAN LITERATURE.
with the empire, while taste, elegance, and perfection of form
increased, independence, freshness, and energy should de-
crease. Literature, especially poetry, withdrew from public
IHe, from the market-place, and from contact with the masses
of the people, into the study, the salon, and to the court.
Its popularity was lost in the aristocratic exclusiveness of
fine culture.
In the Ciceronian age (80-40 B.C.), (watory held the
first place in importance.^ It was then that it found its
widest sphere of action, its most abundant success, and
reached in Cicero its highest development. Hand in hand
with it went the theoretical development, rhetoric, which
was, for the most part, in the hands of the Greeks. Histor-
ical writing also flourished, but its most important represen-
tatives, Csesar and Sallust, wrote from a political, or rather
personal, standpoint.* Philosophy had its chief representative
in Cicero, learning, in Varro. In this stormy period, poetry
found few prominent representatives, — the didactic epos,
Lucretius, lyric poetry, Catullus.^ The drama passed into
the mime. Cicero is to be regarded as the central point of
the literary life of this period, the creator oi the normal
prose style.^
After the establishment of the Empire, political activity
came to a standstill, nay, even to a state of torpor. Regard
for the monarch made caution and diplomatic behavior
necessary; the voice of political literature ceased to be
heard ; the principle of equalization and levelling, not only
of the parts of the Empire, but also of minds, crippled and
suppressed individual peculiarity and independence of char-
acter. Oratory and history, which flourished undar the
1 T. i. 229; Mer. ii. 536; Mom. iv. 723.
a Mom. iv. 719. « T. i. 232.
* T. i. 235 ; Mom. iv. 677 ; Schl^gel : Hist, of Lit. 77.
THIRD PERIOD. 37
Republic, were now treated in a manner suited to the cir-
cumstances.^ The former retired from the forum, partly into
the Senate and the courts, and partly into the schools ; the
latter turned its attention chiefly to the older periods. In
theu: place, the professions, as being politically safe and
possessing practical value, took a broader field. Poetry
increased in importance, being favored at court by Augustus,
Maecenas, and others, but it was confined to the narrower,
educated circles.^ It was — and, indeed, consciously and
purposely — no longer popular, but courtly in tone and
correct in sentiment, often more remarkable for the form
than the contents. By many, poetry was written according
to technical models, mechanically, and because it was the
fashion. Machine poetry (invita Minerva) came into vogue,
furthered by tiie public recitations introduced by Asinius
PoUio.
Ih respect to particular departments, lyric poetry (Horace,
Ovid, TibuUus, Propertius) and epic (Virgil) were promi-
nent ; also, didactic (Virgil, Ovid) and satiric (Horace) ;
the drama remained unimportant from a literary point of
view. On the whole, an extremely active production showed
itself; but, in the case of the majority, on account of the
lack of individual poedc impulse, originality, and inward
tru^, poetry was only a thing of fashion, based on ostenta-
tion.
The more distant parts of Italy, and even single provinces,
became more and more possessed with this literary move-
ment, particularly through the development of the book-
trade, which was furthered especially by T. Pomponius
Atticus.3 All the famous writers of the first rank in the
1 T. i. 38s ; Mer. iv. 563 ; C. 246.
3 T. L 387 ; C. 242 ; Schlegel : Hist of Lit. 71 ; Sellar : Roouui poets of
the Augustan Age. * T. i. ^34.
38 ROMAN LITERATURE.
Augustan Age were not native Romans, but originated from
ItaKan country towns. Yet, at least in prose, the specific
Roman urbanitas stood more or less positively and con-
sciously in contrast with the provincial tone.
I. POETRY.
a.— The Drama.
The Artistic Drama in its diflferent varieties — palliata,
togata, praetexta — found few new writers.^ The new plays,
such as the tragedies of Asinius Pollio, Ovid, and Varius,
were designed for the more limited circles, and for reading,
and hence the public presentations were confined to the
older plays. In Comedy, Roscius shone as an excellent
actor ; in Tragedy, ^Esop.^ After the time of Sulla, however,
both the artistic and the popular play were more and more
crowded back by the Mime and the Pantomine.
The Mime ^ was old Italian, nearly related to the Atella-
na, and mainly distinguished from it by the even greater
prominence given to gesticulation.^ The Mime was marked
by caricature in the farcical action, and in the often im-
provised dialogue, seasoned with personal allusions ; by the
forced striving to excite laughter; by an obscenity carried
to the very extreme, the female parts being played by
women. The subjects were taken mostly from every-day
life, particularly from married life, and occasionally from
mythology. The play was principally in the hands of one
actor, called the archimimus, and the other players (such
1 Mom. iv. 689. 3 C. 212.
s /a^£0C, a term used to denote both the play and the actor ; in Latin
also called planipes,
4 C.ao8; T.l8.
THIRD PERIOD. 39
as the parasite) were subordinate to him. The language was
common plebeian, and the flute served as accompaniment
in the song and dance.
Among the writers of Mimes were the Roman knight
Decimus Laberius (105-43 b.c), who was compelled
by Caesar to appear publicly on the stage as a punishment
for his boldness ; and his younger contemporary, the senten-
tious Publilius Syrus, of Antiochia.* These writers in-
troduced the Mime into literatiure.
In the time of the Emperors, the Mime was displaced by
the Pantomine (Ballet), which, under Augustus, was devel-
oped into a special art by Bathyllus and Pylades.^
The subject of the Pantomine was almost always mytholog-
ical, and, indeed, for the most part tragical. The play itself
consisted of a union of solo dancing, chorus singing, and
loud orchestral music. It was the task of the dancer to
supply the lack of a text by mute action. The Pantomime,
therefore, demanded and produced, on the one hand, the
highest gracefulness and smoothness, elasticity and litheness
of movement, — in truth a " speaking dance " (diserte sal-
tare) j but, on the other hand, it led to a one-sided predom-
inance of sensuous attractions, and, like the modem ballet,
from an aesthetic and moral point of view, had a corrupting
effect.
6.— The Epos.
Far richer and more fruitful was the cultivation which the
Narrative and the Didactic Epos found, as well as the nearly
related varieties, the Poetic Narrative, the Satire, the Poetic
Epistle, and the Idyll. The Narrative Epos was further divi-
ded into the Historic, whose subjects were taken from Roman
1 C. 210; T. i. 310; Mom. iv. 692. ^ C. 2ZX.
40 ROMAN LITERATURE.
history, and the Heroic, which had to do with mythological
subjects, and which rested entirely upon Greek models,
especially Alexandrian. Virgil's JExk^id was a combination
of both kinds.
The chief representatives of didactic poetry were Lucre-
tius, Virgil, and Ovid ; of the satire, Varro and Horace ; of
the poetic epistle, Horace and Ovid; of the idyll, Virgil,
and, in single poems, Horace,
Prominent among the numerous epic writers are Cicero,^
with his unfortunate epic poems, written for his own glorifi-
cation, de suo cansuiaiUy composed in the year 60 b.c.,
and de Umporibus meis (concerning my misfortunes),
written in 55 ; P. Terentius Varro ^ from Atax (Ata-
cinus) in Gallia Narbonensis (82-37 B.C.), who both
worked over Greek originals with skill, as, for example, the
Argonautica of ApoUonius Rhodius, and wrote a poem en«>
titled beUum Seqtmnicum, probably in honor of Csesar;
also, satires and elegies; L. Varius, the weU-known friend
of Virgil, and writer of epic poems in honor of Casar
{de morte CcBsaris) and Augustus; Pedo Albinovanus^
author of a TTieseis, and an epos concerning the occurrences
of his times; Rabirius, author of a poem concerning the
eivil war between Octavian and Antony*
In didactic epos, the most prominent writer was T.
Lucretius Carus,^ a Roman knight, who lived 98 (95 ?)-
55 B.C. He was the author of an unfinished didactic poem,
in 6 books, entitled, de rerum natura. It was the object of
the poet to free the mind from the burden of the fear of
the gods and of death, and, in general, from the varied
1 C. 184. 213 ; T. i. 305. « C. 231 ; T. i. 362.
* C. 220; T. i. 338; S. S99; Mom.iv.694; MuzuDo's Luccetius; Schlegdj
Hist, of Ut 6^
THIRD PERIOD. 4 1
forms of superstition * by a rational contemplation of nature.*
The Epicurean philosophy served him as a means to this
end: — the gods do not trouble themselves about men,
and death puts an end to all things. The dry subject-
matter and the unpoetic character of the soulless, mechan-
ical Epicureanism, as well as the then existing poverty of
the Latin language in philosophical terms, presented the
greatest difficulties to the poet ; still, his enthusiasm for the
idea, his energetic grasp of the system, his earnest, inde-
pendent cast of mind, his wrestling with subject-matter and
language, and his high poetic talent, manifesting itself in
the very contest with these difficulties, render the work
one of the highest interest. Yet, on accoimt of the an-
tique coloring, and the often abstruse contents, it is not
always easy to understand and enjoy. Lucretius exercised
a great influence upon subsequent poets, among them
Horace and Ovid. By the later writers, with a perverted
admiration for antiquity, he was preferred to the poets of
the Augustan Age.
In the department of epic poetry, however, P. Ver-
gilius Maro^ rises above all others.^ Virgil, the son of a
farmer in easy circumstances, was born at Andes, near Man-
tua, on the 15th of October, 70 B.C. He pursued his stud-
ies, especially rhetoric and philosophy, under Greek teachers
at Cremona, Milan, and, after the year 53, in Rome. He
then returned home, lost his estate twice by the distributions
of land in 41 and 40, but recovered it on the petition of
Asinius Pollio and Maecenas, came into intimate relations
1 Artis relligionum animum nodis exsolvere pergo. i. 930 f.
3 Naturae species ratioque. ii. 60.
* C. 252; T. i. 406; Mar. iv. 573; Kennedy's Virgil: Introd.; Sellar:
Roman poets of the Augustan Age, 59.
^ Vergilius was the original manner of writing ; Virgilius did not come
into use until the middle ages.
42 ROMAN LITERATURE.
with the latter in 39, and thenceforth lived highly esteemed
by Augustus, Horace, and others. He dwelt, for the most
part, in Campania, in comfortable circumstances, though in
poor health, and died at Brundisium, on his return journey
from Athens, on the 21st of September, 19 b.c., and was
buried near Naples. An ancient epitaph on him reads : —
•
Mantua me genuit, Calabri rapuere, tenet nunc
Parthenope, cecini pascua ruia duces.
As a man, Virgil was an anima Candida^ gentle, pure
in morals, amiable, true-hearted, bashful and awkward in
appearance ; ^ as a poet, especially fitted for the expression
of gentle and deep emotions and tender relations, for
drawing idyllic pictures, sentimentally conceived and carried
out. Hence he was a sincere and enthusiastic admirer of
the era of peace brought about by Augustus ; not original
in ^xxv of fancy, nor impelled by genius to write poetry,
but working slowly and laboriously with a definite object in
view, patientiy and incessantly polishing, and so a model
of correctness and elegance.
The probable order of his poems is as follows : in the
yeai^ 41-39 (or 37?) Eclogae H, HI, V, I, IX, IV, VI, VIII,
VII, X; in the years 37-30, Georgica; 29-19, u^neis.
I. Bucoitca^ consisting of 10 idylls, also called EciogcB,
a kind of poetry which is really foreign to the Roman mind,
not national in its character. Virgil imitated Theocritus,
but mostly with an intermingling of personal relations.
Hence the shepherd characters are in the main allegorical
persons.3 The situations are taken from the circumstances
1 Cf. Hor. Sat. i. 3, 29, seqq.
2 C. 259; T. i. 411; Mer. iv. 575; Conington's Virgil, i. 2; Sellar: Au-
gustan poets, 132.
* For example, Eel. i. Tityrus as Virgil ; Eel. v. Daphnis =s Caesar.
THIRD PERIOD. 43
of the poet,^ and thus he writes with a definite purpose in
view, — a method of treatment of which this kind of poe-^
try, naturally naive and popular, does not admit. Never-
theless the Bucolics were greeted with great applause on
the part of the Roman public, not in spite of the allegory,
but on account of it, and especially on account of their
elegance of language and versification.
2. The Georgica^ were written at the suggestion of
Maecenas. The subject was Italian agriculture. Book I
treats of farming, II, of the culture of trees, III, of cattle- ^
raising, IV, of bee-culture.
The main object of the poet was to bring these old Roman
occupatk»s into honor again, especially in the eyes of the
cultured propriettm of large estates, with no intention that
the poems should be conskiered a ha^d-book for the common
peasants. In some particulars, Vii^^ depended upon Greek
models, as Hesiod, Aratus, and others ; on the whofe, bow-
ever, the treatment is independent, because the subjects
suited his individual genius and his personal experience.
The tone is warm and lively, the language skilfully used, and
the episodes 3 give occasion for the most pleasing variety, so
that the poem " is the most perfect production of any con-
siderable length that Roman poetry has to offer " (Teuffel) .
3. The ^neis^ in 12 books, was not completed, and
1 Cf., for example, Eel. v., relating to Caesar; i., thanks to Octavian; ix.,
complaint about the second loss of his estate ; iv., praise of PoUio ; x., to
Com. Gallus.
* C. 261 ; T. i, 413 ; Mer. iv. 441 ; Schlegel : Hist, of Lit. 72 ; Coning-
ton's Virgil, i. 124 ; Sellar, 174.
* Especially ii. 136-176, the praise of Italy; ii. 323-345, the praise of
spring; ii. 458-540, the praise of country life; iii. 339-383, the shepherd life
of the Scythians ; iii. 478-566, the None cattle pest ; iv. 3x5-558, the myth
of Aristaeus.
4 C. 265; T. i. 4x5: Mer. iv. 443; Conington's Virgil, ii 2 ; Sellar, 292.
44 ROMAN LITERATURE.
hence it was Virgil's wish at his death that it be destroyed.
♦ It was published, however, by his friends Varius and
Tucca, but without additions (hence the 58 incomplete
verses). The poem treats of the adventures of iEneas
after the destruction of Troy, his arrival in Italy, his alli-
ances and contests with the inhabitants. The model for
the first six books is the Odyssey, and for the last six,
the Iliad.
Virgil's purpose is, on the one hand, to trace Rome back
to the settlement of the Trojans in Italy under the special
leadership of the gods, and, on the other, to show the de»
scent of the patrician families from the Trojan colonists,
especially of the Julian family, from iEneas's son lulus.
The poem was, therefore, a glorification of the Roman
people and the Julian dynasty. However, the legend of
^neas had too little footing in the national consciousness,
and hence Virgil was obliged to weave in a multitude of
learned notes, acquired by industrious study. The least
successful part of all is the character of iEneas himself
who appears not as the strong hero of antiquity, but as a
weak, sentimental man, led like a puppet by the gods (Jnus
/Eneas) .
The finest parts of the poem are those in which passion
plays the chief part ; before all, the episode of Dido in the
fourth book. Here Virgil reaches the height of his theme.
The language is carefully polished, but — particularly when
compared with that of Homer — not simple and naive, but
rhetorical, and often needlessly pathetic.
It was inevitable that the poem should win great applause
with the Romans, especially with the higher circles, on
account of its loyal and patriotic motive, its scene reminding
them of home, and, also, from the national and local allu-
sions, and the stateliness of the verse.
THIRD PERIOD. 45
Besides the above, lesser poems have been attributed to
Virgil, — Culex, Moretum (the most successful), Copa,
Catalecta, Ciris ; ^ it is, however, certain that Virgil did not
write the Ciris. They are mostly idyllic pictures of every-
day life.
Virgil was held in great honor by the Romans.^ His
poems soon came into use in the schools, and were often
imitated and interpreted.^ They were also used as oracles,
the book being opened at random {SorUs VergiHana,)
In the Middle Ages the person of Virgil was invested with
a multitude of romantic legends. He was considered a
miracle-worker and magician. Dante represents himself as
led by Virgil through the infernal regions.
Among the writers of didactic poetry imder Augustus may
be mentioned: Gratius Faliscus, author of Cynegetica
in 536 hexameters, and especially Manilius,^ the person-
ally unknown author of Astronomica, in 5 books, which, by
their originality, in spite of the bias for astrology, testify to
a many-sided culture, and are very correct in fonxL
e.— -Satire aad Epistle,
The Satire had received from Lucilius the character
of a criticism of the easting state of things, and had taken
on the form of poetry. From this form M. Terentius
Varro (see p. 82) made a deviation, inasmuch as he
united poetry and prose in his 150 books Satura Menip-
1 C. 257; T. 1.420.
« Cf. Prop. iu. 32, 6s, seq.
Cedite Romani Scriptores, cedite Graii,
Nesdo quid majus nascitur Iliade.
s Commentary of Servius in the fourth Century. See p. 132.
* C.313; T.i.487.
46 ROMAN LITERATURE.
pecE^ In very arbitrary form,^ and with loose connection,
Varro treated of philosophical questions and the condition of
his times. His standpoint was the national Roman one of
the good old times, and hence opposed to modem ideas.
Only fragments of his works remain. Satire received its
highest development from Horace.
Q. Horatius Flaccus^ was bom at Venusia^ on the 8th
of December, 65 B.C.* He was the son of a freedman,® who,
however, had him carefully educated kt Rome.'' Becom-
ing acquainted with M. Bmtus at Athens, he accepted the
post of tribunus militum^ in his service, but was unable, at
Philippi, to save the fortunes of the Republic by his bravery.*
After being deprived of his estate by the distribution of
lands under Octavian, he became a scribe for the qusestors,
and devoted himself to writing poetry.^® Through his poems
he became acquainted with Virgil and Varius, and through
them (in 39), with Maecenas ;i^ after which time, received
also into the circle of Augustus' friends, he lived in the
most comfortable circumstances. In the year 37 he accom-
panied Maecenas to Brandisium,^^ and received from him
(in 33) a modest but finely-situated estate near Tibur, — the
often-mentioned Sabinum.*^ He died on the 27th of No-
vember, 8 B.C., fifty-seven years of age. In person, Horace
1 The name Saturae Menippese comes from the fact that Varro imitated
the cynic Menippus, who had written such satires. T. i. 238 ; C. 144 ; Mom.
iv. 704.
2 Prose and poetry, an intermixture of Greek words and sentence^
variety in the metre.
8 C. 280; T. i. 433; Mer. iv. 452; Macleane's Commentary: Introd.
* Sat. ii. I, 34, seq. » Od. ii. 7, 9, seqq.
« Epp. i. 20, 27; Od. iii. 21, x. w Epp. ii. 2, 50, seq.
• Sat. i. 6, 6, seqq. H Sat. i. 6, 54, seqq.
T Sat. i. 6, 71, seqq. la Sat. i. 5.
8 Sat. i. 6, 48. W Sat. ii. 6. i, seqq.
THIRD PERIOD. 47
was short and fleshy ;i his dark hair he lost in his later
years.^
The poems of Horace are, in part, Satires and Epistles, —
both together also called Sermones, — and, in part, lyric
poems. Odes and Epodes. As regards the time of publi-
cation. Sat. I was probably published in the year 34, Sat. II
in 30, and, also, the Epodes, at about the same time with
the latter ; Odes I-III in 23, Epp. I in 20, carmen sseculare,
16; Od. IV was composed after 18, and Epp. II after 17.
His latest production was probably Epp. II, 3, the Ars
Poetica.
I. Satires.^ — The contents of the Satires are extremely
varied. A specifically invective motive is not found in all of
them. In some, Horace presents to a cultivated public
rather his own life-experiences and maxims of conduct,
rarely, indeed, without occasional side-thrusts and stabs;
thus, in Sat. I, 4, II, i, he sets forth the nature of his satire ;
in Sat. I, 10, his relations to Lucilius ; in II, 6, .his relations
to Maecenas and the happiness of country retirement ; in I,
6, the enjoyment of modest independence ; in II, 2, the
praise of frugal contentment. In most of the Satires, how-
ever, Horace makes a target of particular moral obliquities,
or, at least, weaknesses, and ridiculous phases, either of the
existing time or of mankind in general ; thus, in I, i, the
constant discontent of men with their lot ; in I, 2, the ex-
tremes to which the passions may extend; in I, 9, the
despicable forwardness of many in their attempt to get into
the higher circles : in II, 3, the exaggerations of Stoic Phil-
osophy ; in II, 5, legacy-hunting ; in II, 8, the plebeian boast-
fulness of the rich parvenu.
1 Sat. ii. 3, 309 ; Epp. i. 20, 24. « Epp. i. 7, 26.
• C. 292; T. i. 439; Mer. iv. 449; Schlegel: Hist, of Lit. 74.
48 ROMAN UTERATURE.
To such a variety .of contents this may be added, that
Horace, in accordance with the form of the SermOy i.e., of the
conversation, does not proceed in detail according to careful
arrangement, but, though fully conscious of his theme, goes
on with easy carelessness ; furthermore, that he does not so
much attack with sharpness and moral indignation what is
really immoral, as make the perversities which present a
laughable side, the petty doings of men in social and literary
life, the object of good-natured ridicule, yet without any
lack of earnestness when occasion demands; and finally,
that he keeps himself far removed from the captious and
vexatious sphere of politics. All, this contributes toward
awakening and preserving in the reader a good-humored
state of mind and a lively interest, especially since, for the
most part, such traits of human character are made promi-
nent, as, unrestricted by national or local bounds, are found
at all times and in all places.
2. Epistles.^ — The Epistles are written from the stand-
point of one who takes a settled and calm view of life ; and
they are also shaped with greater care than the Satires.
Beginning, at the start, with personal matters and relations
(to which only the shorter Epistles are confined, as, for exam-
ple, 1, 4, 8, 9, 2o), but generally going beyond these, Horace
treats of the most varied relations of life, and especially lite-
rary life, in a style rich in apt maxims, but never over-adorned
nor wanting in taste, and lays down in these letters, with a
calm and comprehensive imderstanding of life, the results of
long observation and experience. Those Epistles are of es-
pecial interest which treat of his relations with Maecenas,^ as
well as those of the second book, in which Horace sets forth
his literary views, and places as the ultimate goal, the imitation
1 T. i 448 ; C. 293; Mer. iv. 457. > S. i. z, 7, tg.
J
THIRD PERIOD. 49
of Greek perfection of form in contrast to the affected return
to the old Roman poets ; ^ he also shows the false aesthetic
theories of the times, which seem to him enough to render
the poet's avocation unendurable.^ The richest and most
comprehensive £pistle is II, 3, £p. ad Pisones, designated
by Quintilian as liber de arte poetica, in which Horace,
without professing to be full and systematic, discusses, with
excellent and independent judgment, a series of literary
questions, with special reference to the drama«3
3. Odes.^ — In respect to time, the first three books of
the Odgs lie between the Satires and Epistles. To these
was added, later, the fourth book. The lyric writings of
Horace take their root in the imitation of Greek models,
and especially of those iSolic melic poets, who portray in
the simplest form the common human feelings and senti-
ments ; namely, Alcseus, Sappho, and Anacreon. He rises
gradually, however, with an increasing consciousness of his
powers, to an independent position. In harmony with the
thoughtful nature of the poet's disposition, his lyrics are
essentially poetry of the reflective kind, his poems are in
general the product of industry and study ; for this reason
lofty flights of imagination and stormy feeling are excluded,
but not warmth and inwardness of sentiment.^ Those Odes
are the most successful which present in easy style the pic-
ture of an atium contented with itself, in agreeable, nat-
ural, and human surroimdings, or which set forth in quiet
tone the worldly wisdom of the poet, — Odes in which Horace
expresses his own peculiar nature ;® while those which strike
a higher tone, not quite corresponding to the genius of the
1 Epp. ii. I. « Epp. ii. a. « C 295 ; Macleane, 696.
« C387; T.i.442; Schlegd: Hist of Lit 73; Milman's life of Horace.
* Cf. Od. iv. a, 31, seq.
• For example, B. i 4, 7, 22, 37 ; ii. 2, 3, 7, 9, xo, 14; lii. 13, ax.
50 ROMAN LITERATURE.
poet, or at discord with it, as well as those Odes which are
prompted by external motives, make a less harmonious im-
pression.^ Throughout all, however, we find an abundance
of true and finely-expressed thoughts ; and the form, first
artistically wrought out by Horace according to the various
metres, became, by virtue of a constantly-increasing correct-
ness and elegance, a model for the technique of the Roman
poets, which paved the way before them, and was never
afterwards equalled.^
4. Epodes.3— The Epodes are related to the Odes in
form, and to the Satires in subject-matter.^ They contain,
for the most part, attacks upon individual persons in a tone
prevailingly sharp, and sometimes cynical.
The personality of Horace is reflected in his poetry in an
uncommon degree.* He is preeminently endowed on the
side of the understanding and reflection ; his views and
principles are not taken from any given system of philoso-
phy, though he speaks of himself as an Epicurean, but they
are the outflow of an eminently sound common-sense, of
shrewd and sharp observation, and of a self-contained, har-
monious nature. His aim is to acquire restfulness and
contentment by a cheerful, but temperate enjoyment of life,
by calmness in view of external things, and by an ever-ad-
vancing culture and inward deepening. In his relations
with others, kindly, social, and reliable, he still preserves
his independence, and, when necessary, disagrees even with
^ As, for example, iii. 1-6.
3 Quint. Inst. Orat. x. i, 96: Lyriconim Horatius fere solus legi dignus ;
nam et insurgit aliquando et plenus est jucunditatis et gratiae et variis
figuris et verbis felicissime audax.
* This name, which did not originate with Horace, denotes the union of
a long with a short verse. Horace himself calls these verses iambi.
« C. a86; T. i. 441. « T. i, 437.
. THIRD PERIOD. 5 1
the highest personages, as, for example, with Augustus, when
his own views do not accord with the wishes of others.
In fulness and variety of thought, wealth of practical ex-
perience, charity of judgment, kindly humor, and grace
and elegance of form, Horace is a poet of never-failing
interest and never-waning importance. For this reason he
has always found admirers, imitators, and commentators, as
scarcely any other poet has done. Indeed, the one-sided
presumption of his faultlessness has led to error, as when, for
example, Hofman Peerlkamp in Holland (in 1834), and
others since his time have attempted summarily to cast out
as not genuine the less perfect parts of his works.
From ancient times the scholia of Porphyrio (about 200
A.D.) are preserved. A collection of scholia made in the
seventh century bears the name of Aero.
Virgil and Horace, though sustaining relations of inti-
mate friendship, still form, in many respects, a contrast to
each other. Virgil was tall, lank, sickly in appearance, stiff,
and almost offensively awkward in his movements ; Horace,
short and thick-set, sleek and well-favored, moving in society
with the ease of a man of the world ; Virgil, shy, slow, and
stammering in his speech; Horace, ready in conversation,
witty, and sharp, upon occasion ; Virgil a feminine, gentle,
introspective nature ; Horace, cultivated by contact with the
world, grasping outward circumstances with sure hold, and
using them for his purposes ; Virgil, a man of the heart,
religious, and eamesj: ; Horace, a man of the understanding,
with a bent toward philosophic calnA, undisturbed either by
external things or by passion ; Virgil, devoting himself from
conviction to Augustus as his benefactor, and the author of
universal peace ; Horace, with all his devotion, still keeping
at such a distance as to insiu"e his independence ; Virgil, as
a poet, rhetorical and lofty, of almost feminine gentleness
5t ROMAN LITERATURE.
and tenderness ; Horace, natural, clear, transparent, full of
manly, self-reliant consciousness.
A— Lyric Poetry.
Up to this time Lyric Poetry had occupied a subordi-
nate position ; but it rose in this period, particularly under
Augustus, to a higher plane. This was true in the highest
degree of the Elegy ^ a variety of the Lyric which was copied
after the Alexandrian poets, but in which the Romans ex-
celled the originals in form and subject-matter ; but especially
of the erotic Elegy, which, already introduced by Catullus,
was treated with skiU and success by Ovid, Tibullus, and
Propertius, while Horace confined himself to the writing of
Odes. Roman lyric poetry, turning away from political life,
took its subject-matter from the sphere of those sentiments
and emotions which are common to humanity, and which
lie at the basis of song in all times.
Among the lyric poets of the Ciceronian age, the most
important one ^ (excepting C. Licinius Calvus, of whose
writings only a few verses are preserved) is C. Valerius
Catullus, bom at Verona, 87 B.C., of a wealthy family to
which the peninsula of Sirmio in the Lago di Garda belonged.
He lived chiefly at Rome, in the higher, light-minded circles,
was with the propraetor Memmius (57-56) in Bithynia, and
died about the year 53.
His erotic poems have reference to a woman bearing
the pseudonym Lesbia, probably the sister of the notorious
P. Clodius. Other poems relate, among other things, to
the death of his brother, which took place in Bith5mia ; to
his relations with both friends and enemies, — as when he
1 The greatest lyric poet of Roman literature. T. i. 373,
THIRD PERIOD. 53
sharply attacks Caesar, not so much on political grounds as
from personal antipathy against Caesar's favorite, Mamurra.
Among his longer poems (not including his imitations of
Alexandrian poems), the hymn on the marriage of Manlius
Torquatus deserves special mention. Catullus achieved his
greatest success, however, in his short iove-songs and pic-
tures of every-day life. He is a thoroughly naive poet ;
impetuous in love and hate, he is frequently tender and
ardent ; full of cheerful humor, he is often cynically harsh
and sharp ; alwa)rs characterized by skilful handling of his
very varied and occasionally rare metres.^ The common
collection, arbitrarily arranged, contains 116 poems ^
Under Augustus lyric poetry was chiefly represented by
Cornelius Gallus, Ovid, Tibullus, and Propertius.
Cornelius GaUus,^ bom at Forum lulii, 69 B.C., was a
friend of Virgil (who addressed his Tenth Eclogue to him),
and for a long time, also, of Augustus ; but having fallen into
disfavor with the latter after his administration in Eg)rpt,
he committed suicide in the year 26. None of his poems
have been preserved.^
P. Ovidius Naso was bom March 28, 48 B.C., at Sulmo,
in the country of the Peligni. He was the son of a well-to-
do Roman knight, pursued rhetorical studies at Rome, filled
judicial offices for a short time, then made a journey to
Greece and Asia, was married three times, was suddenly
banished by Augustus, in 9 a.d., to Tomi (near the modem
Kostendsche), on the Black Sea, and died there in the year
1 7, unpardoned, in spite of the most urgent complaints and
1 As, for example, the GalHambus in the poem entitled Attis,
* C. 233; S. 337; T. i. 373; Mom. iv. 70a; Ellis's Commentary : Pro-
lego m.
« C. 298 ; T. i. 431.
^ A romantic treatment of bis career may be found in Becker's " Gallus."
54 ROMAN LITERATURE.
entreaties. As the cause of this hard treatment, Ovid men-
tions ^ carmen et error? By carmen is doubtless to be un-
derstood the ars amatoria, which may have been offensive
to Augustus on account of its frivolity. On the other hand,
concerning the term error we can only make conjectures.
If Ovid, with his somewhat effeminate pature, accustomed
to the sensuous and the intellectual enjoyments of Rome,
displayed little composure in exile, it finds its excuse, per-
haps, in the nature and position of Tomi.
Ovid's earliest poems belong to the department of erotic
elegy : A mores ^ in 3 books, published 14 B.C. ; Epistulce^
(or Heroides), imaginary love-letters by women of the He-
foic Age; for example, Briseis, Penelope, Phsedra; Ars
amatoria, in 3 books, published, probably, 2 B.C. ; as the
counterpart of this, Remedia amoris, one book, and the
Medicamina faciei, only partially preserved. All the above
were written in a light, and some in a frivolous tone. The
15 books Metamorphoseon,^ written in epic metre, are taken
from mythological sources. They deal with such myths,
from the beginning of the world to the apotheosis of Caesar,
as end with a metamorphosis. The myths are freely handled
after Greek models, and oflen loosely connected with each
other. On account of his banishment, the work was not fully
completed. Simpler, more practical, and more earnest are
the 6 books Fastorum^ a calendar written in elegiac metre,
which contains, in addition to astronomical data, a connect-
ed mythological and historical account of the origin of the
1 Trist. ii. 207. a C. 309 ; T. i. 471.
« C.306; T. i.473; Mer. iv.462; Palmer's Ovidii Heroides. "The Loves
of the Heroines is the most elevated and refined in sentiment of all elegiac
compositions of the Romans." Mer. iv. 463.
4 C. 308 : T. i. 477.
• Mer. iv. 463 ; Ramsay's Ovid ; Paley : Ovid's Fasti.
THIRD PERIOD. 55
Roman festivals. The completion of this work, also, which
had been planned to consist of 12 books corresponding to
the 12 months, and which, in spite of the author's superficial
methods, contains a great number of important notices re-
specting the old Italic religion, was rendered impossible by
his banishment.
At Tomi, Ovid wrote, in elegiac metre, the Trisiia in 5
books, — complaints respecting the troubles of the journey
and of life in a strange land, together with a letter to Augus-
tus,^ and letters to his wife; EpistuicB ex Ponto^ 4 books,
consisting of lefters to various persons whom he mentions by
name \ then, IbiSy an abusive poem against an anonymous
person \ finally, an incomplete didactic poem entitled Hali-
eutica (132 Hexameters), treating of the fish in the Black
Sea.2
Other poems, especially a panegyric on Augustus^ written
in the Getic language, are not preserved.
Ovid possessed a poetic nature, richly gifted and hap-
pily endowed ; but as a poet, no less than as a man, he is
without earnestness and self-control.^ His talents manifest
themselves, therefore, chiefly in his uncommon facility of
versification, which became to him a second nature and a
necessity,^ while the labor which is necessary to supplement
even the best natural gifts quickly "becomes distasteful to him.
Hence what he sa)rs in special reference to political activity*
may be applied also to his poetical labor. Even the ancient
1 Book ii. '8 T. i. 479 ; C. 310. » T. i. 469 ; Men iv. 464.
^ Trist. iv. 10, a6 : Et quod temptabam dicere versus erat.
* Trist iv. 10, 37-40 : —
Nee corpus padens nee mens fuit apta labori,
Sollicitaeque fugax ambitionis eram.
£t peteie Aoniae suadebant tuta aorores
Otia judicio semper amata meo.
S6 ROMAN LITERATURE.
critics lamented the fact that he gave himself up too much to
his ready skiU in form, and to the wealth of his imagination,^
and that he likes to see a stain upon what is pure and per*
feet in order that it may thus seem piquant.^ In this re*
spect he may be compared to the German poet Heine.
Living for a long time in happy circumstances, moving in
the high circles of the capital, and penetrated with modem
views and customs, Ovid is the poet of fine, courtly, but also
of light-minded, superficial, and fiivolous society. His tal-
ents s^rve only to entertain, without stirring deeply. He
treats his subjects with pleasing playfulness, with keen wit,
and not seldom with open or concealed irony, but he sinks
too often into wordy jingle and trifling, because earnestness
and moderation are wanting to him.
In the Middle Ages the Metamorphoses in particular was
much read, and a paraphrase of it was written in German
couplets, about the year 1200, by Albrecht von Halberstadt,
at the suggestion of the landgrave Hermann of Thtiringen.
Albius Tibullus was bom, about 54 b.c., of a wealthy
equestrian family, nor was he left without means after his
losses by the distribution of lands in 41. He attached him-
self to Valerius Messala, whom he accompanied in 28 to the
Aquitanian war, and died in 19.
After some practice in Alexandrian versification,^ Tibullus
reached his highest plane in the songs addressed to his be-
loved Delia,^ and in those on the relations of Sulpicia and
1 For example. Quint. Inst. Orat. x. i, 98 : Ovidii Medea, — a tragedy not
extant, — videtur mihi ostendere, quantum ille vir pnestare potiieritf si inge-
nio suo imperare quam indulgere maluisset.
2 Sen. Controv. ii. 10, 12 : Aiebat decentiorem fociem esse, in qua aliquis
nsevos fiiisset.
< Cf. the panegyric oa Messala, iv. z, if this Is^ i ndeed , by him.
4 BookL
THIRD PERIOD. 57
Cerinthus.^ In Book II the relation to Nemesis forms the
subject. Book III is not by Tibullus, but by an unknown
imitator.
TibuUus is the greatest Roman elegiac poet, a truly elegiac
nature, reveling in the passion of love, in the sentimental
portrayal of peaceful, frugal, idealized country life, with a vein
of longing and sadness,^ simple, warm, and sympathetic, pos-
sessed of fine taste and a power of artistic shaping, as com-
plete as it is naive in its manifestation.^
The younger contemporary of TibuUus was S. Proper-
tius,^ bom about 50 B.C. in Umbria, probably at Asisium.
He lost a ^art of his prop>erty in the distribution of lands in
41, then lived in Rome, where he made himself acquainted
with the Alexandrian writers, especially with Callimachus.
He was introduced to Maecenas about 26, after the appear-
ance of his first book of poems, and died in 15.
The subject of Book I is his first, complete love for
" C5mthia." ^ It was published by Propertius himself in the
beginning of 26. Books II and III (or, according to Lach-
man, II-IV) appeared later. Book IV (or V), which con-
tains several pieces having reference to the early history of
Rome, similar to the Fasti of Ovid, was probably not issued
tin after the poet's death.
The erotic elegy is with Propertius the immediate outflow
of his nature and his life. He is sensuous, passionate, and
full of imagination.* Tlie enjoyment of his poems is not un-
frequently disturbed by mythological additions, which border
1 iv. a-7, while iv. 8-ia are perhaps by Sulpicia herself.
2 Cf. especially i. z, 3, 10 ; ii. i.
s Horace addressed to TibuUus, Od. i. 33 and Epp. i. 4. C.301 ; T. i. 46a
* Paley's Propertius : Pre&ce.
' A mistress of his, whose real name was Hostia.
• C. 303 ; T. i. 241.
58 ROMAN LITERATURE.
upon overloading and obscurity. They owe their smooth-
ness and finish, however, to the study of the Alexandrian
writers ; and the same is true, indeed, of their forced concise-
ness of expression.
Quintilian says,^ concerning the Roman elegy: Elegia
Graecos provocamus, cuius mihi tersus atque elegans maxi-
me videtur auctor TibuUus, sunt qui Propertium malintj
Ovidius utroque lascivior, sicut durior Gallus.
n. PBOSE.
a. — Oratory,
In contrast to the genus Asiaticum^ — the overloaded
^bombastic style of oratory, — stood the genus Atticuniy the
other extreme, associated chiefly with the name of Lycias,
and characterized by artificial simplicity, homeliness, and
sobriety of expression. Midway between these stood the
genus Rhodium, The genus Asiaticum was chiefly repre-
sented by Hortensius, the genus Atticum by Caesar, M.
Brutus, Cselius Rufus, and others, — later by Asinius Pollio \
the genus Rhodium, by Cicero. In the Augustan Period,
political activity, and, with it, oratory, had to disappear from
the public stage.^ It retired into the Senate, into the sittings
of the centumviri, but particularly into the schools and
audience-rooms; while, in the place of public, practical
oratory, appeared rhetoric and the oratory of the schools ;
in place of the orator, appeared the rhetorician.^ Indeed,
even in the time of Sulla, rhetoric had been introduced into
Rome by Greek teachers, and Cicero had joined with his
practice the writing of theoretical books ; but the condition
1 Inst. Orat. x. i, 93. 2 T. i. 385 ; C. 319; Mer. iv. 431.
' Cf. Tac. Dial. 14: novonim rhetorum — veterum oratorum.
THIRD PERIOD.
59
of things under the Empire first brought rhetoric to its full
development.^ No regard was now paid to practical ends ;
the subjects were invented ; the main thing was practice in
form and skill in delivery. The school-orations were divided
into controversicRy suasorice^ and iaudationeSy or vituperationes?
As public orators in the first half of this period, may be
mentioned (besides Hortensius, see p. 31): Caesar ^ (sum-
mis oratoribus semulus),^ M. Calidius, C. Memmius, C.
Curio, M. Caelius Rufus; somewhat later, Asinius
PoUio, who. represented the extreme of the Attic style, was
hard and antiquated, after the model of Thucydides, and
M. Valerius Messala, who more nearly resembled Cicero
in style ; in the Augustan Period, Cassius Severus, who,
on account of the aggressiveness of his oratory, was banished
about 12 A.D.
Quintilian ^ thus characterizes these orators : Vim Csesaris,
indolem Cselii, subtilitatem Calidii, diligentiam Pollionis, dig-
nitatem Messake, gravitatem Bruti, acerbitatem Cassii re-
periemus.
At the head of Roman oratory stood M. TuUius Cicero.
SuRVEV OF His Life and WRiriNGS.
B.C.
106
9C^ieqq.
Jan. 3. Cicero born at Arpinum.
Instructed in oratory at Rome
by Greek teachers, especiaUy
Molo ; became acquainted
with the orators Antony and
Crassus ; introduced to the
study of law by Q. Mucins
1 T. i. 392. 537. * T. i. 544 ; C. 321.
* Tac. Ann. xiii. 3. * Inst. Orat. adi. 10, 11.
« C. 196; T.i.314.
6o
ROMAJr LITERATURE.
B.C.
«9
9i
So
79-77
77
75
70
69
6S-43
66
63
ScacTola, Atignr, and Q. Mu-
cius Scsevola, Pont. max.
Cicero in the army of Cn. Tom-
peias Strabo; instructed in
philosophy by Fhsedrus and
PhUo,
62
62-43
60-54
58
Went to Greece, Rhodes, and
Asia Minor for purposes of
study.
Mamed to Tereatia.
Quaestor in Sicily.
Engaged in the suit of the Si-
cilians against Verres.
iEdile.
Praetor.
Consul ; called ** pater patriae "
on account of the suppression
of the Catilinarian conspira-
cy ; goes over to the party of
the Optimates.
de inventione (the year un-
certain).
His first oratloa : pro Quintio.
Oratio pro S. Roscio Amerino.
Cicero, banished, goes to Thes-
salonica.
Orationes Verrinae.
Epp. ad Atticum.
Oratio de imp. Cn. Pompei.
Oratioaes vr. iaCfffilinam ;= pro
Mutiena*
Orationes pro Sulla,pro Archia.
Epp. ad Familiares.
Epp. ad Quintum fratrem.
THIRD PERIOD.
tfl
B.d.
57
Sept 4tfa» returns to Rome.
55
Vacillates between the Trinm-
tiri «ad the Senate.
de onAGtt,
54-51
de republica.
53
Augur.
5*
Oratio pro Milone.
S^-SO
Governor in Cilicia, "impera-
tor."
49
Cicero goes in June to Pompey
at Dyrrhachium.
48
In September return^ to Italy;
forced stay at Brundisium.
47
September. His return to Rome
is permitted by Caesar.
46
Divorce from Terentia; mar-
riage with Pablifia.
Oratio pro Lig., Brut., Orator,
de legg., paradoxa, de part,
orat
45
Death of his daugfhter Tullia;
divorce from Publilia.
Oratio pro Deiot., de (in.,
Acad. (Consol., Timseus).
44
1
Joins the murderers of Caesar.
Or. Phil. xiv. (Sept. 2, 44-Apr.
22, 43) Topica, de opt. gen.
or., Tusc. disp., de nat. deor.,
de sen., de div., de fato, de
amic, de officiis.
43
Dec. 7. Murdered.
Cicero performed an important work for oratory, partly by
means of his orations, and partly by means of his theoretical
wntiogs.
62 ROMAN LITERATURE.
I. The Orations. — Of Cicero, as an orator, Quintilian*
sa)rs : Apud posteros id est consecutus, ut Cicero iam non
hominis noraen, sed eloquentise habeatur.
Cicero was created, both physically and mentally, to be an
orator. Besides a good voice, and a tall and attractive fig-
ure, he possessed an excellent memory, a power of rapid
grasp and combination, fiery feeling, vivid imagination, quick
and telling wit. To these natural gifts were added a bound-
less desire for learning and wisdom, tireless industry, and
zealous and s)^tematic study. Cicero's orations are distin-
guished by resistless energy, moving pathos, variety and rapid
change of sentiment, fiery delivery, often by redundance
of expression, by a brilliant use of those means especially
which appeal to the senses and feelings of the hearer ; in a
less degree by moral earnestness and a regard for accuracy,
in which respects Cicero is certainly inferior to Demos-
thenes.2
Of Cicero's orations, fifty-seven are preserved entire, and
about twenty in a fi-agmentary condition. All that is known
of thirty-three others is, that they were delivered. Among
those preserved, the following deserve special mention : ^ pro
Quintio, the first oration pronounced by Cicero ; pro S. Ros-
cio Amerino, interesting from the fact that in it an attack is
made upon Chrysogonus, a favorite of Sulla ; the VerrtncSy
against C. Verres, the plundering praetor of Sicily, together
with the introductory divinatio in CcBcilium^ through which
Cicero maintains his right of impeachment. These orations
against Verres are also important for the understanding of
Roman provincial government. Further, de imperio Cn.
Pompei^ by which Cicero secured to Pompey the supreme
^ Inst. Orat. xi. 112.
^ T. i. 265 ; C. 169; Mom. iv. 726; Men ii, 42a.
* Long's commentary on Cicero's orations ; Forsyth's Life of Cicero.
THIRD PERIOD. 63
•
command in the Third Mithradatic War ; in Z. Catilinam^
delivered on the 7th and 8th of November, and the 3d and
5th of December, 63 ; pro Murena, a defense of the consul,
Licinius Murena, de ambitu, spiced with witty sallies against
the judges ; pro Sulla, a defense against the charge of com-
plicity in the conspiracy of Catiline ; pro Archia, gaining of
the right of Roman citizenship for the poet Archias : pro Sestio,
against a charge of vis, together with an extended account
of the affairs of the Roman parties ; pro Ccdio, interesting in
its relation to the history of morals ; pro Milone, defense of
Milo, charged with the murder of P. Clodius, not finished in
its present form until a later time ; pro Ligario, a petition to
Csesar in behalf of Ligarius, an adherent of Pompey; pro
Deiotaro, defense of King Deiotarus of Galatia, charged
with an attempt upon the life of Caesar; the 14 Philippic (b^
against M. Antonius, of which the most important is the
second, which was, however, produced only in written
form.
2. The Rhetorical Writings.^ — Cicero had made
himself perfectly acquainted with the theories of the schools,
through the instruction he had received from Greek rhetori-
cians, and from the study of Greek theorists and orators,
especially of Hermagoras (second century, B.C.), Aristotle,
Demosthenes, and Isocrates. Nevertheless, his. scientific edu-
cation and his practical career caused him not to remain sat-
isfied with existing theories, but to keep constantly in view
the requirement and experiences of Roman praxis. His
writings contain, therefore, a system resting, for the most
part, upon his own experience. They are, in detail, as fol-
1 T. i. 277 ; C. 168 ; King's commentary ; Mayor's Second Philippic :
Introd.
9 T. LaSo; C. x8o; Mom. iv. 728.
64 ROMAN UTTERATURE.
lows : de invetUione^ m 2 books, a erode wcmIc of his youth ;
de oratore^ in 3 books, in fonn a dialogue, set in the year 91,
in whkh the two great orators, L. Crassus and M. Antonius,
take the chief pait. In vivacious tone and beautiful, compact
language Cicero speaks, in Book I, of the proper training
for an orator ; in Book II, of the manner of treating the sub-
ject ; in Book III, of form and dehvery. Brutus^ sive de
xlaris oratoHbus^ also in dialogue form, a condensed history
of Roman oratory ; Orator ad M, Brutum, a description of
the ideal cwator; partitiones oraioria, a kind of rhetorical
catechism ; Topica^ an explanation of Aristotle's Topica ; de
ppUmo genere ^ratoruMy concerning the Asiatic and the
Attic style,
2>. — Cicero and Philosophy in Borne.
The second department in which Cicero worked in a
productive manner was that of Philosophy.
The first contact of the RcHiians with Greek philosophy
was no friendly one. Ennitis, it is true, tran^ated the writ-
ings of the Greek rationalist, Euhemeros ; but the very
thought that danger threat^ied from this rationalistic move-
ment in religion, which disintegrated and destroyed the
traditional world of deities, and also the idea that philos-
oj^y, — which had, indeed, at that time, passed its culmi-
nating point in Greece, and appeared in Rome essentially
as Sophism, — stood in the way of healthy, {tactical aims
and occupations, had this result, that, so late as the yeai*
155, the three philosophers who came to Rome as ambas-
sadors from Athens, Cameades, the Academic, Diogenes,
the Stoic, and Critolaus, the peripatetic, were, at the insti-
gation of Cato, sent away as quickly as possible. Never-
theless, the yoimger generation made themselves acquainted
THIRD PERIOD, 65
with Greek philosophy, and it gradually became a require*
ment of education to have heard Greek philosophers.^
Of the prevailing systems, Stoicism, with its earnest
morality and its practical direction, suited the Romans best,
because it conceded most to positive religion, and, in gen-
eral, adapted itself to Roman institutions. Beginning with
the younger Scipio, the majority of statesmen and jurists
were Stoics.
Q. Scxtius Niger ^ and his son of the same name,
who wrote in the Greek language in the time of Caesar and
Augustus, both followed a system made up of Stoic and
Py0iagorean doctrines. In connection with this, Epicurectn-
ism, and the New Academy, which cherished scepticism,
also found adherents; the former, especially, in the poet
Lucretius.^ Others did not attach themselves to any one
system, but took from each what suited them. This Eclec-
ticism was specially represented by Cicero.
On the whol^, the Romans remained entirely dependent
upon«the Greeks in philosophy, without producing any thing
original. The main point with them was, always, not the
theoretical, but the practical side of philosophy; accord-
ingly, Cicero^ designates philosophy as bene vivendi dis^
ciplina.
According to the custom of the times, Cicero pursued his
philosophical studies at first only as a means for rhetorical
education. He did not write upon these subjects until
after free political activity became impossible for him
through Caesar's supremacy. On the basis of an acquaint-
ance with the Greek philosophers, many-sided, indeed, but
1 T. i. 66, 331 ; C. 134 ; Mom. iii. 512. iv. 667 ; Rittcr : Hist, of Ancient
PhiL iv. 75 ; Grant's Ethics of Aristotle, i. 273. 2 c. 334.
' S. 224 ; Mom. iv. 669 ; Ritter, iv. 84. \ Tusc iv. 3, 5.
66 ROMAN LITERATURE.
superficial and desultory, without capacity or need for deep
and original speculations, he wrote, in a very short time, a
large number of philosophical treatises, which betray, only
too clearly, the haste of their preparation. In his efforts to
establish a certain balance between theory and practice, he
shows the greatest preference for the New Academy on
account of its Sophism, that being in harmbny with the aims
of the advocate and orator; also for Stoicism, on account
of its moral tone. On the other hand, he is no friend to
Epicureanism, which was understood by the Romans as
really affording license for sensual pleasures. He is only
superficially acquainted with the older systems of Plato and
Aristotle. Cicero's main service consists in this, that he
rendered Greek philosophy accessible to the Romans, and
an object of lively and general interest, in a terminology for
the most part created by himself, and enriching the Latin
language.^ In imitation of Plato he throws his writings, for
the most part, into dialogue form, but he is far from reaching
the freshness and vivacity of his model.
The philosophical writings of Cicero are given below, in
chronological order .^ The'de republican in 6 books, discusses
the best form of government.^ The dialogue is conducted by
the younger Africanus, Lselius, and others, and, with the ex-
ception of the Somnium Scipionis, preserved by Macrobius,
and belonging to the sixth book, scarcely any thing is extant
1 T. i. 263, 290; C. 174; Ritter, iv. loi, 108 et seqq.; Schlegel, Hist of
Lit 69; Reid's Academica : Introd.
a Cf. de div. ii. i ; C. 178.
« T. i. 290 ; Ritter, iv. 157 ; Mom. iv. 728. " The Republic — a work to
be named with all honor, and indescribably attractive, even in the frag-
ments of it which our age has been privileged to recover — concludes with
a vision of the noble-minded elder Scipio, which is radiant with faith in the
divine origin of the Kosmos and the immortality of the soul" Bunsen :
God in History, ii/373.
THIRD PERIOD. 67
but the first two books, and these, even, not in complete
form. Most of this was discovered in 1822 by Cardinal
Angelo Mai in a Vatican palimpsest. The second book
contains an essay on the earliest Roman history, especially
the constitutional history. The de legidus is not complete.
From the probable number of six books, only three are extant,
and those in corrupted form.^ The work contains an outline
of church and state law, based upon the principles of the
Stoic philosophy. The paradoxa is a discussion of Stoic prin-
ciples. The consolatio was occasioned by the death of TuUia ;
only fragments are extant, as is also true of the Hortensius^
a recommendation of the study of philosophy. De finibus bo-
norutn et malorum^ in 5 books, is a resume of the doctrines
concerning the highest good and evil taught by the Greek
philosophers, with criticisms on the same. The academical in
4 books, is a survey of the theories of knowledge, with special
reference to the Academics ; Tusculance disputationes^^ in 5
books, contains res ad beate vivendum maxime necessarias,
and treats, (I) de contemnenda morte^ (II) de tolerando
dolore, (III) de cegritudine lenienda^ (IV) de reliquis animi
perturb aiionibus^ (V) ad beate vivendum virtutem se ipsa
esse contentam; the most interesting books are the first and
the fifth. The Timceus is a working-over of the dialogue of
Plato of the same name, — a fragment. De natura deorum?
in 3 books, is a presentation of the views concerning the Deity,
and his relation to the world, especially fi*om the standpoint
1 " The De Legibus is fraught with all that was loftiest and best in what
apprehension of a divine agency in human affairs yet lingered in the ancient
Roman polity, culture, and manners." Bunsen.
3 T. i. 295 ; Ritter, iv. 145 ; Arnold's School Classics ; De Finibus Bono-
rum et Malorum. * T. i. 296.
^ Arnold's School Classics ; Tusculan Disputations.
* T. 1. 298 ; Bunsen, ii. 370,
68 ROMAN LITERATURE.
of the Epicureans (1), the Stoics (II), and the Academics
(III). I?^ divinatione, in a books, sets forth in Book I,
the Stoic doctrine of soothsaying, and, in Book II, argu-
ments against it that are often humorous. Ca^ maioTy sive
de senectute^ is a treatise in praise of old age, put in the
mouth of Cato, written in a popular vein, and especially
attractive on account of its cheerful, quiet tone, as well as
gtyle. De fato^ a fragment, was written in opposition to the
Stoic doctrine of fate. Lalius^ sive de amicitiay is a treatise
in praise of true friendship, such as rests upon a moral basis,
written in a vivid style, and put into the mouth of Lselius
the younger. De officiiSy in 3 books, contains a system of
ethics, sketched with a free hand from the teachings of the
Stoics.^ Special attention is given in Book I to the nature of
the honestuniy in Book II, to the nature of the utUey and
in Book III, to the question of a conflict between the two.
The writings de gloria^ de virtutibuSy as well as translations
from Xenophon and Plato y are not extant.
c. — Oioero's Letters.
The art of letter-vrriting gained literary significance
through Cicero. We possess four collections of Cicero's
letters:^ ad familiares? in 16 books; ad Atticum, in 16
books ; ad Quintum fratreniy in 3 books ; ad Brutuniy in
2 books. These letters, 864 in number (including the 90
addressed to Cicero), extend from the year dZ to July 28,
43. They are not, however, evenly distributed over this
period, no letter, for example, being extant from the year of
^ Rkter, iv. 150 ; Mer. ii. 4x5 ; T. i. 302.
* Leighton's Critical History of Cicero's Letters,
' This title first came into use with the edition of Stephanas, in X526,
while the other title, ad diversos^ is neither the original one nor good Latin.
THIRD PERIOD. 69
Cicero's consulship ; also, the period before the civil war is
represented by a relatively smaller number than the following
period. The publication, although contemplated by Cicero,
was not arranged for by himself, as is shown by the publica-
tion of many letters, which set his character in an unfavor-
able light ; but it took place soon after his death, or, at all
events, under the reign of Augustus, with the special cooper-
ation of his freedman Tiro, and his friend Atticus, who was
able to give the letters value in the book-market. So much
18 beyond a doubt. Moreover, in ancient times, many more
letters of Cicero were in circulation than we now possess.
These letters are an incomparably valuable authority for
the history of that time, so much so that Nepos says of those
written to Atticus : * Quae qui legat, non multum desideret
historiam contextam illorum temporum. They are, of course,
different in their nature;^ some being of a more ofllicial
character, planned for publication, at least eventually, and so
more carefully considered and more reserved ; some — and
this is especially true of the letters to Atticus — serving only
the ends of confidential communication, and therefore reveal-
ing Cicero's most personal relations and thoughts, joys and
sorrows, S3rmpathies and antipathies. Accordingly, the lan-
guage is sometimes formal and carefully chosen, sometimes
careless and hasty, only hinting at much, and often obscure ;
now earnest and measured, now lively and witty.^
1 Nep. Att 16.
* C. 183; T. i. S84: Mom. iv. 721; Watson's Select Letters of Cicero;
Abeken's Life and Letters of Cicero, transL by Merivale; Forsyth's Cicero,
L72.
' " Notwithstanding the manifold attractions offered by the other works
of Cicero, the man of taste, the historian, the antiquary, and the student of
human nature would willingly resign them all rather than be deprived of
the epistles. Whether we regard them as mere specimens of style, at one
yo ROMAN LITERATURE.
The order of the letters in the collection ad Atticum^ is,
in the main, chronological; on the other hand, the col-
lection ad familiares is arranged, for the most part, accord-
ing to the persons addressed ; thus, for example. Book VIII
contains only letters of M. Cselius to Cicero, and Book XIV,
only letters of Cicero to his family. While the collection ad
Atticum contains only letters by Cicero himself, 90 letters
from others to Cicero are included in the ad familiares^
especially from M. Caelius, Caesar, Pompeius, Munatius Plan-
cuB, Decimus and Marcus Brutus and Sulpicius Rufus. In
the collection ad Quintum fratretrty I, i, is especially impor-
tant, a letter which contains a complete list of instructions
concerning the official duties of a Roman governor. Re-
specting the genuineness of the letters ad Brututn (at least,
those of the second book), scholars are not agreed; it is
doubted by the majority.
In ancient times, Cicero's letters were much read and
quoted; manuscripts, however, were first discovered \y
Petrarch in the fourteenth century.
Concerning Cicero as a poet, see p. 40 ; as a historian,
see p. 72.
As regards the judgment concerning Cicero as a writer and
as a man, an often depreciative hypercriticism has come in of
time reflecting the conversational tone of familiar every-day life in its most
graceful form, at another sparkling with wit, at another claiming applause
as works of art belonging to the highest class, at another couched in all the
stiff courtesy of diplomatic reserve; or whether we consider the ample
materials derived from the purest and most inaccessible sources, which they
supply fdr a history of the Roman constitution during its last struggles,
affording a deep insight into the personal dispositions and motives of the
chief leaders, — or finally seek and find in them a complete key to the
character of Cicero himself, unlocking, as they do, the most hidden secrets
of his thoughts, and revealing the whole man —'their value is altogether
inestimable." Ramsay.
THIRD PERIOD. 7 1
late,^ in place of the earlier unqualified admiration. It cannot
be denied that Cicero can be charged with great deficiencies
and weaknesses ; especially does he lack independence and
firmness in political life ; he allows himself to be swayed by
fortunate and unfortunate circumstances ; is dependent upon
the moment, and capricious; even in the literary field,
where his chief importance lies, he betrays a straining after
effect in his orations, and haste and superficiality in his
philosophical writings.
But in spite of all this, Cicero is and will remain a remark-
able character in history, and Varro's verdict will have to be
accepted as true : Qua maior pars vitae atque ingenii stetit,
ea iudicandum de homine est.^
Cicero, although Hving in an extremely corrupt period,
was pure in his manner of life, unselfish and incorruptible ;
a sincere patriot, bending his efforts toward the good, the
beautiful, and the true ; gentle toward his own family, obliging
to his friends, and especially ready to advance the interests
of younger men ; humane in the treatment of his slaves ; a
man of feeling and sentiment, possessed of extraordinary
intellectual capacities, a rare gift of speech, a strong imagi-
nation, and an abundance of esprit and wit. His activity in
the field of literature marks an advance in the development
of universal culture. For the Roman world he was a price-
less mediator of the elements of Greek culture. He raised
Latin language to the highest plane of development in form ;
and although he was not a complete Roman character, still
he furthered the interests of general culture in many direc-
tions.
1 Especially through Drumann and Mommsen.
s Forsyth's Cicero, ii. 319 ; T. i. 261 ; Ritter, iv. 99.
7* ROMAN LITERATURE.
cL — History.
Writers of history in this period were numerous, and,
as a result of the growing acquaintance with Greek models,
the perfecting of the Latin language, the increasing at-
tention paid to rhetorical finish, and the growing interest
in higher culture in general, there arose an artistic and
methodical treatment of history, which, confining itself, on
the one hand, to the history of the times, or to particular
events, or embracing, on the other, the entire field of Roman
history and even universal history, proceeded on a definite
plan, and employed a method of presentation, well thought
out and suited to the subject-matter. The historical writers
were chiefly men who lived in the midst of political activity,
or, at least, belonged to a particular party, and hence his-
torical works represented, in some degree, the party stand-
point ; memoirs were also frequently written. While, in the
time of the Republic, when there was freedom of speech,
historians turned their attention chiefly to the present or
the immediate past, the later historians saw themselves, on
account of the limitations introduced by the empire, obliged
to seek out more remote subjects.^
In the first half of this period, the writers were : T. Pom-
ponius Atticus,^ who compiled an accurate tabular view
of the entire field of Roman history, entitled (liber) An-
nalis; he wrote also in like manner concerning several aristo-
cratic families ; M. TuUius Cicero, who wrote a detailed
account of his consulship, which has not been preserved ;
Q. ^lius Tubero, who treated of Roman history up to
his own time.
Fax more important, however, are the names that follow.
B - - - - . — . . ^^^^1^—^
1 Ritter, iv. 9 ; T. i. 230 ; Mom. iv. 719. * T. i. 159.
THIRD PERIOD. 73
C. lulius Caesar, bom July 12, 100 B.C., was a nephew
of Marius, through whose influence he became flamen dialis
in 87 ; in 83, he. married the daughter of Cinna, and on
that account was reluctantly spared by Sulla; 80-78, he
was in Asia ; in 78, accuser of the Optimates ; in 76, with
Molo in Rhodes ; in 6S, quaestor in Spain ; in 65, sedile ;
in 63, pontifex maximus ; in 62, praetor ; in 61, governor in
Further Spain ; in 60, triumvir with Pompey and Crassus ; in
59, consul ; 58-50, proconsul in Gaul. He began, in 49, the
civil war against Pompey and the government of the Opti-
mates ; 48-45, gained the supreme power by defeating Pom-
pey at Pharsalus, and the Pompeian party in Africa and
Spain; was assassinated March 15, 44.
In addition to his unusual versatility, Caesar had also the
gift of oratory in uncommon measure. As an orator, he was
placed by the ancients by the side of Cicero, at least, as
regards talent.* He treated the language itself in two books
entitled de analogia. In his youth he also wrote verse.
Against Cato he wrote two anticatones, A work on astron-
omy is also ascribed to him.
Most important of all, however, are his Commentarii de
bello Gallico and de hello civili,^ The former work contains,
in 7 books, the exploits of Caesar in Gaul, from 58 to 52 :
Book I, the victory over the Helvetians and Ariovistus in
the year 58 ; II, the conquest of the northern and north-
western peoples of Gaul in 5 7 ; III, the maritime war
against the Veneti, and the battles with the Aquitani,
Menapii, and Morini in 56 ; IV, the conquest of the
Tencteri and Usipetes, the first passage of the Rhine, and
the first expedition to Britannia in 55 ; V, the second
expedition to Britannia, the destruction of fifteen cohorts
1 T. i. 314 ; C. 196. * C. 188 ; T. i. 317 ; Mom. iv. 720.
74 ROMAN LITERATURE.
by the Eburones in 54 ; VI, the restoration of peace in the
north, the second crossing of the Rhine, and the annilii-
lation of the Eburones in 53 ; VII, the conflicts with Ver-
cingetorix, and the final subjugation of Gaul in 52.
There is a geographical excursus in Book IV (1-3), con-
cerning the Suevi ; in V (12-14), concerning Britannia, and
in VII (9-29), concerning Gallia.
The Commeniarii de bcUo civili contain: Book I, the
breaking out of the war, the expulsion of Pompey from
Italy, and the hostilities in Spain; II, the contests about
Massilia, Caesar's appointment as Dictator, and Curio's defeat
in Africa ; III, the further progress of the war to the begin-
ning of the Alexandrian War.
In these writings the lines of Caesar's character are most
distinctly seen, — clearness of understanding, keenness of
judgment, sureness of perception, quickness of combination,
a calm mastery of things in the midst of the greatest external
confusion, facility, or rather apparently an entire absence of
labor, in his work ; on the other hand, also, a soberness of
mind, nay, even a coldness of temperament, which grasps
and desires only that which is real and useful, and that spe-
cifically Roman way of looking at things, which accords to
the foreigner no claim to an independent existence. In
respect to style, even the ancients praised the elegance,
ease, simplicity, and clearness of Caesar's Commentaries.^
But in just this apparent objectivity lies a great art; for
these works are, in reality, written from motives of personal
interest, being intended to justify partly his treatment of the
Gauls, and partly his appearance on the scene of action
1 Cic. Brut. 75, 262: valde probandi, nudi enim sunt, recti et venusti,
omni ornatu orationis velut veste detracta, Schlegel : Hist of Lit 70 ; Mer.
ii. 393; Froude's Caesar, 544.
THIRD PERIOD. 75
after the year 50. This purpose pervades the whole, but it
may be traced more clearly in his exposition of the causes
which drive him irresistibly onward, and of the motives
which eyer seem to him right and imperative, than in his
narration of the events themselves, which (more indeed in
the beUo GalUco than in the generally less carefully written
bello civili) is, perhaps, on the whole, in accordance with truth.
Without doubt, the Commentarii de bello Gallico were
written in the years 52 and 51, and published in 51 ; the
Commentarii de bello civili were composed, but not pub-
lished, in the last year of his life.
Continuations of these works are : de beUo Gallico liber
VIII^ and bellum Alexandrinum, both without doubt written,
and indeed skilfully, by Caesar's legate, A. Hirtius; also
the far inferior writings concerning the bellum Africanum and
beUum Hispaniense by unknown authors of little cultivation.^
Cornelius Nepos, bom about 94 b.c, in Upper Italy,
lived for the most part in Rome, without office, on friendly
terms with Catullus, Cicero, and especially Atticus, and died
about 30. He was the author of several works that have not
been preserved: Chronicon^ Exemplar Vita Catonis and
CiceroniSy particularly, however, of the work de viris illustri-
buSy which treated, in at least 16 books, of a great number of
statesmen, generals, poets, etc., and in such a manner that
Greeks, Romans, and barbarians stood in contrast with each
other. Of this work, the book entitled de exceUentibus duci-
bus exterarum gentium is preserved. It consists of 19 bi-
ographies of Greek generals, arranged mainly in chronological
order, together with the biography of the Persian Datames,
of the Carthaginians Hamilcar and Hannibal, and of Cato
Maior and Atticus.^
1 T. i. 320 ; C. 195. a C. 198; T. i. 323; Mom. iv. 719,
J6 ROMAN LITERATURE.
Nepos followed, as it seems, the purpose, on the one hand,
of extending historical knowedge among the public at large,
and, on the other, of exercising a moral influence upon
the same. Hence, his language is simple and popular ; he
manifests sincere rejoicing at the good and abhorrence of
the evil ; he strives to be impartial even to a Hannibal, but
he falls into the error of almost always seeing an ideal char-
acter in the hero of whom he happens to be treating. In
general, there is a lack of independent and comprehensive
historical views ; the material is often selected without judg-
ment ; instead of what is really important, often details of the
nature of anecdotes are made prominent, and there appear in
addition not a few obscure and erroneous statements, which
testify to his haste in consulting his authorities.^ These
failings, together with the fact that the style is monotonous
and impure, have led to the supposition that a certain iEmil-
ius Probus, in the time of Theodosius, worked over the exist-
ing collection after the original of Nepos. Sufficient reasons
for the acceptation of this theory are not at hand. For the
same reason the question whether Nepos is adapted for use
in the schools has been answered by many in the negative.
C. Sallustius Crispus was bom in 86 b.c. in the Sabine
town of Amitemum. In his youth he led a gay life at Rome ;
became quaestor about the year 59; in 52 tribune of the
people ; was an opponent of Cicero and Pompey, and on this
account (ostensibly, however, on account of his bad life) was
expelled from the senate in 50, but was restored by Caesar;
made praetor, and, in 46, sent as proconsul to Africa, where
he amassed great wealth.^ After Caesar's assassination, he
devoted himself entirely to literary pursuits, and died in 35.
^ Thucydides, Xenophon, Theopompus, and others.
S Horti SaUusUani at Rome.
THIRD PERIOD. 77
Sallust wrote three works : Catilituiy Bellum lugurthinum^
and Historiay
1. Catilinay or de coniuratione Catilina liber ^ gives an
account of the conspiracy of Catiline in the years 63 and
62, in connection with which the moral corruption, espe-
cially of the nobility, is disclosed for an ulterior purpose.
The services of Cicero, Sallust's former opponent, are not
depreciated ; also, Cato is treated without bias, and Caesar
with decided partiality.
Of special interest are the orations of Caesar and Cato
(c. 51-54) on the action of the senate concerning the
punishment of the arrested conspirators, and the character-
ization of both men. The work was probably published in
the year 42.
2. Bellum lugurihinum gives an accoimt of the war against
the Numidian king Jugurtha (111-106), in which the
stress faUs upon the portrayal of the corrupt condition of
affairs at Rome under the misrule of the oligarchy, which
was exposed especially in the orations of the tribune of
the people, C. Memmius (c. 31), and of C. Marius (c. 85).
At the close of the war, and over against the terror
Cimbricus^ Marius appears as the support of the Roman
State.
3. Historice^ embraces the period from 78 to 67. Only
fragments remain ; in particular, a few orations, which bear
witness to a riper historical skill than those found in the
Catilina and the Jugurtha.
Sallust is called by Martial 3/m««j Romana in historiay
and rightly so, considering that he was the first to treat
historical writing as an art, with a conscious method in
the choice of subject and form. His chief model was
^ C aoo ; T. i. 344. ^ C 202. > Mar. xiv. X9Z.
JS ROMAN LITERATUfeE.
Thucydides. Although confining himself essentially to
the history of his time, Sallust yet shows a comprehensive
survey of general Roman history, and a correct insight
into the epochs of internal development in government,
culture, and morals.^ The existing corruption impels him
to a moral pathos, which, in view of his manner of life in
earlier years, some have been disposed to consider insincere
and affected ; but it has not been sufficiently borne in mind
that a change in his moral principles and views was possible
in later years.
Although personally belonging to the democratic party, or,
as it might be called, the imperial party (that of Caesar),
and endeavoring to show the inherent weakness of the
republican government, still, he is unpartisan and just in his
judgment even of aristocratic celebrities, such as Metellus,
Cato, and even Sulla, and not blind to the real character
of such a demagogue as Marius. His narrative, however,
is incomplete, and often inaccurate, especially in chrono-
logical matters. His main strength lies in the delineation
of character and in psychological arrangement. The signifi-
(cance of prominent individuals in the progress of history is
sharply brought out.^
Sallust's language is often artificially antiquated, studied,
and obscure ; but it is rich in thought, forcible and apt in
characterization, plastic in portrayal and description, often
dramatic in its vivacity and realism.^ Some of the writings
ascribed to Sallust are not genuine, as, for example, two
epistulcB ad C<Bsarem^ invectiva in Ciceronemy and others.
In the Augustan Period, historians stand in the first rank
among prose writers.** Among others, Augustus and
1 Cf. especially Cat. 6-13 ; Jug. 41, seq ; T. i. 348.
a CL especially Cat. 53. « C. 204, < T. i. 386.
■ THIRD PERIOD. 79
his friend M. Vipsanius Agrippa treated of their own
time; the former in 13 books, de vita sua, and an index
rerum a se gestarum, the greater part of which was dis-
covered in a copy in the temple of Augustus at Ancyra in
Galatia, — the so-called monumentum Ancyranunt ; Agrippa,
in an autobiography and in memoirs ^ Also, M. Valerius
Messala wrote memoirs, perhaps in the Greek language.
Asinius Pollio^ (75 B.C.-5 a.d) wrote from a republican
standpoint 3 a History of the Civil Wars beginning with the
year 60 B.C. This work was not completed and has not
been preserved.
By far the most prominent historian of the Augustan
Period is, however, T* Livius,^ bom at Pataviurti (Padua),
59 B.C., without doubt from an illustrious family. He was
trained in philosophy and rhetoric at Rome ; soon took up
his permanent residence there, where he came into intimate
relations with Augustus ; remained without office or political
activity, and died 1 7 a.d. in his native city, where a mauso-
leum was raised to him in 1548.
Besides rhetorical and philosophical writings (dialogi),
which have not come down to us, he wrote a history of
Rome, from -^neas to at least 9 B.C., in 142 books,^ entitled
ab urbe condita iibri. Of these have been preserved Books
I-X and XXI-XLV, which embrace the period 754-293
and 218-167. The loss of the other books is poorly sup-
plied by the periochce or epitomoe.
Livy's purpose was,^ in contrast to the unsatisfying and
degenerate present, to call to life again the better past, which
1 T. i. 393. « T. i. 398. « Cf. Hor. Od, ii. i.
* T. i. 492 ; C. 322 ; Mer. iv. 436 ; Seeley's Livy : Introd.
6 Probably designed to reach the number of 150, to the death of
Augustus.
^ Cf. praefetio.
8o ROMAN LITERATURE.
appeared to him in an ideal light, and, in his history, to hold
-before his contemporaries a picture of morality.^
For this Livy possessed the necessary qualities, — some of
them, indeed, in rich measure, — a vivid imagination, moral
sensitiveness, a warm heart, love of the truth, a genuine sym-
pathy for the good and noble, and a natural oratorical power,
cultivated in the schools of rhetoric.
The ancients gave prominence to the following qualities
as belonging to him: Mira facundia, jucunditas, candor,
lactea ubertas.^ Livius candidissimus omnium magnorum
ingeniorum aestimator.^ In religious matters he holds
fast to the traditional and positive as the foundation of
the Roman state. He attaches value to prodigies and
ceremonies, although he sometimes gives utterance to fatal-
istic views. In political matters he is an admirer of the
Republic and of the rule of the Optimates,* yet probably
without any deep, settled conviction, and, at all events,
without any dangerous inclination to oppose the Empire.
The weakest side of his work is his account of the internal
development of the Roman State.^ Concerning the earlier
Roman government, especially the true relation of things
during the conflict between Patricians and Plebeians, and
also concerning military affairs, he has often incorrect, and
even radically false, views ; also, he does not trouble him-
self carefully to study the existing records and monuments ;
he brings, rather, the externals of history, especially wars,
into the foreground.
1 See, especially, praef. § lo : the present offers no hope, and cannot be
improved, — nee vitia nostra nee remedia pati possumus j history presents
enough examples both of those things which should be done, and of those
which should be left undone.
2 Quint. Inst. Orat. xi. loi. « Sen. Suas. vi. 21, seq.
4 Hence called by Augustus, Pompeianus, Tac. Ann. iv. 34.
« C. 327,
THIRD PERIOD. Si
Among the Roman annalists he makes special use of the
later ones; among others^ of Licinius Macer and Valerius
Antias, whose untrustworthiness he discovers only in the prog-
ress of his work. He employs them often without discrimina-
tion, consistency, or independent judgment. From the third
decade on, he makes use, for the most part, of Polybius,
but without the requisite care ; on which account, mistakes,
repetitions, and contradictions not unfrequently occur. The
arrangement of events is^ in the main, the traditional annal-
istic one.*
These failings, however, are gladly forgotten in view of
his love for the truth, only now and then repressed by
patriotism and tradition, — as, for example, in his treatment
of Hannibal ; — in view of his generous, humane temper of
mind, the grace, clearness, and ease of his presentation,^
the charming poetic coloring with which he invests par-
ticularly the oldest history, and the brilliant rhetoric which
he displa3rs in the numerous speeches.^
Livy's talents found, even in his lifetime, great recogni-
tion,* though Asinius Pollio thought he discovered a certain
provincial tone (Patavinitas), the nature of which is, for us,
at least, difficult to discover.
As early as 500 a.d., the work was divided into decades,
of which the third, containing the Second Punic War, — the
finest part of the work, — was most frequently read and
copied.*
1 c. 325.
^ Quintilian compares him, in this respect, to Herodotus.
* T. i. 497; C. 329; Mer. iv. 438; Schlegel : Hist, of Lit. 74.
* According to Pliny, Epp. ii. 3, a man made a journey from Gades to
Rome for the express purpose of seeing Livy.
* In the seventeenth century, the philologist, J. Freinsheim, bom at Ulm,
and Professor at Upsala and Heidelberg, attempted to supply the missing
books in Livy's style.
83 ROMAN LITERATURE.
The acta senatus^ and the acta populi^ (Romani)
constituted an historical authority. The former were pro-
tocols of the senate, which, according to a regulation of
Caesar, were, after the year 59, recorded and published, but
which, afterwards, according to an edict of Augustus, were
only recorded ; the latter,^ a daily record which contained all
sorts of official and private news, and was kept up through
the entire period of the emperors, but of which no genuine
remains are preserved. Both of these acta were placed for
safe keeping in the Tabularium, and could there be con-
sulted for literary purposes.
e.— Special Sciences.
M. Tcrentius Varro* was active partly in the depart-
ment of history, and partly in different fields of special
science. He was bom in 116 B.C. at Reate in Sabinum;
was a follower of Pompey, for whom he fought unsuccess-
fully in Spain in the year 49 ; was pardoned by Caesar, and
appointed superintendent of the public library; was pro-
scribed in 43, but made his escape, and died in the year
27. He was the most learned man and the most prolific
author of ancient Rome, a polyhistor in the highest sense.
His knowledge and his writings embraced almost aU con-
ceivable subjects. The entire number of his writings
amounted to over 70 works, in more than 600 volumes.
Among* his poetical productions, the Satura Menippece
(see p. 45) are worthy of special mention. Of his prose
works,* the most important are : Libri IX disciplinarum,
an encyclopaedia of the sciences, especially of the later
1 Also ca\\adL publica, or diuma, ^ T. i. 236; C. 142.
« T. i. 379; Mom. iv. 722. • T, i. 241 ; C. 146.
« Mer. iv. 330.
THIRD PERIOD. 83
so-caUed seven liberal arts, the trivium (grammar, dialectics,
and rhetoric), and the quadrivium (arithmetic, geometry,
astronomy, and music), and, besides these, medicine and
architecture ; the imagines, or kebdomades, in 15 books, con-
taining portraits of celebrated Greeks and Romans, with
short metrical explanations. Roman antiquities were treated
in the libri XLI antiquitatutn, of which res humanse em-
braced 25 books, and res divinae 16 ; and in a series of
monographs, as, for example, de gente populi Romani, de
vita populi Romani y atia{=alTux), explanations of Ro-
man customs, etc. The history of literature was represented
by numerous writings having special reference to the tech-
nique of the drama ; law, by libri X de jure civili ; phi-
lology, by libri XXV de lingua Latina} of which Books V-X
are preserved, though incomplete and corrupt, — a collection
of material which he had not worked over into proper shape ;
agriculture, by libri III rerum rusticarum, almost entirely
preserved, and treating of tillage, cattle-raising, poultry-
breeding, and fish-culture.
In all these works the subject-matter possesses for Varro
the chief interest, while little value is attached to the form.
Hence the language is uneven and frequently mixed' with
plebeian and archaic elements. Not unfrequently, however,
a quaint humor appears. His standpoint is specifically Ro-
man, yet he does not ignore Greek culture. On account
of the abundant material which hfs works contained, Varro
was much used by later writers, especially by Augustine,
and thus many separate passages have been preserved.
Other writers on special sciences besides Varro were : in
Lav^, S. Sulpicius Rufus,^ who was born 105 B.C., was
consul in 51, and died in 43 ; was a friend of Cicero, and
1 T. i. 247 ; C. 151 ; Mom. iv. 73a ^ T. i, 257 ; C. 157.
84 ROMAN LITERATURE.
the most learned jurist of his time, and also the author
of numerous works ; his pupil, A. Ofilius, also a very pro-
lific writer, and held in high esteem, especially by Caesar ;
C. Trebatius Testa, bom about 90, a high legal authority
in Augustus' time. His pupil was M. Antistius Labeo ^
(60 B.c.-ii A.D.), who, in respect to thorough and com-
prehensive learning, as well as independence of character
and political attitude, stood far above his rival, C. Ateius
Capito (34 B.C.-21 A.D.), who courted the favor of Augus-
tus, and was preferred by him. Both were copious writers.
Archaeology and Philology were represented (besides
by Varro) by P. Nigidius Figulus^ (d. 45 B.C.), who
wrote comtnentarii gratnmaticiy in 30 books, as well as works
on Geology and natural science; also by M. Verrius
Flaccus,^ a freedman, whom Augustus chose as teacher for
his grand-children, and who died under Tiberius. He wrote
fasiiy and a very learned antiquarian work, de verborum signi-
ficatu\ of which, probably in the middle of the second cen-
tury, A.D., Pompeius Festus made an epitome, which has
been in part preserved, from which, in turn, a priest named
Paulus, living under Charlemagne, made excerpts. In spite
of the corrupt form in which the epitomists have left this
work, the extant portions are of value as a repository of
facts. lulius Hyginus,* a freedman of Augustus, and
director of the Palatine Library, wrote numerous works on
geography y history^ agriculture^ etc. ; also commentaries
on Virgil His 277 Fables, 2l hand-book of Mythology, the
present form of which does not, however, go back to
Hyginus, and 4 books de astronomia, are, in great part,
preserved.
In Architecture, we possess 10 Books de architecturay
1 T. i. 387. 526. » T. i. 511 ; C. 333,
a T. i. 327 , C. 158 ; Mom. iv. 669. * T. i. 515.
THIRD PERIOD. 8$
by the architect Vitruvius PoUio.^ Books I-VII treat
of buildings, VIII, of aqueducts, IX, of instruments for
measuring time, X, of machines. The work is dedicated
to Augustus, and is rich and comprehensive in its con-
tents, but is written in an uneven and often awkward
style.
For Geography, — besides the already-mentioned writ-
ings of Varro and Hyginus, and exclusive of notes of travel,
and occasional remarks in historical and other works, — the
survey of the Roman Empire was important, which was
set on foot by Caesar, and completed under Augustus in 19
B.C. In this undertaking Agrippa ^ took an active part, by
drawing up lists of mountains, bodies of water, and bounda-
ries of places, and also by sketching a map of the world ;
for which reason, after his death, a tablet representing the
world, and based upon this sketch, was placed by Augustus
in the colonnade which bore Agrippa's name.
1 T. i 523; 0.331. * T. L ai7; Mcr. iV. 323.
FOURTH PERIOD.
The Silver Age of Roman Literature, 14-117 A.D., from
Tiberius to the Death of Trajan.
THE Ciceronian and Augustan Periods left to the
following generations an unusually rich literary inher-
itance, but the rule of the imperial despots from Tiberius
to Domitian (interrupted only by the brief reigns of Ves-
pasian and Titus, 70-81), that is, almost the whole of the
first century after Christ, was extremely unfavorable for in-
creasing this inheritance, or for making it profitable and fruit-
ful. The persistent suppression of freedom in thought, word,
and deed : the closing up of those avenues of activity in
which the Koman mind had shown an original and creative
power, namely, oratory and history; the complete cessa-
tion of political life, resulted either in resignation and apathy,
or in stifled animosity and secret opposition, or in servile
fawning and flattery.^ Prevented from speaking in a simple,
natural, and straightforward manner, the writers of- this
period sought to supply the want, of which they were only
too deeply conscious, by a pathos incommensurate with the
subject, by a pretentious, but often empty, play with figures
of speech and sententious phrases, by a sort of significant
obscurity and conciseness, and by a forced striving after
contrast and striking effects. Just as in life, so in speaking
and writing, there was a lack of naturalness and frankness ;
1 T. ii. 2 ; C. 341 ; Mer. v. 261 ; Schlegel : Hist, of Lit. 75.
86
FOURTH PERIOD. 87
men were conscious of being watched everywhere and at all
times, and thus were obliged to be watchful in return;
since their true thoughts and feelings had to shun the light
of day, they fell into a habit of playing a part, into a false
artificiality^ into a disgusted aversion to what was near and
healthy, into affectation and mannerism, and in these de-
viations and wanderings which were, in themselves, a clear
sign of retrogression and approaching downfall, they became
wont to see even an excellence and an advance ; they came
to delight in this state of things, and, consciously or uncon-
sciously, helped to make it worse. For the same reason,
the language of the so-called Silver Age took on a very
different character from that of the Ciceronian, or even
of the Augustan Period.' The vocabulary became much
changed, partly by the invention of new words and phrases,
and still more by the loss and rejection of those which had
hitherto been in use ; rhetorical figures took the place of
the proper and natural expression ; the rounded periods of
a Cicero or a Livy were broken up into short, detached
sentences, often having scarcely any connection with each
other ; the law of objectivity, the universal law of language,
was destroyed by subjectivity and arbitrariness; prose and
poetry were massed together without preserving definite lines
of demarcation, and without a fine sense of the difference
between them. The type of this style is Seneca; Quin-
tilian in vain attempted an opposition to it.
Although, in spite of all unfavorable circumstances, there
were still influences which were favorable to literature, —
knowledge and use of the literary treasures of earlier times,
the increase of the book-trade, the ever more fi*equent found-
ing and using of libraries, the firequenting of public readings
1 T. ii. 4.
88 ROMAN UTERATURE.
{recitaiiones) y — nevertheless, all this was of service to litera-
ture only so far as the latter was inoffensive and without dan-
ger to the government. Hence poetry and rhetoric stood in
the foreground ; both were universally employed in the edu-
cation of youth, and hence universally practiced.^ Poetry,
however, was followed, in the main, from no inward im-
pulse, was without originality and inner truth ; it acquired a
leaned character, for which reason the poets of this period
were often called docti ; , hence the unreal and manufac-
tured lyric poetry of this period is worthless.
Epic poetry is most abundantly represented, especially be-
cause this could draw rich and exhaustless material from the
safe realm of mythology. The Greek and Roman poets of
the Augustan Period, particularly Virgil and Ovid, were
imitated and reproduced; such poetry won praise and
money (honos et prcBmium), since even the majority of the
emperors had a taste for it. Domitian himself introduced
a poetical contest with the conferring of a poet's wreath
upon the victor. On the whole, however, it was only an
artificial, labored, amateur poetry, or a restrained, calculating,
servile poetry.
Oratory, in the lack of a public theatre of action, confined
itself to the exercises of the schools, taking the form of
declamationesy suasorice, especially contraversiiB^ in which,
by preference, such questions were discussed as lay far from
reality, nay even from probability and possibility.
Learning, especially as represented by the elder Pliny,
took an important position beside oratory.
History, during the period of depotism, was obliged either
to be altogether silent, or, when it did not flatter, to be
cultivated in secret. A greater freedom of movement, which
iT.iL7. aT.i.S44; C.321.
FOURTH PERIOD. 89
made a new impulse possible for historical writing as well
as for satire, began first under Nerva and Trajan.
Rome remained, it is true, in this, as in former periods,
the central point, controlling literary culture and production ;
yet literary names appear more and more not fi^om Italy
alone, but also firom many provinces, especially Spain and
Gaul.
I. POETRY.
a.— The Drama.
On the stage the Mime and the Pantomine^ (see p. 38),
in this, as in the foregoing period, retained a decided pre-
dominance. Whatever else was produced in the drama,
especially in tragedy, was mostly designed, not for represen-
tation, but for private reading and recitation. As tragic poets
are mentioned : Pomponius Secundus,^ who lived under
Tiberius and Caligula, and was reckoned by Quintilian as the
foremost tragic writer of his time ; somewhat later. Curia-
tius Maternus^ (the same who appears in the Dialogus of
Tacitus), who composed mythological tragedies znd prcetexta
of a liberal tendency, as, for example, the Cato.
From this period are extant only the 10 tragedies^ of the
philosopher Seneca, of which 8 are complete and 2 incom-
plete. They all take their subjects fh)m Greek mythology, and
are composed according to Greek models, but are so rhetori-
cal in their composition that their dramatic character is there-
by lost. Seneca's authorship of these ten plays is not to be
doubted; on the other hand the praetexta Octavia, also
ascribed to him, wherein the fate of the unfortunate wife of
1 T. i. 8. » T. ii. 116; Mer. vii. 30.
a T.ii.32; C.390. * T.ii.49; C.374-
90 ROMAN UTERATURE.
Nero is treated, certainly did not originate with Seneca.
On account of the correctness of the versification and the
abundance of maxims, these tragedies served as models for
the French tragic writers, Comeille, Racine, and others. An
unfinished tragedy of Lucan is mentioned.
Z».— The Epos.
This was partly historical and pardy mythological. A
poem by the emperor Nero, entitled Troica^ is cited, from
which, probably, the aAworts *IAtou was taken, which Nero
sung with the accompaniment of the cithara, at the burning
of Rome in the year 64 a.d.
The most important epic poet of this period was M« An-
naeus Lucanus,^ bom 39 a.d., at Corduba in Spain. He
was the nephew of the philosopher Seneca ; was educated at
Rome, and, for a long time, the favorite and panegyrist of
Nero ; afterwards, however, he fell into disfavor, ostensibly
because Nero was jealous of Lucan's fame as a poet.^ For
that reason, he took part in the conspiracy of Piso, an3, after
the discovery of the same, was compelled, in the year 65, to
commit suicide by opening his veins. Of his poems of vari-
ous kinds,* there remains only the Pharsalia^ (incomplete),
in 10 books, which treats of the civil war between Caesar and
Pompey to the time of Caesar's blockade at Alexandria, writ-
ten in a very, one might say, too historical manner,^ and with a
positive and designedly one-sided party bias for Pompey, as
the representative of fi-eedom, for Cato and the Republic.
1 T. ii. 37 ; C. 353. « T. ii. 82 ; C. 359 ; Mer. vi. 235.
8 Tac. XV. 49.
^ He wrote among other things, saturnalia^ silva^ epigrams^ a tragedy
called Medea ; also prose works. ^ C. 361.
^ Hence it is not without value as an historical authority.
FOURTH PERIOD. 9I
As a zealous Stoic, the poet exhibits an honorable, but
somewhat fickle disposition, and a talent, strong and fresh,
but, on account of his youth, not as yet possessing requisite
moderation, and not trained, to a full and even sense of form.*
Pathetic speeches and descriptions are quite too prominent
The finest portions are the characterizations of different per-
sons, as of Porapey and Caesar,^ and of Cato Uticensis.^ The
defects of the work were correctly apprehended by the
andents.^
Besides Lucan the following epic writers are worthy of
mention : C. Valerius Flaccus,* who, under Vespasian,
wrote 8'books entitled ArgonauUca^ after the model of Apol-
lonius Rhodius, correct in form, but in a style diffuse, de*
clamatory, often artificial and obscure.
C. Silius Italicus,^ who was bom 25 a.d., was consul in
68, and lived afterwards in the most enjoyable circumstances
in Campania as a man of wealth ; but in loi, on account of
some bodily suffering, he died a voluntary death by starvation.
An ardent admirer of Virgil, but possessing only ordinary
ability, Silius wrote an epic poem, in 1 7 books, entitied Pu*
nica, which contains an account of the Second Punic War
up to-the triumph of Scipio, with servile imitation of Homer
and Virgil in style, and with a close following of Livy^ in
subject-matter.
P. Papinius Statius^ was bom about 45 a.d. at Naples,
and died about 96. He was a flatterer and freedman of Do-
1 C. 364. « i. 129-150. 8 ii. 380-391.
* Thus Quintilian (Inst. Orat. x. i, 90) says : Lucanus ardens et conci-
tatus et sententiis clarissimus et magis oratoribus quam poetis imitandus ;
and Servius, in a note on Virgil {Mn, i. 382) : Lucanus videtur historiam
composuisse non poema.
* C. 419; T. ii. 114. « T. ii. 120; C. 421 ; Men vii.'222.
7 Maiore cura quam ingenio^ as Pliny says, Epp. iii. 7,
8 T. ii IS3; C. 423 ; Mer. vii. 229 ; Con. i. 348.
99 ROMAN LITERATURE.
initian, and wrote, besides an unfinished AchiUeis in i J books,
a Thebais, in which the legend of Eteocles and Polynices is
treated in a diffuse, florid, and artificial style, full of mytho-
logical learning. The Silva^ as corresponding to the nature
of the poet, which was suited to light versification, are far
more successful and enjoyable. These consist of 32 occa-
sional poems, in 5 books, which were thrown off in careless
style,^ and which treat of deaths, births, partings, the eques-
trian statue of Domitian, and the like, for the most part in
epic metre, partly, also, in Alcaic, Sapphic, and Phalaecian
(pendecasyllabic) metres.
Numerous attempts were made in the department of the
Didactic Epos, as for example, by Germanicus,^ the son
of Drusus, who translated, with tolerable skill, the Pheno-
mena of Aratus of SoU, an astronomical text-book ; perhaps
also by Caesius Bassus,^ a friend of Persius, and editor
of his Satires, to whom a didactic poem entitied de metris is
ascribed; furthermore, in the time of Nero originated a
poem entitled /Etna, which treats of volcanoes, and which,
made up of 645 correct hexameters, maintains a somewhat
dry tone, and, in contrast to the popular belief, assumes a
rationalistic standpoint in regard to myths. The author is
supposed to be Lucilius Junior,* who was imperial pro-
curator in Sicily, and is known through his correspondence
with Seneca.
c. — Satire and Fable.
Satire had, indeed, in this period, a rich and even abun-
dant material at its service, but it could not venture upon the
1 In contrast with the Thebais, a work of twelve years.
a T.ii.9; C.349. « T.ii.87, €.356. * T.ii.9S; C.372.
FOURTH PERIOD. 93
political arena so long as the imperial despotism continued,*
and it was obliged, therefore, to confine itself to literary and
certain social matters. Not until the time of Trajan was
the Satire allowed a greater freedom. Under tlie pressure
of despotism, it assumed a bitter and crabbed tone, as in
the cases of Persius and Juvenal ; Petronius alone did not
suffer his good humor to be disturbed.
The chief representatives of the Satire are given below.
A. Persius Flaccus^ was bom 34 a.d., at Volaterrae
in Etruria, and educated at Rome, especially by the Stoic,
Annseus Gomutus. He lived only till the year 62. He
possessed a morally pure mind and manner of life, was
inspired witli the Stoic ideal of virtue, and hence was at
variance with the spirit of his times ; but he lacked vivid
poetic endowment and an adequate knowledge of life and
reality. Persius wrote Satires which, indeed (at least, the
first, in which the poetical standpoint of the author is set
forth), are not without life, but which are, on the whole,
only theoretical treatises on Stoic doctrines; for example,
Sat IV discusses self-knowledge; V, the true freedom of
the wise man, i.e., of the Stoic ; VI, life according to nature.
On account of their obscure sententiousness and concise-
ness of language, their forced metaphors and looseness of
development and connection, the Satires of Persius are
very difficult of comprehension; still, they were admired
even in antiquity on account of their ethical tendency, and
were much read, especially m the Middle Ages.
The philosopher, Seneca, wrote a political Satire 3 entitled
ludus de morte Claudii (also called Apocolocyntosis,-—\x^x&-
1 Only against the emperor Claudius did Seneca feel himself permitted
to direct his Apocolocyntosis,
* T. ii. 79; C. 355: Mer. vi. 233; Conington's Persius : Introd.
• C. 377 ; T. ii. 47 ; Mer. v. 463.
94 ROMAN LITERATURE.
formation into a pumpkin), in which he again took up the
form of the Satura Menippea (see p. 4S) . This is a venomous
Satire on the apotheosis of the weak-minded emperor Clau-
dius, by whom Seneca was banished to Corsica in the year 41.
Claudius is compelled to throw dice in Heaven, always with
a goblet that has no bottom, so that the dice constantly fall
through ; he is then given over to Caligula as a slave and
spy, and finally to Menander, a freedman of -^acus. In
comparison with Claudius, Nero is extolled.
The satirical romana of Petronius Arbiter ^ (originally
consisting of 20 books) had also the form and character of
the Satura Menippea. Of this work, however, only a series of
fragments remains, in particular the cena Trimalchionis^ a
description of a feast in the house of an enormously wealthy
upstart, who, though of very plebeian manners, and utterly
lacking in taste and culture, yet makes a foolish exhibition
of himself 2 with disgusting boastfulness. The scene of the
story is laid in Lower Italy ; the story itself is put in the
mouth of different persons, especially of the freedman En-
colpius, and hence the language varies according to the
grade of culture of the speaker. The work abounds in crude
and often very coarse elements ; is, however, full of spirit
and wit, and highly interesting as giving a knowledge of the
moral and social condition of the times, as well as of the
colloquial language, especially of the lower classes. Accord-
ing to the description of Petronius' character, as given by
Tacitus, it is, perhaps, not improbable that the author is
identical with the C. Petronius who, according to Tacitus,^
was the confidant and maitre de plaisir of the emperor
Nero, and was compelled by him to commit suicide in 66
1 T. ii. 88 ; C. 394 ; Mer. vi. 164. « Ann. rvi. 17, seq.
3 Putidissima jactatio, Petr. § 73.
FOURTH PERIOD. 95
A.I). It iS; however, more certain that the work was com*
posed in the time of Nero.
The most important satirist of this period is Dec. Junius
Juvenalis, who was bom at Aquinum (about the year
50?), received rhetorical instruction at Rome, was, for a
time, advocate, and also tribunus militum in Britain under
Domitian, was banished in extreme old age, probably under
Hadrian, either to Egypt or Britain, ostensibly on account
of an allusion to a favorite of the Emperor in Sat. VII, 90.
It is probable that he died in exile.
Of Juvenal we have i6 Satires'^ in 5 books, arranged ac-
cording to the time of their composition, which, though not
written until the time of Trajan and Hadrian, treat almost
entirely, so far as matters are not considered which pertain
to man in general, of Romans and Roman affairs under the
reign of Domitian.
Juvenal's satire ^ is an outcome of Domitian's reign of ter-
ror. The poet expresses his feeling in I, 89 : facit indig-
natio versum, — his indignation makes him a poet. In
consequence of what he has experienced and felt, he is a
pessimist in his view of mankind ; a nihilist, in respect to re-
ligion ; as a delineator of customs and as a poet, a realist,
and the last, indeed, to an extreme. He portrays in its most
naked hideousness the vicious society of his time, — so
vicious as boldly to flaunt its vice, — with a rhetorical
pathos of delineation reaching to the offensive and disgust-
ing j yet the language is for the most part forcible, drastic,
and moving, though sometimes difficult to understand.
The later satires ^ have a less passionate, more languid tone
than the earlier, a fact which is explained by the increasing
1 T.ii,i56; 0,442; Macleane's Commentary : Introd.; Mayor's Juvenal.
* C.445; Mer. vii. 228, 273. « Mer, vii. 376,
96 ROMAN LITERATURE.
age of the poet, but which has given occasion to critics^
for groundless and untenable doubts as to the genuineness
of Satires X, XII-XV, and separate parts of other satires.
The most interesting satires are : I, the standpoint of the
poet ; III, the disagreeable features of life in the metropolis ;
.IV, an anecdote from Domitian's time; V, the misery of
clients; VII, the position of literary men.
The Fable, styled by Seneca ^ intemptatum Romanis
ingeniis opus, was first treated as a special kind of poetry
by Phaedrus,^ of whom nothing Is known except that he
was a native of Pieria, that he came to Rome as a slave, was
set free by Augustus, and was persecuted under Tiberius on
account of some offensive verses.
His 92 fables of animals, for the most part imitated from
iEsop, and written in iambic trimeter, form 5 books. Some
anecdotes are intermingled with them. They have for their
object the moral improvement of the reader, yet, at the
same time, they preserve a sprightly tone.* They are, on
the whole, metrically correct, and written in fluent, if not
(especially in. the later books) quite pure, language. Whether
the fables contained in the appendix are to be ascribed to
Phaedrus is doubtful.
d.— Lyric Poetry and £]pie:raxn.
Lyric Poetry was represented in this period by no im-
portant production, although the preparation of lyric poems
accordhig to set rule and pattern was a very common occu-
1 Among them, O. Ribbeck.
* Consol. ad Polyb. 8, 27.
• T. ii. 3a; C. 349; Mer. v. 262.
4 Cf. prolog, to Lib. I : duplex libelli dos est : quod risum moyet et quod
prudenti vitam oonsilio monet.
FOURTH PERIOD. 97
pation, SO that many persons considered it a duty, from time
to time, perhaps every day, to produce something in verse.
Quintilian^ mentions Caesius Bassus, the friend of
Persius (see p. 92) as a lync poet. Among the best lyrics
belong the stVva of Statius^ (see p. 91). Erotic poems
were written by Arruntius Stella,^ a friend of Statins, and
Sulpicia,^ the wife of Calenus, to whom is ascribed, also, a
satire which is, without doubt, of later origin, and has often
been appended to the works of Ausonius or Juvenal.
On the other hand, the Epigram found skilful treatment
at the hands of M. Valerius Martialis,^ who, born at
Bilbilis in Spain about the year 40, lived chiefly at Rome in
limited circumstances, although he was rewarded by Domi-
tian for his flatteries with the jus trium liberorum and the
office of tribune. About the year 98 he returned to Bilbilis,
received an estate there as a present from a domina Mar-
cella, and died in the year 102, probably at the same place.
His epigrams,^ 1555 in all, in 14 books, together with a
Uber spectaculorum^ are partly mere mottoes for presents''^ at
the Saturnalia, and partly real epigrams with a designed
point at the close, in which the whole effect lies. They are
written in elegiac, phalsecian, and choliambic metres. Mar-
tial had a remarkable gift for seizing upon the ridiculous
and piquant, and also upon the common, the ugly, and
the obscene, and combining them into a short poem
with endless wit and surprising turns of thought.^ Les-
sing says of him : " Only a few have made so many epi-
^ Inst. Orat. x. i, 96. * C. 434.
« T. ii. ia6; C. 424. » C. 429.
«T.u. 133; C.425.
• T. ii. X28 ; Paley and Stone's Commentary : Introd.
7 For example, liber XIII, xenia and I^r XIV, t^opkoreku
s C. 432 ; Mer. vii. 231 : Con. i. 429.
98 ROMAN LITERATURE.
grams as Martial, and no one has made, among so many, sq
many good ones, and so many really excellent ones." Un-
fortunately, the enjoyment is not seldom destroyed for the
respectable reader, both by the abjectness of mind with
which Martial celebrates, importunes, and glorifies his patrons,
especially Domitian, and by the ruthless wounding of the
moral sense, of which he himself is well aware. The former
is not justified by the poverty of his condition, nor is the latter
sufficiently excused by an appeal to the taste of the public,
the demands and pet fancies of his patrons, or the precedent
of other poets aud his own pure manner of life,
n. PROSE,
a.— History.
An objective apprehension, and representation of the
present and the immediate past (up to the last period
of the Republic) necessarily became lost in the century
of despotism ; partly in consequence of the unlimited flat-
tery, partly on account of hatred toward the government.^
The free-thinking and free^writing historians could find nq
place under the Julian dynasty and Domitian.. A. Cre-?
tnutius Cordus^ was forced to commit suicide under Ti-
berius. His annalesy which treated in a liber^il manner of the
close of the Republic, were ordered by the enslaved senate
to be burned, and yet they were widely circulated and read.^
The portrayal of their own times was undertaken, for the
most part, by the rulers themselves. Not only Augustus,
but also Tiberius, Claudius,^ and his wife,, the younger
1 Libidine assentandi vel odio achrersus domlnantes. Tac Hist. i. z.
« T. iL- IS J C. 349; Mer. v. 183.
« Cf. Tae. Ann. iv. 34, seq. * T. tt. 9, 3d; Q, 352.
FOURTH PERIOD. 99
Agprippina, and later, Vespasian^ wrote commentaries.
Aufidius Bassus wrote, under Tiberius, a history of the
civil wars and the war against the Germans; the elder
Pliny continued this work, writing 20 books bellorum Ger^
mania and 31 books a fine Aufidii Bassi. Also Fabius
Rusticus,^ who seems to have been still living in the year
108, and Cluvius Rufus wrote the history of their time.
All these works have been lost. The following, however,
have been preserved: —
Velleius Paterculus, tribunns mjlitum beginning with
the year i A.D., served under the command of Tiberius in
Germany, and was made praetor on his recommendation.
The year of his death is unknown^ He wrote historic Ro-
mans ad M. Vinicium cons. (a. 30) tibri II? The introduc-
tion to the first book, and the time fix)m the rape of the
Sabine women to the war with Perseus of Macedonia, have
been lost. Velleius begins with the earliest history, which,
however, he throws off very summarily, paying special atten-
tion to the chronology. Afterwards the narrative becomes
constantly more diffuse, only at last to empty itself into a sea
of immoderate and verbose glorification of Tiberius. There
is a lack of exhaustive preparatory study, the apprehension
and choice of material is subjective and dilettant, induced
more by interest in persons (as when he comes to speak of
his commander in the war) than in things. The style is far-
fetched, often inflated to the panegyric tone of the court,
with an artificiality far removed firom good taste. But at the
same time evidences of sound judgment often appear, and
there is no lack of apt and drastic characterizations.^
1 T. ii. 100. * T. ii. 109. • T. ii. 17; C. 344; Mer. v. 230.
^ For example^ that of C. Marius, ii. xz ; of Mithridktes of Pontos, ii. z8 ;
of Pompcgr^ n.. 99; of Cato Ulicciisi% n. 35 ; of Caesar, ii« 41, and of others.
lOO ROMAN LITERATURE.
Valerius Maximus^ was not an historian but only a
compiler of notes and anecdotes. He wrote, under Tiberius,
factorum et dictorum memorabilium libri IX, of which two
compendia from the fifth and seventh centuries are extant.
They were probably written as a collection of models for
rhetoricians, and for the purpose of earning money. The
examples, taken alternately from Roman and foreign history,
are arranged according to certain topics, as de religione, de
miraculis ; according to the different virtues and vices, and
the like. The treatment is in the highest degree lacking in
judgment and taste, frequently even nonsensical and childish,
while the style is often absurdly sprawling and needlessly
pathetic. In addition to this, there occasionally appears
disgusting flattery of the imperial family. At the most,
some value can be ascribed to the compilation for the
material it contains, though it is much too uncritical
and rhetorical to be able to serve as a reliable historical
authority.
Q. Curtius Rufus,^ probably a rhetorician, wrote histo-
ria Alexandn Magni libri X (of which I and II have been
lost), with close dependence upon the existing authorities,
especially the Alexandrian Clitarchus. The common ac-
ceptation now is, that he wrote at the beginning of the reign
of Claudius,^ though by some he is placed under Augustus
or Vespasian.
Curtius exhibits no great historical sense, and, indeed,
little understanding of military affairs. Only the good
fortune of Alexander is made prominent, while his impor-
tance as a statesman is not recognized. The book was
intended to furnish entertaining reading, for which reason
1 T. ii. flo; C. 346. « T. ii. 54; C. 392.
s The passage, x. 9, 3-6, accords best with that supposition.
FOURTH PERIOD. lOI
special stress is laid upon what is wonderful^ full of adven-
ture, and exciting to the imagination.
As regards style, the imitation of Livy is very evident in
the choice of words and phraseology. Still, the periodic
sentences of Livy are, for the most part, broken up into the
short, disconnected sentences with poetic coloring which
were suited to the taste of that time.
Finally, Curtius is skilled in dramatic grouping and effec-
tive delineation ; especially the speeches are prepared with
careful attention to rhetorical rules.
Cornelius Tacitus,^ bom of a family of note, probably
not after the year 54, excels all other historianjs either of this
or of any former period. The conclusion that Interamna
(now Temi) in Umbria was his birthplace has been drawn
from the fact that the emperor Tacitus, who had the his-
torian's works carefully collected, was a native of that place.
But this does not prove that Tacitus was really bom there
any more than the fact that the citizens of Temi had a
monument erected to him in the year 15 14.
Tacitus pursued rhetorical studies at Rome under Marcus
Aper, lulius Secundus, perhaps, also, under Quintilian ; mar-
ried, in the year 78, the daughter of lulius Agricola ; filled
the ordinary offices up to the praetorship under Vespasian,
Titus, and Domitian ; was absent from Rome (as ambassa-
dor?) in the year 90 and after; became consul under
Nerva in the year 97, and died, probably in the beginning of
Hadrian's reign.
His writings, arranged in chronological order, are the fol-
lowing : —
I. Dialogus de oratoribus^ a dialogue on the decline of
oratory in the time of the emperors, which is represented as
1 Schlegel : Hist of Lit. 76; C. 449. « T. ii. 172; C. 4Sa
102 ROMAN LITERATURE.
occnxring in the year 75, and in which Cniiatios Matemus^
M. Aper, lulius Secundus, and Vipstanos Messala appear as
the speakers. This dialogue was written under Domitian,
and was denied by many to be the work of Tacitus on ac-
count of its style^ which, in imitation of Cicero, was somewhat
diffuse and florid. But the whole spirit of the production
points unmistakably to Tacitus.
2. De vita et moribus lulii Agricola} written in 97 or 98,
a biography of the father-in-law of Tacitus, who was gover-
nor of Britain from 78-85, and who, having been recalled by
Domitian, in spite of, or rather on account of his famous
deeds, died under the suspicion of poisoning, in the year 93.
The biography is not really a laudatio, but is a work rhetori*
cal in style, written in loving remembrance of Agricola.
3. Germania^ (also de situ, moridus €t popuKs Germaniai\
probably written in 98, and intended primarily to be simply a
monographic study for a larger historical work, perhaps (if
it be true that Tacitus was in Germany as an ambassador)
founded upon what he himself had seen. In contrast
to the corrupt condition of things at Rome, he pictures
the freedom and spontaneous morality of the Germans in
an ideal light, although the satirical purpose of the work
may not be looked upon as the chief one. The first part
(c. 1-27) treats in commune de omnium Germanorum ori-
gine ac moribus ; the second (c. 28-46) of the separate
tribes, in geographical order. This work is the chief author-
ity in all ancient literature for our knowledge of the ancient
Germans.
4. Histories? originally consisting of 14 books, of which,
however, only Books I-IV and a part of Book V have been
1 T. ii. 174; C. 451. * T. il 177.
• T. ii. 181 ; C. 45a; Mer. vi. 37a, vii. fl36.
rOURTM P£RtOa 103
preserved. *rhe work contained an account of the period
from G«dba to the death of Domitian (69-96)* The extant
portion embraces the year 69 and a part of 70* One of the
most interesting parts is the excursus on Palestine and the
Jews.* The work was composed under Trajan.
5. AfiHales^ (mote accurately, ab €xcessu Divi AugusH
liber) ^ in 16 books, of which, however) only Books I-IV and
XII-XV have been preserved entire, V, VI, XI, and XVI in
incomplete form. The work was a history of the Julian
dynasty from the death of Augustus to that of Nero, to which
the Hist&Htse formed the chronological continuation. The
years ^9-31, 31^7, embracing, among other things, the en-
tire reign of Caligula, are wanting; also, 66-68. The work
was written between 115 and 117. The arrangement, though
annalistic in design, still often allows the events of several
years, when related to each other, to be brought togetlier in
the narration.
A projected account of the time of Augustus, to be fol-
lowed by a history of the reigns of Nerva and Trajan, was
never written by Tacitus.
Tacitus writes on the basis of a careful and exhaustive
study of the authorities.^ These were partly oral traditions,
partly older documents and writings, such as the acta
diumay and perhaps also the acta senatus, various memoirs,
as those of the younger Agrippina, the historical works of
Cluvius Rufus, the elder Pliny, and others. He strives
earnestly to proceed in a critical and impartial way,* but
from the ojntset he holds firmly to the political opinion that
1 V. i, seqq.
* T. ii. 183 ; C. 453 ; Frost's commentary on the Annals ; Nipperdcy's
Annals, ttanslated by Browne.
« T. ii. 163 ; C. 455 ; Men vii. 938.
^ Sine ira et studio, Ann. i. x ; fides incomipta. Hist i. z.
I04 ROMAN LITERATURE.
the rule of the senate during the good old times of the
Republic was the ideal one, and that the rule of the emper-
ors is a necessary evil. Politically, therefore, he is a pro-
nounced aristocrat and an admirer of the Republic. True,
being hard pressed, he makes so much concession to the
actual state of things, as to assume the position of resigna-
tion and reluctant recognition, yet he is so thoroughly
embittered by despotism, and that, too, the despotism of a
Domitian, under whose bloody suspicion his own relatives
had to suffer, that only under the reign of a Nerva does he
reluctantly acknowledge the union of Ubertas zxAprincipatus,
Accordingly, there may be seen under all that he writes this
bitter humor,^ which causes him to doubt even concerning
the government of the gods, and leads sometimes to one-
sided and hypercritical judgments.^
On the whole, however, Tactius earnestly endeavors to
give a really adequate account by means of a thorough in-
vestigation and portrayal of the causes and rationesy the ex-
ternal and internal causes and reasons of things ; ^ in which
attempt he displays a perfect mastery in psychological
analysis and in characterization, above all in the history of
Tiberius.** A fixed pliilosophical way of looking at things,
taken from an existing system, Tacitus does not have.
Moreover his religious views are not entirely settled and
logical. He is sometimes inclined, in view of what he is
compelled to see and hear, entirely to discard the thought
of a divine government of the world, yet fatalistic touches
1 Mer. vii. 274.
* This has led recent writers, especially Adolf Stahr, to the much more*
one-sided and partizan assertion that Tacitus is an uncritical, prejudiced
writer, nay, even malicious, and a wilful distorter of the truth ; and that he
has in manifold ways knowingly corrupted history, with aristocratic crab-
bedness, especially in his account of Tiberius.
s Mer. vii. 234. ^ Ann. i.-VL
FOURTH PERIOD. 105
occasionally appear in spite of the psychological and objec-
tive design.
The style 1 of Tacitus still bears in the first work {Diaiogus)
a Ciceronian imprint, reminds one distinctly of Sallust in the
second and third {Agricola and Germania), but he rises in
the fourth and fifth {Historic^ and Annales) to a fiiU inde-
pendence. Tacitus is earnest, stately, and solemn (o-cfivos),
full of conscious gravity as an aristocrat, never swept away
into a passionate tone, ponderous in thought, and compact
in style. By his conciseness he arouses thought and imagi-
nation ; he avoids the common and low, and is attracted by
the extraordinary.
ft.— Oratory.
In this period, as in the previous one, there was no lack
of rhetorically educated men, some of whom were also active
in literary work, and published orations; there were want-
ing, however, fi*eedom and opportunity, courage and appre-
ciation for public firee speech. Oratory was carefully confined
to the senate arid the courts of the Centumviri (civil courts),
which had nothing to do with politics \ it was, therefore, in-
evitable that oratory should fall more and more into disuse.^
The rhetorical exercises of the schools were, therefore, all
the more eagerly pursued, in which the entire stress was laid
upon form, expression, and style, upon ingenious and ele-
gant turns of expression, upon witty and subtle conceits,
figures, and contrasts, — in short upon everything that could
1 C. 454; Frost's Annals of Tacitus: Life, etc.; Bfitticher's Essay in
Smith's Tacitus.
2 This decline, most intimately connected with the political develop-
ment, and the contrast between the old and the new oratory, are treated by
Tacitus, dial de orat T. i. 385 ; C. 246.
Io6 ROMAN LITERATURE.
y
produce a momentary effect.* The subject-matter of these
rhetorical exercises can be seen from the work of the elder
Annseus Seneca,^ which is a very valuable contribution
to the history of oratory, and is entitled oratorum et rhetorum
sententicB, divisiones, coiores. This work, which was written
not long before his death at the request of his son, contained
lo books of contraversia, of which about half are preserved
entire, and the rest in a compendium of later date ; also one
book of suasoricR, essays upon subjects discussed in the
schools. The task was zealously undertaken by the author,
in reliance upon his extraordinary power of memory, but in
the course of his work, he himself became disgusted with it,
— a sign of his good sense.
The most important rhetorician of this period, however,
was M. Fabius Quintilianus,^ bom at Calagurris in
Spain, probably while Tiberius was still on the throne ; he
was appointed by Vespasian as the first salaried teacher of
rhetoric in Rome, an office which he filled for twenty years ;
he was afterwards called by Domitian to be the tutor of his
grand-nephew, received the honors of a consul, and died
about the year 98.
He was a man of noble and benevolent disposition, com-
prehensive learning, and cultivated and temperate judgment
The only one of his writings that has been preserved is a
work written after he had retired from the office of a public
teacher. It is in 12 books, entitied insHiuiio oraioria, a
complete introduction to the study of oratory, in which,
contrary to the corrupt fashionable tone of his contempora^
i T. ii. 7.
3 Father of the philosopher, and a native of Corduba in Spain ; he lived
from about 54 B.C. to 40 A.D., mostly in Rome. T. i. 544 ; C 321 ; Mer.
iv. 439.
• T. ii. 320 ; C. 407 ; Mer. vii. 225.
FOURTH PERIOD. I07
ries (in particular of the philosopher Seneca), the writer sees
in the older orators, especially Cicero, the ideal of an orator.
Book I treats of the preparatory grammatical studies ; II, of
the elements and essence of rhetoric ; III-VII, of inventio
and dispositio; VIII-XI, of elocutio^ together with numoria
and pronuntiatio ; XII describes the finished orator. The
tenth book is especially interesting, since it contains a parallel
view and characterization of the most important Greek and
Roman poets and prose authors.
One of the most learned pupils of Quintilian was C.
Plinius Caecilius Secundus,^ commonly called the
younger Pliny. He was bom at Novum Comum (Como)
in the year 62, became consul in the year 100, was gov-
ernor of Bith)aiia iii-n2, and died, doubtless soon after
his return to Rome.
He was an advocate of very wide practice. Of his
speeches we still possess the panegyricus^ a eulogy on
Trajan in return for the gift of the consulship. The speech
is much injured by the strongly-exaggerated praise which
it contains, the pompous studiedness of its style, and its
diffuse rhetoric. Much more attractive and interesting are
his Epistul(t? in 9 Books,* which he wrote with a view
to publication during the years 96-109,* and afterwards
actually published. These letters, from the fact that they
were intended for publication, come very far, it is true,
from making the fresh impression of immediateness char-
acteristic of Cicero's letters ; one sees clearly that the smooth,
uniform style is not a product of the moment ; yet they give
us a very valuable and varied picture of that period, espe-
1 T. ii. 187; C. 437. a T. ii. 192; Mer. vii. 439.
• T. ii. 190 ; C. 439 ; Mer. vii. 250 ; Church andBrodribb's Pliny : Introd*
^ Exclusive of his correspondence with Trajan.
'Possibly 96-zzz or zxd.
I08 ROMAN LITERATURE.
daily of the often frivolous literary activity, and show us
the writer as a man not at all genial, in'deed, and even vain
and pedantic, yet well-meaning, and humane even to tender-
ness, very eager to learn and to know, interesting himself in
everything, striving sincerely for the good and the beautiful.
A separate book is formed by the correspondence between
Trajan and Pliny, during the governorship of the latter in
Bithynia, in which, especially, the letters (96, 97) relating to
the treatment of the Christians are valuable. Book VI, 16,
contains a description of the eruption of Vesuvius in the
year 79.
Concerning Tac. dialogus de oratoribus^ see p. loi,
c — Philosophy.
Philosophy found in this period, as in the preceding one,
not a few disciples. They were, however, for the most part,
dilettanti, who treated philosophical subjects without exhaust-
ive study and without logical system. The majority in these
troublous times inclined to Stoicism, especially men who were
opposed to the government.^ At the same time, exaggera-
tion and ostentation were sometimes carried to extremes.
The great number of Greek philosophers who flooded Rome
brought philosophy into disrepute, and caused Vespasian and
Domitian to banish them from Italy.
By far the most important philosophical writer is L».
Annaeus Seneca,^ bom about the year 4 a.d. at Corduba
in Spain, son of Seneca the rhetorician (see p. 106). He
was educated at Rome, became senator, was banished by
Claudius to Corsica in the year 41 at the instigation of
Messalina, was recalled in the year 49 at the request of
1 For example, Paetus Thrasea, Lucan, Persius, Helvidius Priscus, and
others. 2 t. ii. 40 ; C. 378 ; Rilter, iv. 174 ; Farrar : Seekers after God.
FOURTH PERIOD. IO9
Agrippina, became tutor of Nero, was consul in 57, and,
in the year 65, was compelled by Nero to commit suicide
by opening his veins in a bath, on a charge of participa-
tion in the conspiracy of Piso.
Not always living up to the teachings of the Stoa,^ to
which he subscribed in the main, and free, neither in his
life nor in his writings, from vanity and striving after effect,
Seneca nevertheless sought as far as possible to exercise a
healthful influence, and showed not only a rare versatility
of talent, an uncommon wealth of thought, a fine faculty
of observation, and a sound, practical mind, keeping itself'
free from the exaggerations of the Stoics, but also, for that
time and society, a surprising loftiness of moral view,^ in
which he outstrips his time, inasmuch as he both abandons
that which is specifically Roman and adopts a cosmopolitan
humanity; for which reason. Christian tradition has even
made him a Christian and a friend of the apostle Paul.
Seneca's style,^ the antipodes of the Ciceronian,^ is forced
and ornamental, according to the taste of the period. It
moves, for the most part, in brief, disconnected, and often
paradoxical sentences and phrases and piquant antitheses.
The same thought is forever varied, ingeniously indeed, but
not seldom to weariness.
Of Seneca's writings, which are preserved only in part,
some are poetical,^ some prosaic, and some of the latter,
1 This is shown by the fact that he had great wealth, was indulgent
toward Nero's sensuality (of necessity, it is trae, and to avoid something
worse), and that he excused the murder of Agrippina.
2 C. 382 ; Mer. vi. 112, 231 ; Ritter, iv. 180.
» T. ii. 42; C. 390; Mer. vii. 225; Ritter, iv. 175.
4 According to Quintilian, Inst. Orat. x. 1, 129 : abundans dulcibus vitiis,
and according to Caligula's correct comparison, Suet. Calig. 53: arena
sine calce,
6 Traj^ceduB (see p. 89). Also a part of the Apocohcyntosis (see p. 93)
is in poetry.
no ROMAN LITERATURE.
again, relate to natural science,^ and some to morak.^ Of
most general interest are the 124 Epistula, ad Lucilium^
(see p. 92), written, like Pliny's epistles, with a view to pub-
lication ; they are, in reality, popular treatises, containing an
abundance of apt observations and rules of morals, as well as
many characteristic features of life at that time. A corre-
spondence with the apostle Paul (14 letters), ascribed to
Seneca* by the church-father Hieronymus (about 400), is not
genuine, but rests on the correct perception that the moral
views of Seneca are often allied to those of Christianity in
a surprising degree.
cf.— Special Scienced.
The most important points respecting the special sciences
in this period are the following : —
In Law» Capito (see p* 84) was followed by Masurius
Sabinus,^ who lived from Tiberius to Nero, and was the
author of a much commentated work,.//^r» /// iuris civilis*
Labeo was followed by the somewhat later Sempronius
Proculus. The two schools were commonly called, after
these men, the Sabinian^ and the Proculian.^ Both schools
had distinguished literary representatives.
The Science of Language became more and more an
object of study in connection with Rhetoric. Many of the
emperors took a lively interest in it. Claudius had under
consideration a reform of the alphabet, and wished to intro-
1 Naturales quastioms libri III, used as a text-book in physics in the
Middle Ages.
2 For example, de irA Hbri III, de beneficiis libri VII, Several c<ms$la-
Honts, de tranquillitaii animi, and others. T. il. 46 ;. C. 379.
» T. ii. 45 ; C. 385. * T. ii. 48 ; C. 386 ; Mer. vi. 230. * T* ii. 27*
9 Also Cassian, from Casslus Longinus, a pupil of Sabinius#
7 Hftdley's Introd. to ftoman Law, 63.
FOURTH PERIOD. Ill
duce three new letters.^ Vespasian appointed Quintilian as
teacher of philology.
The following writers were distinguished as gramma-
rians and commentators:--^
Q. Remmius Palaemo,^ from Vicenza, the author (un-
der Claudius) of a, grammar which was much us^d ; Q. As-
conius Pedianus,^ who wrote under Claudius, Nero, and
Vespasian, and from whom we have commentaries on five
of Cicero's orations (among them, pro Miione), containing
valuable material, but not preserved entire; M. Valerius
Probus* of Berytus, about the year 60, a critical commen-
tator, especially of the Roman classic poets ; under Domi-
tian, ^milius Asper ; * under Trajan, Flavius Caper ^
and Velius Lrongus, from both of whom works de ortho-
graphiadx^ preserved.
Among mathematical writers, the land surveyors,
agrimensores, or gromatici,^ are worthy of special mention.
Of these the most distinguished were Sex. lulius Fron-
tinus® and Hyginus.^ Frontinus, bom about the year 40,
was consul three times, served as general in Gaul, Britain,
and Germany, was curator aquarum in 67^ and died about
103. Of his works on surveying only extracts are pre-
served. As curator aquarum he wrote a work entitled de
aquis urbis Roma Ubri II, which is valuable for the infor-
mation it contains. Hyginus wrote under Trajan a work
on surveying which has been preserved only in fragments.
Both were also writers on military subjects, Frontinus, as
1 p= consonantal v, D antisigma, for bs axidps, H representing an inter-
mediate sound between i and u, T. ii. 38 ; C. 11.
2 T. ii. 29 ; C. 348. 6 T. ii. aoo ; C. 442.
■ T. ii, 62; C. 393. ' From gromti, a measuring-staff.
* T. ii. 73 ; C. 394. 8 T. ii. 147 ; C. 410.
* T. ii. 151 ; C. 412. * T. ii. 203 ; C. 444.
112 ROMAN LITERATURE.
author of a lost work on tactics, and an extant one oi strate-
gemata (military stratagems) , in 3 books^ together with a
fourth, strategematicay as a supplement ; Hyginus, as author
of a work entitled de munitionibus, and perhaps also of
another, dc iimitibus.
In the department of Geography, may be mentioned
Pomponius Mela,^ from Tingentera in Spain, author of
the oldest Roman description of the world that has come
down to us. He wrote under Claudius, after older written
* authorities, 3 books entitled dc situ orbis (or de chorogra-
phid). To geographical literature belong also, wholly or in
part, the Germania and Agricola of Tacitus, the NaturaUs
QucRstiones of Seneca, and especially Books III-VI of the ,
Naturalis Historia of C. Plinius Secundus^ (the elder
Pliny). He was bom in the year 23 at Novum Comum,
served in the year 45 in Germany, was afterwards imperial
procurator in Spain, was employed by Vespasian as an effi-
cient officer in the financial and marine department, and
perished on the 24th of August, 79, during an eruption of
Vesuvius, as a sacrifice to his scientific zeal.^ . He was the
uncle of the younger Pliny, and the most industrious and
learned man of his time.** Besides his historical works (see
p. 99), and his writings on tactics, grammar, and rhetoric,*
which have not come down to us, he wrote the extant work,
Naturalis Historia^ in 37 books, an encyclopaedia of natural
science, embracing astronomy , geography, anthropology, zool-
ogy, botany, mineralogy, and many departments of medicine.
This encyclopaedia, written with the aid of the works of nearly
1 T. ii. 64, i. 77; C. 394. « Cf. Plin. Epp. vi. 16; Mer. vii. 58.
* T. ii. 102 ; C. 400. * Mer. vi. 187 ; vii. 264.
^ As, for e3cample, ele jaculatione equestri^ dubii sermonjis libri VIIJ,
siudiosi lidri IIL
9 T. i. 7a, ii. 104 ; C. 404 ; Mer. vii. 226.
FOURTH PERIOD. II3
five hundred writers, representing nearly 2000 volumes, is
an exceedingly rich mine of curiosities, and contains almost
everything worth knowing, though, to be sure, it is often
enough crudely put together, and without the critical care
which could be desired. Since an abundance of material
was of foremost importance to the author, the style ^ is, for
the most part, dry, and at times also marked by rhetorical
artificiality. It is lofty in those places where 'the greatness
and majesty of nature and the universe are set forth, though
Pliny stands in opposition to the popular belief in the gods.
Of the encyclopaedic work of Cornelius Celsus,^ writ-
ten in the time of Tiberius, there are still extant 8 books de
tnedicinq (de re medico) ^ including surgery.' In the same
work, the science of war, agriculture, rhetoric, and practi-
cal philosophy wett also treated. Inferior, from a scientific
and literary point of view, is the collection of prescriptions
{compositiones medicamentorum) of Scriboni'us Largus,^
private physician of the emperor Claudius.. Of these pre-
scriptions, 271 are extant.
Agriculture, as such, was treated by ModeFatus Colu-
mella ^ of Gades, a contemporary and countryman of Sen-
eca, in his work de re rustica libri XIL The production
bears witness to the author's technical knowledge, candid
disposition, and good taste. Of this work. Book X, con-
cerning gardening, is written in heroic metre, after the ex-
ample of Virgil, though by no means equal to the model
1 T. ii. 107; C. 406. * T. ii. 60; C. 393.
2T.ii.2S; C.347. *T.l73.u-S7; Cgga.
•T.174,
FIFTH PERIOD.
The Later Empire, ajter the Death of Trajan, 117 a.d.
THIS period is a time of continual decline, both in poli-
' tics and literature.^ The capacity for original and in*
dependent production, which, up to this time, had appeared
at least in individual cases, ceases entirely. In its place, we
find uncertainty, perversity, and dulness of judgment and
taste, a slavish and unintelligent imitation of earlier and es-
pecially archaic writers, an affected and distorted style, an
artificial rhetoric, dressed out with wordy ornamentation, but
wanting any important inner significance answering to the
lavish use of outward means. Instead of independent pro-
duction, there appears a boastful and ostentatious display of
pedantic and often laboriously-gathered knowledge.
The corruption of taste shows itself, especially, in the
archaistic tendency, which places the classic standard authors
below the ante-clasisic writers. The chief representative of
this tendency is the rhetorician Fronto. As a consequence
of the intellectual barrenness and tameness, and also of the
persistent advance of Greek sophism and rhetoric, which
found high favor and abundant reward in the cultured
circles,^ poetry comes to occupy a less prominent position
than prose.
The provinces become more and more important in the
1 T. ii. aos, 337.
3 Especially with a number of the emperors, as Hadrian, Antoninus Pius,
and Marcus Aurelius.
114
FIFTH PERIOD. Ilj
department of literature. A number of writers, especially
Christian writers, spring up in Africa. Their latinity is char-
acterized by a want of logical accuracy, by intemperateness
of expression, rhetorical overloading, and an arbitrary con-
struction of words and sentences. ' Moreover, Gaul, expe-
cially Lugdunujp (Lyon), becomes an important seat of
rhetorical instruction.
Whereas the earlier emperors of this period, as Hadrian
and Marcus Aurelius, and also Alexander Severus, took a
lively interest in literature, it was compelled, in consequence
of the political confusion of the third century, to retire into
the background.
Not until after the triumph of Christianity, and the recon-
struction of the empire by Constantine the Great, did more
important writers. Christian as well as Pagan, appear. Mean-
while, the specifically Roman character was steadily dying out,
especially since, by the edict of Caracalla, which extended '
the right of Roman citizenship to the provinces, universal
equality was being furthered through the agency of the state.
Literary production took refuge, partly in the bosom of the
Christian church, and thus became the property of the Chris-
tian clergy^ (patristic literature), partly at the court, where,
without free, ideal movement, it was compelled to yield itself
to the service of special, practical ends, particularly the glori-
fication of the emperors (panegyric literature), and the ex-
tension of legal learning. This period, if one considers at
the same time content and form, produced scarcely a writer
of the first or even of the second rank ; on the other hand,
in the special sciences, particularly in the Department of
Jurisprudence, important, and in some respects great and
standard work, was done.
1 T. U. 468.
Il6 ROMAN LITERATURE,
I. POETBT.
a.—Lyrio.
Lyric poetry is represented in this period by only a few
names worthy of mention. Of uncertain date is the Fervigi'
Hum Veneris y^ a glorification of Venus Genetrix and of Spring,
in 93 well-constructed trochaic septenarii. Half lyric, half
epic, are the poems of Dec. Magnus Ausonius^ of
Burdigala (Bordeaux), in Gaul; a poet of fine parts, and es-
pecially successful in the form of his verse. He was a teacher
of the emperor Gratianus, became consul in 379, was convert-
ed to Christianity, yet he made little use of it in his writings ;
and, in his later years, lived under Theodosius I, in his native
place, absorbed in literary pursuits. His poems are very
varied in form and content; epigrams and epistles; poems
on tivin^ and deceased persons ; on emperors and celebrated
cities. His idylls are best known, and among these, the
tenth, entiUed Mosella, a description of a journey on the
Moselle, fi-om Bingen to Trier, in 683 hexameters, charming
on account of the variedness of its contents, and the sensi-
tive appreciation of nature displayed in it.
Among poets specifically Christian, special mention should
be made of Aurelius Prudentius Clemens,^ who was
bom in Spain in 348, was a rhetorician and high official, and
died about the year 410. He composed odes in praise of
the martyrs, and hymns in Horatian metres ; also dogmaticy
polemic y and epic poems.
1 T. ii. 247 ; C. 468.
a T. ii. 385.
« T. ii. 431 ; Trench, 121 ; Schaff : History of the Christian Church, iiu
594: Ozonam : Civilization in the Fifth Century, ii. 196.
,FIFTH PERIOD. I17
5.— Epic,
Epic poetry in this period is partly mythological, partly
employed for panegyrics, — poems in praise of emperors and
other persons in high standing, together with corresponding
depreciation of their opponents. Claudius Claudianus ^ of
Alexandria is, for his time, a brilliant representative of both
styles. He composed, about the year 400, numerous poems,
some on historical subjects^ some on mythological,^ also
epistles^ idylls, and epigrams, mostly in elegiac metre. There
appears everywhere great skill in the treatment of the form,
vivid imagination, extended acquaintance with the classic
poets, and enthusiasm for the greatness of Rome ; but these
excellences are dimmed and injured in their effect by the
insignificance of the material, which the poet endeavors in
vain to conceal and make good by rhetorical exaggeration.
Less important than the pagan Claudianus are the Chris-
tian poets : —
C. Vettius Aquilius luvencus,* Spanish presbyter in
the time of Constantine the Great, and author of a New
Testament History in hexameters; Flavius Merobau-^
des,^ Spanish rhetorician, and author of a poem on Christ,
and of historical poems in praise, especially, of the comman-
der, y£tius ; Apollinaris Sidonius^ (about 430-488),
from Lugdunum, bishop of Clermont, and writer oi panegyrics
an several of 0ie emperors, abounding in pedantic phrase-
1 T. ii. 438; Ozonam, i. 170.
2 For example, poems in praise of the emperor Honorius, and especially
of Stilicho, with attacks upon the minister Rufinus and the eunuch Eutro-
pius in Constantinople. The poems are written without any essential warp-
ing of the facts.
« Three books de rapiu Proserpina.
*T.u.346. «T.ii.490. •T.ii.499.
IlS ROMAN UTBRATURE.
ology; Dracontius^ of Carthage, author of mythologicai
epics J also of a didactic poem, de deo^ and others ; Venan-
tius Fortunatus,^ in the sixth century, bishop of Poitiers,
and writer of an epic in honor of St. Martin of Tours^ and
numerous poems in praise of persons in high standing,
c.--Didactio.
In Didactic and Descriptive Poetry, the following
names are worthy of mention : Nemesianus ' of Carthage
(about 280), writer of a didactic poem on hunting entitled
Cynegetica; Festus Avienus^ (about 370), writer of
poems on astronomical^ historical^ and especially geographi-
cal subjects; particularly, however, Claudius Rutilius
Namatianus,^ a native of Gaul, who was prsefectus urbi
in 414, and who, in 416, described his homeward sea-
voyage from Rome to Gaul® in a charming style, orna-
mented with numerous epHsodes of a descriptive and
personal character. The poet is an enthusiastic adherent
of ancient Rome ^ and the old Pagan religion, and a de-
cided enemy of Jews ® and Christians.^
I T. ii. 519. « T. ii. 563 ; Tt«n<*, 131 ; SchaiT, iii. 595.
« T. ii. 308, 4 T. ii. 38a. « T. ii. 470*
* De reditu suo liiri JI, of whicln the second book has not been pre-
served entire.
I Cf. i. 47-164 ; especially verse 53, seq ;
Obruerint ckiua soelcfata obliria miaa^
Quam tuus ex nostra corde recedat bono*.
and 81, seq :
•>. 397, seq:
» 1.525, seq:
Omnia perpetuo quae servant sidera motu.
Nullum viderunt pulchrius imperium.
Latis excisae pestis- oontagia serpunt
Vktocesque suos natio victa premit.
Non rogo deterior Ctrceia aecta veafOiifiT
Tunc mutabantuc corpora, nanc anim].
FIFTH PERIOIX II9
A collection of Fables, afterwards much used as a
school-book, is that of Avianiis,^ who, about the year 400,
reproduced 42 -^sopian fables in elegiac verse, after the
model of i£sop, Babrius, Phsedrus, and others*
a*— Oratory.
Rhetoric, with Cornelius Pronto® as its most able and
illustrious representative, stood for a long time foremost in
the estimation of the public. Fronto was bom at Cirta in
Africa, lived about 100-175, became consul in 143, was
the teacher and friend of the emperor Marcus Aurelius.
He was affectionate (<^tA<KrTo/»yos) and sincere in disposi-
tion, in his literary efforts and productions the type of a
period spending itself in complacent speechifying. Of his
writings we possess some works on rhetorical sudjects, and
also some letters,^ the latter, for the most part, unimportant
in subject-matter.
Fronto lays all the stress upon rhetoric, to be sure, with
a sincere belief in it alone as a saving power. In respect
to language, Fronto is a worshipper of the most ancient
ante-classical writers and orators, — of Plautus, Ennius,
Cato, C. Gracchus, — and also of Sallust. He recognizes
Cicero with reluctance.* With him, as we have said, the
entire value lies in rhetorical ornamentation (cikovc?, verba
1 T. ii. 462. 2 T. i. 58, ii. 229 ; C, 463 ; Mer. vii. 460.
* Correspondence with Marcus Aurelius, L. Verus» Antoiunss Pius ajidi
Odf «mi^os^ iilso letters in Greek.
* For example, he characterizes the orators thus, ad Verum Imperat:
Contionatur Cato infeste, Gracchus turbuTente, TuHtus copiose ; in judiciis
saevit Cato, trhimphat Cicero» tumultiiatur Gracchus, C^vus rizfttuTi.
I20 ROMAN LITERATURE.
notabilia, deminutiva, and the like). But just this artificial-
ity and corruption of taste seemed to his contemporaries the
highest excellence.
Another distinguished African rhetorician was L. Apu-
leius^ of Madaura, bom about 125, who was, at one time
and another, active in many places as a rhetorician and an
advocate, and was also celebrated as a magician. As a
writer, he was very versatile, productive, and pretentious;
his style is original, full of needless word-coinings and
strange distortions of sentences, bombastic and overloaded,
yet of a drastic vividness and not without pleasing humor.
The best known of his writings is the fantastic romance,
Metamorphoseon libri XI^ which contains the experiences
of a man who was changed by magic arts into an ass,
together with many stories of robbers and necromancy, of
which Thessaly is most frequently the scene, all ending
in the glorification of the Isis mysteries. The whole is imi-
tated from the Aovjcios of Lucian, only it is carried much
further, and changes are made that are not always fortunate.
Books IV-VI contain the well-known (allegoric ?) legend of
Amor and Psyche. Of the remaining writings of Apuleius,
the following deserve to be mentioned : Apologia^ a defence
against the charge of necromancy, written in a comparatively
simple style; and Florida^ an anthology of orations and
declamations.
As a rhetorician of the later time, may be mentioned Q.
Aurelius Symmachus the Younger,^ consul in 391, of
whom we possess 9 orations (not one, however, in complete
form), some of which were delivered in the Senate, and
some were panegyrics on the emperor Valentinian I and Gra-
tian. We also have a collection of epistles in 10 books.
1 T.iL2S7; C469. « T. ii. 261 ; C. 47X. «T.ii.397.
FIFTH PERIOD, 1 21
composed after the model of the younger Pliny, in which the
letters of the tenth book are the most interesting, wherein
Symmachus, in the year 384, intercedes with the emperor
Valentinian JI for the restoration of the altar of Victoria to the
Roman curia, whence it had been removed at the command of
Gratian ; — that is, he interested himself in the maintainance
of heathen worship, — an endeavor which was not successful,
serving only to call out several controversial writings on the
side of the Christi^gis ; ibr example, from Bishop Ambrosius
of Milan.
b.— Philosophy.
Although philosophy was opposed by rhetoricians like
Fronto, yet it was furthered by several emperors, especially
by the Antonines, and in the person of the strict Stoic, Mar-
cus Aurelius,' who wrote in the Greek language la books
oi Self-ExaminaHons {tU avrov), even attained to the im-
perial throne. Nevertheless, it could no longer develop a
strong and healthy life ; it degenerated often into obscure
mysticism and vain love of the marvellous, as in the case of
Apuleius (see p. zso) who wrote philosophical books tie
tnundOf de dio Socratis^ and others.
In Christianity, there grew up against this a new and vig-
orous opponent, which, indeed, often made use of the
weapons of pagan philosophy and rhetoric. By this opposi-
tion many energetic spirits were spurred on to the attempt of
renewing philosophy, among them Anicius Manlius Tor-
quatus Severinus Boetius,^ the son-in-law of Symmachus,
(see p. 120) consul in 510, and executed in 525 at the com-
mand of the Ostrogothic king Theodoric, on the charge of
1 Farrar : Seekers after God, 303 ; Mer. vii. 490; T. L 69.
> T. it. 535 ; MUman's Latin Christianity, i. 443.
122 ROMAN LITERATURE.
traitorous connections with the court of Constantinople. Al-
though a Christian, he was enthusiastic for classical antiquity,
a translator of many works, particularly those of Aristotle.
He wrote mathematical^ grammatical^ and other works, but
he is chiefly known through his de consolationCj composed in
prison, and testifying in somewhat involved, yet easily intelli-
gible language, written alternately in prose and verses of
various metres, to a mind morally refined, permeated much
more by the spirit of ancient philosophy, especially of Plato,
than by that of Christianity. Also, theological writings, as,
for example, a work on the Trinity, are incoirectly ascribed
to Boetius.
c— History.
There were numerous writers of history in this period, but
the freedom of thought and word necessary for a lofty flight
was wanting ; the influence of rhetoric asserted itself in this
department of literature as in all others.^ In place of objec-
tive arrangement and choice of material, of psychological
treatment, of broad and comprehensive views, appeared an
undue attention to what was merely personal, a biographical
treatment of history, with an uncritical preference for the
insignificant and for anecdotes, and an enumeration of
details not seldom amounting to frivolity. The ancient his-
torians were made accessible and enjoyable to the taste of
the public through compendia. With the triumph of Chris-
tianity, historical writing turned its attention more and more
to biblical and ecclesiastical matters.
C. Suetonius Tranquillus,^ bom about the year 75,
wrote a part of his works as far back as the reign of Trajan.
He was a rhetorician and an advocate ; for a long time, also^
1 T. i. 46. « T. u. 210; C. 4S7.
FIFTH PERIOD. 123
private secretary of the emperor Hadrian, who, however,
dismissed him, whereupon he devoted himself to study and
authorship in the most widely-separated departments, history
of civilization, science of language, chronology, and the like.
From his writings^ have been preserved fragments of the
work de viris illustribus, concerning literary celebrities of
Rome up to the time of Domitian ; among these fragments
the intce of Terence and Horace are important, but especially
the vita Caesarum,^ written in 120, consisting of biographies
of the first twelve emperors, from Caesar (the beginning of
whose reign seems, however, to be wanting) to Domitian.
This work is very valuable in subject-matter, carefully com-
posed, with an extensive use of authorities, and a striving
after objectivity. In consequence, however, of the interest
attaching to the subject-matter itself, anecdotes and person-
alities prevail; also things insignificant and low are not
passed by unnoticed, and in view of the division of the sub-
ject according to certain headings (such as faults, virtues,
outward habits, and the like), the chronological order, as
well as the inner connection, and especially the psychologi-
cal arrangement, are neglected. The language is simple,
natural, and easily understood.^
' The following historians stand at a considerable distance
below Suetonius : —
Florus"* wrote, probably under Hadrian, bellorum om-
nium annorum DCC libri II, Roman history firom Romulus
to Augustus, arranged, generally, according to the wars,
without strict chronology, and with many errors as to matters
of fact. Anachronisms, not to say designed falsifications,
appear, and, worst of all, a tasteless and artificial teleology in
1 T. ii. 214 ; C. 459. ^ Mer. vii. 248. « C. 460.
^ Possibly identical with the poet and rhetorician, P. Annius Florus.
T. ii. ai6 ; C. 462.
124 ROMAN LITERATURE.
maiorem gioriam populi Rotnani, At the same time, he
betrays a complete lack of historical insight and psychologi-
cal apprehension. The style is rhetorically overloaded, full
of stereotyped words and phrases, sometimes, however, in
clear moments, picturesque and to the point
A certain L. Ampelius,^ otherwise unknown, wrote under
Antoninus Pius, a dry encyclopaedic manual, entitled Uber
memorialis, on geographical, mythological, and especially
historical subjects.
We possess only fragments of the work of his contem-
porary, Granius Licinianus, who wrote an outline of
Roman history. The writings of Marius Maximus^ are
entirely lost He wrote, about the year 230, biographies of
^e emperors from Nerva to Heliogabalus, and was much
used by later writers, especially by the scriptores histo-
rise Augustae,^ some of whom, as iElius Spartianus, Volca-
cius Gallicanus, and Trebellius Pollio, wrote under Diocletian,
and some, as Flavius Vopiscus, ^lius Lampridius, and lulius
Capitolinus, under Constantine the Great Their work (it is
uncertain when and by whom it was collected) contained
the biographies of the emperors^ from Hadrian to Numerian
(i 17-284), written in monotonous style, in halting language,
moving on generally in short sentences, without a proper
separation of the important and the insignificant, and with-
out an arrangement suited to the subject Nevertheless, it
is very valuable for the history of this period on account of
the lack of other authorities. The authorship of all the
biographies is not certain ; the most are by Spartianus and
Vopiscus.
Several works bear the name of Aurelius Victor,^ who
was governor of Pannonia under Theodosius the Great : de
1 T. ii. 239 ; C. 468. 2 T. ii. 296. « T. ii. 320. * T. il 37a
FIFrH PERIOD. 125
C(Bsaribus^ from Csesar to Constantine, an uncritical collection
of material in an excessively compact style ; also an epitome de
CasariduSf which deviates in many wa3rs from the original,
and extends further, reaching to the time of Theodosius
the Great; moreover, it depends upon other authorities,
and, on the whole, is more easily understood than the de
Caesaribus. Both productions are, perhaps, compendia
of a larger work of Aurelius Victor. Of unknown author-
ship are two other writings, which likewise bear his name :
de viris iilustribus^ covering the period from Procas to
Cleopatra, and written with general good sense ; and origo
gentis Romance^ from Saturn to the death of Romulus, a
silly production having not the least value.
To the same time with Aurelius Victor belongs Eutro-
pius,^ who wrote, under Valens, a breviarium historia Ro-
mance^ in 10 books, covering the period from the foundation
of Rome to the time of Jovian. It is, in general, unpretentious
and true to facts ,• but, in the eariier books, it is dry and be*
trays a total neglect of the inner relations of things; in
depicting the time of the emperors, however, it is fuller and
fresher, containing many good characterizations.^ The work
was afterwards much used as a school-book.
The work of Ammianus Marcellinus^ is valuable as
an historical authority. He was bom in Antiochia; after
long service in the army, he wrote, about the year 390, at
Rome, 31 books rerum gestarum, in which the period from
Nerva to Valens was described. Only Books XIV-XXXI
are extant, embracing the time 353-376. Ammianus, as
an enthusiastic worshipper of Julian the Apostate, writes from
1 T. ii. 372.
3 For example, that of Trajan, viii. 4; that of Constantine the Great, x.
7; that of Julian, x. 16,
» T. ii. 407.
126 ROMAN UTERATURE.
a pagan standpoint with impartiality and fidelity to the truth.
His intentions are honorable and his judgment good, and he
often writes from a recollection of what he himself has seen
and experienced. His style, on the contrary, is forbidding
and unenjoyable on account of its excessive condensation
and affectation. This was the result of wide reading without
proper digestion, of an attempt to utilize his extensive collec-
tion of notes, and of an unripe half-culture, comprehending
least of all the spirit of the Latin language.
Works were written from the standpoint of Christianity
by the Aquitanian presbyter Sulpicius Severus ^ (about
400), and his contemporary, the Spanish presbyter Oro-
sius,^ who wrote outlines of universal history^ fhim Adam
down to their time. Both works are without special value.
Further, Magnus Aurelius Cassiodorius ^ (-orus?),
who lived fix>m 480 to 575, and was private secretary of
Theodoric, and in the year 540 and afterwards was in
the Bruttian monastery, Viviers, wrote a chra^nicle from
Adam down to §ig A.D, ; also, a history ef the Goths, pre-
served, unfortunately, only in the scanty epitome of the
Goth lordanis^ (about 550); and 12 books variarum, a
collection of official documents, as well as numerous theo-
logical and encyclopcBdic works.
The Briton Gildas * wrote, in the sixth century, a History
of Britain, from 449 a.d. ; and a History of the Kingdom of
the Franks was written by Gregorius of Tours (Bishop in
5 73 and afterwards) with a mind open to historical truth, in
spite of his orthodox prejudices.
An important authority for the statistics of the later Roman
Empire are the official state records, written at the close of
1 T. ii. 448. « T. ii. 539. « T. ii. 549.
8 T. ii. 472. 4 T. ii. 547.
FIFTH PERIOD. 1 27
tiie fourth century, and entitled, Notitia dignitatum et admin-
istrationum omnium tam civilium quam militarium inparH-
bus orientis et occidentis}
cZ.— Special Soienoes.
Among the special sciences, that of Lav^^ occupies the
foremost place. From the outset a national Roman science,
it attained its highest development under the emperors, from
Hadrian's time to about the year 230. Civil law was admira-
bly set forth by the eminent jurists, who lived, for the most
part, at the imperial court, and were held in great esteem,
while their opinions, decisions {resfonsa), and manuals
became standard in the administration of justice. Thus,
after legal productions ceased about the middle of the third
century, there arose in their place, in the fourth century, an
active zeal for collecting and codifying the existing legal
authorities.
The most important jurists are given below: Salvias
lulianus,^ aside from independent works, compiled and
published, under Hadrian, in the year 131, the so-called
Edictum perpetuum. This was a collection of opinions of the
Roman praetors, from the time of the Republic, and a weighty
legal authority in later times. |Iis contemporary, Sex.
Pomponius, was the author of numerous works, which
were afterwards much used. The four books Institutionum
(introduction to the science of law), which were writ-
ten by Galas'^ about the year 160, and are, in great part,
preserved, were much used as a text-book. They became
the basis of the Institutions of Justinian, Two other very
1 T. i. 78.
2 Sandars' Justinian : Introd. ao, Am. Ed. ; T. i. 64 ; Hadley.
« T. ii. 219 ; C. 462. * T. ii. 244 ; C. 466 ; Hadley, 71.
128 ROMAN LITERATURE.
important Jtidsts were Amilius Papinianus^ and Do-
mitluft Ulpianus.^ The (ormet, pmfectus prsetorio under
Septimius Severus, and afterwards executed by command of
Caracalla, was the author of much-used responsa and qucBs-
Hones. He was distinguished by great breadth of views, in-
dependence of apprehension, and strong moral sensibility.
Ulpianus, a native of Tyre, praefectus prsetorio under Alex-
ander Severus, and assassinated in 228, was the author of
numerous writings, which are much cited in the Justinian
Digests. lulius Paulus,^ a contemporary of Ulpianud, was
active in the same line, and his writings were much used,
especially in the Pandects of Justinian. Herentiius Mo*
destintis,^ a pupil of Ulpianus, may also be mentioned.
Among the collections of those constitutions which origi-
nated during the time fifom Hadrian to Diocletian, the first
was the Codex Gregorianus,^ which was begun by a jurist
Gregorianus ; then followed the Codex Hertnogenianus
in the last part of the reign of Constantine the Great, and, at
the same time, the Fragmenta Vaticana.® About a hun-
dred years latef (438) appeared the Codex Theodosi-
anus,7 which contained, in 16 books, the constitutions that
had been published under Constantine the Great, and which
was afterwards the standard in the eastern empire until the
Codex of Justinian. Finally, the key-stone of this imposing
legal structure was the Corpus luris,* which was prepared
in the reign of Justinian by a commission of jurists, at whose
head stood Tribonianus. The separate parts of this Corpus
luris are as follows : The Codex lustinianeus of the year
" ' ■ , -- .- -»-■ , . ■ . -. - - , - . ■^. ... — i»i-je a — t^.^.^^^^.^
i T. ii. 268 ; Hadley, 11. « T. ii. 325.
« T. ii. 283 ; Hadley. 10. « T. ii. 348.
« T. ii. 287. 7 T. ii. 485.
* T. ii. 289.
* T. ii. SS3 ; Hadley, 3 ; Sandars, 23 ; Milman's L&tin Christianity, \. 484,
FIFTH PERIOD. 129
529; the Institutiones, taking the place of the original
Cod. lust., in 533 ; the Digesta, or Pandects,^ and an en-
larged edition of the Cod. lust, from the year 534. To these
were added, after the death of Justinian, three private collec-
tions, Novellae, written mostly in Greek. This Corpus
luris made the earlier writings superfluous by absorbing
them, so far as their essential contents were concerned,
established the final stability and uniformity of law, and
served ever after as a foundation for its later unfolding
and development
Of the remaining special sciences. Philology and Ar-
chaeology ^ were most cultivated. Under Hadrian, Anto-
ninus Pius, and Marcus Aurelius, the learned men in this
department, especially those of Fronto's school, were highly
respected and well paid. Nevertheless, independence, cer-
tainty,' and correctness of judgment began to disappear, and
the process of making compendia and plundering from older
woiks was carried on more widely, yet often without taste
and critical care, with the one-sided, more or less perfunctory
purpose of accumulating materials and getting a collection of
notes. The outcome of this activity was, partly encyclo-
paedic collections and compilations of all kinds of antiquarian
notes, partly elementary books on grammar, metre, orthog-
raphy, lexicography, and partly commentaries on the earlier
poets, particularly Virgil.
The following names are especially worthy of mention : —
I. Compilers : Aulus Gellius,^ bom about 130,
studied in Athens, and lived afterwards in Rome, He made
it his life-work to make compilations from the older writers,
and he put the results of his long, industrious studies into the
1 Excerpts from the most distinguished jurists, in 50 books.
* T. i. 51. » T. ii. 254 ; C. 465.
130 ROMAN LITERATURE.
20 books Nodes AtticcB^ which (except Book VIII) are ex-
tant, and embrace language^ literature, jurisprudence y phil-
osophy , and natural science, Gellius appears in the work as
a pedant, of no independent judgment, giving himself com-
pletely to his work ; but, so far as the material is concerned,
his compilation is very valuable to us, — all the more, inas-
much as some of the authorities used and cited by him have
not come down to us.
About the year 280, Nonius Marcellus,^ probably from
Africa, wrote a lexical work entided, compendiosa doctrina
per literas, which shows, to be sure, very little judgment and
knowledge, but which has some value on account of its
citations.
About the year 400, a similar compilation to that of Gel-
lius was prepared by Macrobius Theodosius,^ in his 7
books Saturnalia,^ He made a liberal use of Gellius' work,
and discussed the most widely-separated subjects, in par-
ticular the peculiarities of Virgil. Moreover, we have a
commentary by Macrobius on Cicero's Somnium Scipionis,^
which is thus preserved to us.
Martianus Capella,^ from Madaura in Africa, a country-
man of Apuleius and related to him in style, wrote about the
jear 430 an encyclopaedic work, partly in prose, and partly
in verse, after the model of Varro. He made, moreover,
free use of Varro as an authority for the content of his work.
After describing, in Books I and II, the wedding of Mercury
^ So called, because the work was begun in Attica during the long win-
ter nights. a T. ii. 314.
s He filled high offices, and, in his later years, probably became a
Christian. T. ii. 452.
* The name comes from the fact that the form chosen for the work is
that of a conversation held during the Saturnalia.
« From de repub. VI, « T. ii. 464.
FIFTH PERIOD. 131
and Philologia, he treats, in Books III-IX, of the seven artes
liberales, — grammar, dialectics, rhetoric (the trivium of the
Middle Ages), geometry, arithmetic, astronomy, and music
(the quadrivium). The work was very frequently used in
the Middle Ages as a school-book.
2. Writers of text-books and commentaries
(commentarii) : Terentius Scaurus,^ author (under Had-
rian) of a lAzHn Grammar and a treatise on poetry^ be-
sides several commentarii ; only the work de orthographia is
extant ; C. Sulpicius Apollinaris ^ of Carthage, teacher
of Gellius, and writer of qucestiones epistolicct; Helenius
Aero, 3 who wrote about the year 200, commentaries on Ter-
ence^ Horace^ and Persius ; on the other hand, the collection
of scholia on Horace, bearing Acro's name, is from the sev-
enth century; Pomponius Porphyrio (about 200-250),
writer of still extant scholia on Horace; Plotius Sacerdos,^
writer (under Diocletian) of an extant ars grammatical to-
gether with a treatise on metre; Terentianus^ (Maurus),
from Mauretania, likewise under Diocletian, who wrote an
elementary book, de literis, syliabis, metris, of which the por-
tion devoted to metre has been preserved;^ luba"^ (about
300), probably from Africa, writer of an elementary book
on metrey which was much used by later writers ; Marius
Victorinus® (about 350), writer of an extant treatise on
metre, also oi commentaries on the Pauline Epistles; ^lius
Donatus^ (about 350), writer of a grammar, and a com-
mentary on Terence, — both extant, the commentary, how-
ever, not in its original form ; Flavius Charisius ^® (about
1 T. ii. 224; C. 463. « T. ii. 278. « T. ii. 327.
2 T. ii. 23s ; C. 467. * T. ii. 326.
* In describing the different metres, he always employs the metre of
which he is treating.
7 T. ii. 291. • T. ii. 360. » T. ii. 364. M T. ii. 378.
132 ROMAN LITERATURE.
380), writer of a grammary a part of which is extant;
Diotnedes, who wrote in the same period, and often cov-
ered the same ground as Charisius ; Servius Honoratus ^
(about 390), writer of a commentary on Virgil^ — very valuable
in subject-matter ; Priscianus^ (about 500), writer of insti-
tuHones grammatical in 18 books, amost complete grammati-
cal treatise, which, in connection with Donatus, Diomedes,
and Charisius, was in universal use in the Middle Ages, and
exercised the greatest influence on the treatment of gram-
matical subjects.
In the department of Geography, may be mentioned a
geographical, historical compilation {Collectanea rerum nie-
morabilium)y written with little taste by the grammarian C*
lulius Solinus,^ in the middle of the third centuiy, — a
work which, in the portion devoted to geography, was chiefly
dependent upon the Naturaiis HUtoria of Pliny; also, a
Cosmography, from the seventh century, ascribed to a cer-
tain ^thicus Ister \^ moreover, other unimportant writings.
Of specml worth are the IHneraria^ or guide-books for travel
lers on land and sea, which originated in the fourth century \
moreover, the two catalogues of the regiones of Rome, th«
NoHtia^ and the Curiosum Urbis Roma / finally, the mapsp
one of which, made in the time of Alexander Severus, served
as a basis for the tabula Peutingeriana, a traveller's map of
the Roman Empire, prepared at Colmar in 1265. ^^ ^^
named after its former owner, ^e learned Augsburg coun-
cillor, Conrad Peutinger, and is now in the Court Library in
Vienna.
Astronomy, or rather astrology, found a zealous fol-
lower in the Sicilian rhetorician, Firmicus Maternus,^
1 T. ii. 413. « T. ii. 312. « T. ii. 366. ' T. ». 78.
« T. fi. 535. 4 T. ii. 576. » T. Ii. 368. 8 T* I, 7», ii. 353.
FIFtH I*BJllOt). 133
who, in the time of Constantine the Great, inspired by a holy
zeal, wrote 8 book^ Mathisios^ from the standpoint of the
Neo^I^toaic supa:stitton. This pagan Firmicus Matemus
must not be c6nfbunded with a contemporary Christian
Firmicus Matemus, who addressed to the sons of Constan-
tine the Great a work de errore profanarum religionum^
urging them on to the annihilation of heathendom. The
greater part of this work is extant.
Important for Military Science is the Epitome rei
militaris of Flavius Vcgctius,^ a setting forth of Roman
military science, written about the year 390. Book I treats
of the lev3ang land training of recruits ; II, of military disci-
pline \ III, of war itself; IV, of the art of siege, in partic-
ular.
In Medicine, may be mentioned a dispensatory (de
medicamentis), written under Theodosius I, and bearing the
name of a certain Marcellus Empiricus;^ but especially
the two works of Cfielius Aurelianus ^ of Numidia, one,
a treatise on c]m>nic and acute diseases,^ and the other a
medical catechism.^ Moreover, in the fifth century and
afterwards, many medical writings were translated from the
Greek.
7%e partly-extant work on Agriculture written by Gar-
gilius Martialis,^ who lived in the third century, belongs
abo to medicine, so far. as it contains the art of healing
animals and other medical references. Much was trans-
ferred from this work into that of Palladius Rutilius'
(fourth century) consisting of 14 books relating to agricul-
ture.
1 T. i. 75, ii. 4t6. '« T. «. 4». « T. ii. 488.
4 Tardanim et celeram, or chronicarum et acutMum pittsiotiufn,
« Medicitiales i«8poiAioiHft.
« T. ii. J194. T t. ii. 365.
134 ROMAN LITERATURE.
«.— Patristic Literature.
Among the authors who wrote in the immediate interest
of the Christian Church, for the defense and justification of
Christianity against Paganism, and for the establishment and
development of Christian doctrine and form of government,
— the so-called Church Fathers,^ — the following are worthy
of special mention : —
Minucius Felix, ^ a Roman advocate, wrote, at the close
of the second century, the dialogue OctaviuSy in which the
superiority of Christianity to Paganism is shown, especially in
relation to morals and civilization. The work is written in
a scholarly tone, reminding one of Cicero and Seneca, and
in a comparatively natural style.
Q. Septimius Florens Tertullianus^ (150-230) of
Carthage, was a rhetorician and an advocate in Rome, and
afterwards a presb)rter in Carthage. He was a montanist, and
an original, fiery spirit, seeking to grasp the divine in concrete
form, an ascetic enthusiast and a keen dialectician. His
language was full of character, but arbitrary and peculiar.
Among his numerous writings the Apologeticus of the year
199 is of special worth. Thascius Csccilius Cyprianus,'*
bishop of Carthage, martyred in 258, is important in the his-
tory of church government on account of his work de unitate
ecciesice, Arnobius,^ of Sicca in Numidia, wrote, about 295,
7 books adversus nationes (heathen), in declamatory, un-
even language, and without a deep understanding of Chris-
tianity.
1 T. ii. 207, 338.
« T. ii. 272; Holden's Octavius of M. Felix: Introd.; Schaff: Hist, of
Christian Church, i. 525.
• T. ii. 27s ; Woodhara's Apology of Tertullian : Introd. ; Schaff, i. 512.
* T. ii. 299 ; Schaff, i. 519. « T. ii. 329 ; Schaff, i. 527.
HFTH PERIOD* 1 35
On the other hand, Lactantius Firmlanus ^ (under Dio-
cletian) , a rhetorician in Nicomedia, and afterwards teacher
of Crispus, son of Constantine the Great, is regarded as the
Christian Cicero, so far as style is concerned. His writings,
among them, especially, institutionutn divinarum libri VII,
exhibit an intimate acquaintance with the best classical
writers and poets, and a cultivated, tolerant mind.
A powerful champion of the glory of the church was
Ambrosius,^ who died as bishop of Milan in 398. He was
more important on account of his personal character than on
account of his writings. He took a prominent part in ad-
vancing church music, was a writer of rhymed hymns^ in
iambic dimeters, but not of the later so-called Ambrosian
Hymn, " Te Deum laudamus."
An extremely learned and copious writer was Hierony-
mus^ of Stridon in Dalmatia (336-420), "the disputator and
dialectician of the contending church," at the same time in-
timately acquainted with classical literature and a connoisseur
in Hebrew. The most important of his works is the Latin
translation of the Bible ^^ the foundation of the still received
Vulgate.
By far the most prominent of all the Church Fathers was
Aurelius Augustinus,^ who was bom at Tagasta in Nu-
midia, 354 a.d., was bishop of Hippo Regius, and died in
430. He was an extremely versatile spirit, who united in
himself the most varied gifts and talents. He was of the
greatest importance for the development of ecclesiastical
dogma. Among his many writings the 22 books de civitate
1 T. ii. 330; Schaff, iii. 955. » Trench, 86; Schaff, iii. 590.
2 T. ii. 423 ; Schaff, iii. 961. * T. ii. 425 ; Schaff. iii. 967.
s His translation of the Bible is in its way a masterpiece. T. ii. 437 ;
Schaff, iii. 97a.
* T. ii. 44Z ; Schaff, iii. 989.
136 ROMAN LITERATURE.
Dei^ aie most wor&y of mentioa, a historical, philosophical
work, which exhibits a thorough knowledge of Roraan and
Greek literature, and has preserved to us much from both.
His confessions is his most popular work.^
Among the popes may be named Leo the Oreat^
(Leo I), pope 440-461, ^e founder of the greatness of
the papal throne, and a strenuous defender of church unity.
His writings are pardy sermones (delivered on festival occa-
sions), pardy epistuiOj written in comparatively pure style.
Gregory the Great '* (Gregory I), pope 590-604, also
deserves mention. He was a man of monastic tendency,
disdaining grammatical rules and worldly science. His most
important works are Ills episties itnd hymns. He was like-
wise active in the furtherance of church music
1 The grandest and most characteristic work of later Roman literature.
Schlegel, 138 ; Schaff, iil. loio.
2 Schaff, iii. 1005 ; Shedd's Introd. to Am. Ed.
» T. fi. i^ ; Schaff, ii. 314. < T. ii. 369.
SURVEY OF ROMAN LITERATURE.
138
ROMAN LITERATURE.
19
tf3
S 0)
o c
§
a
.<
(3
O
•d
S- 1)
o
— S
iuuS
c
e
n
O
C/3
>
s
&
o
CO
M
U3
(3-
•
9
u
<
H
10
i
P
.s
*s
(3
o
I
fa
M
g
CO
« 5 c3 -3 .
K bars p 9
>
{^ 0.2 0.-O
•5 ^ ^ ^ >• .
t: ,«* r<* ,** 'T r ^
< fa fa bbi iJ U
3
B
4> B
B *^
1
iS •
^3
8
FIRST AND SECOND PERIODS.
139
S
J
o
fZ2
o
OQ
O
04
o
s
I
I
I
I
til
u C 5 c3
S «> S u
JUJU
i
ctf s
w FT
3
I
S O
I
u
CO
o
2
9
u
u
u
I
a
<
0S
.0
73
O
o
uu
M
9
•g
g
o
CO
.J
I
8
o
00.2
0)
u
H
1/1
I
•Co
II
l§ .
O WJ3
U fa
(A
S d) c
S o S
o b s
n . -g O
e« (« 9
B > cS
en
S
V)
B
- -S
o «-c^
•2 o -• 5
cd e -^ M
fa.S o o
cy • • J
m
B
u
O
n
o
CD
S3
B
-I
BT3,
ufa
^
a:
B
<
u
an • « •
■^ =s J> "S '^
BU»^ 5 "
a w o
3^ .J
D^ -B
^ B O M
C/1
3
a
^^
o
«
.2-5
uu
8
140
RONfAK UTERATURE.
I
I
%
I
o
04
I
i
(A
>
U
.3 9
If
uo
4 I •
I II
I
el
OS
Up
9
I
I
o
V
!<
I
la-
II
£ 8
•I
>
O
a
i
3
O
.3
fa
3
S3
O
(A
i
3
o
i
II
8>
THIRD PERIOD,
141
8
J
IB
02
o
it
•c
<
e
X
o
a
SI
-a
o
J
I
o
EM
M
.S'5b
E *^
> .
I
J
-»w
o
•5; •
AS
i
I
a
s
p
5 s
O
■§
o
•g >
en
<
10
2
>
CO
3
CO
d .J.
8l
So*
d
o
I.
o
a.
9
C
•a
•c
bo
w a
I
a
a
142
ROMAN LITERATURE.
•
i
I
I
I
a
I
I
a
o
I
9
9
I
OQ
Si
CO
E ^
I.
O
i
»4
5
5 M d
3 S '
8i c
3 1
q5 :a
> m
:a 5*
3
•a
§
9
I
I
3
*j3
u
SI
§ ^
8
FOURTH PERIOD.
143
•- 2
S "
bos
^» c
o «>
^3
u
C/3
i
J
(I4 CO
S
,3 «
^ 6
a
QQ
O
P4
3
e
M
SI
d
1^1
3
-•■o'S s s
a
I
u-3
.3
0.3
co£
c
5^
- S
£
I
Sa
CO
M
m
A «* -
- 3 e 3
« C •= 'S
3
SA 4) V
► >
s-i"i
:3
8
MV
144
ROMAN LITERATURE.
mm
s
o
•VI
.1
m
o
I
•c
o
- S. 2
•a
o
M
3
I
3
1W-
if
o
04
II
!•
3
I
a
I
I
3
e
o
•o
cJ5
•r 3
3
3
13
§
I
I
ft
FIFTH PERIOD.
145
O ®
•^1
o
g>4
I
00
3-«
•§1
1
I
PhS©
a <1
en
HH O
O 1)
o
a
o
I
02
.a
o
03
tn
I
.2.0
5 «
•S ;:5
5|"
bo
IS
in
9
e s s
^ O 3 O
en
in
u
en en
got:
OS
2 ui
^ S i
o •* 14
So'o
§1
.a
S 2 2
S P Mt O
agOS
o
•c
a
6
£
S O
O O
OT
2
3
ill
O
C
en
1 .30"^|i 1
a
a
U
m
e
ctf
IS
.a
en
O
•d
o
JQ
H
•
•a
o
U
OD
Is
O'C
OH
I
I
8
to
INDEX.
A.
Accius, 33.
Acilius Glabrio, 27.
Aero, see Helenius.
Acta senatus, 83.
Acta populi, 82.
^lius Donatus, 131.
^lius Lampridius, 124.
^lius Paetus, 31.
^lius Spartianus, 124.
^lius Stilo, 32.
^Uus Tubero, 72.
^milius Asper, xzz.
^milius Papinianus, 128.
^milius Probus, 76.
^sopus, the tragedian, 38.
^thicus Ister, 132.
^tna, 92.
Afraniust 22.
African latinity, 1x5.
Agricul()ire, 33, 113, 133.
Agrippa, see Vipsanius,
Agrippina minor, 99.
Albius TibuUus, 56.
Ambrosius, 121, 135.
Ammianus Marcellinns, 125.
Ampelius, 124.
Annaeus Lucanus, 90.
Annsus Seneca, rhetorician, xo6.
Annaeus Seneca, philosopher, 89.
Tragedies, 89.
Satire, 93.
Philosophical writings and epistles,
X08.
Annales maximi, X2.
Annales pontificum, X2.
Annalists, 26, 27, 28.
Anthropology, 1x2.
Antistius Labeo, 84, xxo.
Antonius, M., orator, 30.
Apollinaris Sidonius, 1x7.
Apuleius, X30, X2x.
Archaeology, 32, 84, 129.
Archaic prose, 25, 26.
Architecture, 83, 84.
Arithmetic, 83, X3X.
Amobius, X34.
Arruntius Stella, 97.
Artes liberales, 83, 13X.
Artistic Drama, x6, 17, x8.
Asconius Pedianus, xxi.
Asinius Pollio, 59, 79, 8x.
Astrology, X32.
Astronomy, 33, xx2, X3X, X33.
Ateius Capito, 84, 1x0.
Atellanae, 10, 16.
Atticus, see Pomponius.
Aufidius Bassus, 99.
Augustinus, X35.
Augustus, 78, 98.
Aurelius Cassiodorius, X26.
Aurelius Symmachus, X30.
Aurelius Victor, X24.
Ausonius, see Magnus.
Avianus, XX9.
Avienus, see Festus.
B.
Bathyllus, 39.
Boetius, see Manlius.
Book-trade, 34, 37f 87.
Botany, xx2.
147
148
ROMAN LITERATURE.
C.
Caedlios Cyprianus, X34.
Caelius Antipater, 28.
Caelius Aureliantis, 133.
Caelius Rufus, 59.
Caesar, see lulius.
Caesius Bassus, 9a, 97.
Calidius, 59.
Calpurnius Piso Fnigi» 28.
Cannen, 8<
Cannen Arvaliiun, see Sacxed songs.
Cannen Saliare, see Sacred songs.
Carmina Triumphalia, 9.
Cassiodorius, see Aurelius.
Cassius Hemina, 38.
Cassius Longinus, zxo.
Cassius Severus, 59.
Catullus, see Valerius,
Celsus, see Cornelius.
Charisius, see Flavius.
Chronicles, 13, 26,
Church Fathers, 134.
Cicero, see Tullius.
Cindus Alimentus, 27.
Claudius Caecus, 13.
Claudius Qaudianus, 1x7.
Claudius, Imperator, 98, xxo.
Claudius Quadrigarius, 29.
Quvius Rufus, 99.
Codex Gregorianus, xa8.
Codex Hermogenianus, xaS.
Codex lustinianeus, 128.
Codex Theodosianus, X28.
Columella, see Moderatus.
Comedy, 17, 22.
Commentarii magistratuum, X2.
Commentarii pontiiicum, X2.
Commentarii regum, za.
Contaminare, x8.
Cornelius Celsus, 1x3.
Cornelius Fronto, XX9.
Cornelius Callus, 53.
Cornelius Nepos, 75.
Cornelius Sisenna, 28.
Cornelius Sulla, 28.
Cornelius Tacitus, xox.
Comifidus, 31.
Corpus iuris, 128.
Crassus, L., orator, 30.
Cremutius Cordus, 98.
Curiatius Matemus, 89.
Curio, 59.
Curiosum urbis Romae, X3a.
Curtius Rufus, xoo.
Cyprianus, see Caedlius.
D.
Dialectics, 83, X3X.
Didactic poetxy, 37, 39, 40, 9a, xx6, xx8,
Digesta, 129.
Diomedes, 132.
Domestic economy, 33.
Domitius Ulpianus, X38.
Donatus, see .Alius.
Draoontius, xx8.
Drama, 9, x6, 38, 89.
B.
Edictum perpetuum, xa/.
Elegy, 52.
Encyclopaedic literature, 82, xx2, X29.
Ennius, 14, xs, x8, 22, 24.
Epic poetry, 8, 23, 37, 39, 88, 90, 1x6, 1x7.
Epicureanism, 65.
Epigram, 97, xx6, 1x7.
Epistle (poetical), 39, 40, 48, xx6, XX7.
Epistle (prose), 68, X07, xxo, xao.
Epitaphs, 9.
Erotic poetry, 5a, 53, 56, 57.
Eutropius, X35.
Exodium, xo, x6.
F.
Fable, 96, XX9.
Fabius Pictor, 26.
Fabius Quintilianus, xo6.
Fabius Rusticus, 99.
Fabula palliata, X7.
Fabula praetexta, 22.
Fabula rhinthonica, X9.
Fabula togata, 22.
Fasti, X2.
Fescennini, xo.
INDEX.
149
Festus Avienus, xx8.
FestuSy see Pompeius.
Firmicus Maternus, 133.
Flavius Caper, zzz.'
Flavius Charisius, 131.
Flavius Merobaudes, Z17.
Flavius Vegetius, Z33.
Flavius Vopiscus, Z34.
Florus, za3.
Fragmenta Vaticana, za8.
Frontinus, see lulius.
Fronto, see Coraelius.
G.
Gaius, X37.
Gargilius MartialiSf Z33.
Gellius, zag.
Genus Asiaticum, 30, 58.
Genus Atticum, 3Z, 58.
Genus Rhodium, 58.
Geography, 33, 84, 85, xx3, X33.
Geometry, 83, X3z.
Germanicus, 93.
Gildas, X36.
Gracchus, C., 30.
Grammar, see Philology.
Granius Licinianus, 134.
Gratius Faliscus, 45.
Greek influence, 3, 7, X4, 30, 34, 64.
Gregorius I (Magnus), X36.
Gregorius Turonensis, X36.
H.
Helenius Aero, 131.
Herennius Modestinus, X38.
Hexameter, 34.
Hieronymus, Z35.
Hirtius, 75.
Historical songs, 8.
History, z6, 36, 73, 88, 98, i33.
HoratiuSf 46, 5Z.
Satires, 47.
Epbtles, 48.
Odes, 49.
Epodes, 50.
Horace and Virgil, 51.
Hortensius, 30.
Hyginus, 84.
Hyginus (Surveyor), ixi.
Hymns to the dead, 9.
I.
Idyll, 39, 40, 43, xz6, XX7.
IguvinsB tabulae, 9.
Institutiones, X39.
lordanis, Z36.
Italic language and dialects, 3.
Itineraria, X33.
luba, X3Z.
lulius Caesar, 59, 73.
lulius Capitolinus, Z34
lulius Frontinus, zzz.
lulius Paulus, Z38.
lulius SoUnus, Z33.
Itmius luvenalis, 95.
lus ^lianum^ 33.
lus Flavianum, Z3, 3Z.
lus Papirianum, zs.
luvencus, see Vettius.
Laberius, Dec., 39.
Lactantius Finnianus, X35.
Latin language, 3.
Laudationes funebres, Z3.
Law, z6, 3z, 83, xzo, zzs, Z87, X3a,
Leges XII tabularum, Z3.
Leges regiae, zs.
Leo I (Magnus), Z36.
Libraries, 35.
Libri lintei, Z3.
Libri magistratuum, zs.
Libri pontificum, zs.
Licinius Calvus, 53.
Licinius Macer, 39.
Livius Andronicus, z8, 33, 33.
Livius, T., 79.
Lucanus, 90.
Lucilius, C, 35.
Lucilius Junior, 93.
Lucretius, 40.
Ludicnun Oscum, xo.
ISO
ROMAN LITORATURE.
Lusdus Lavinius, ax.
Lutatius Catullusi aS.
Lyric poetry, 37, 49f So> Sa» 9^, xx6.
M.
Macdus Plautost 19.
Macrobius, 130.
Maecenas, 41, 46.
Magnus Ausonius, 1x6.
Mago, 33.
Manilius, 45.
Manlius Boetius, xax.
Marcellus Empiricus, 133.
Marcus Aurelius, xxs.
Marius Maximus, xa4.
Marius Victorinus, 131.
Martialis, sec Valerius.
Martianus Capella, 130.
Masurius Sabinus, xxo.
Mathematics, 33, xxz, xaa.
Medicine, 83, xxa, xx3, X33.
Mela, see Pompcmius.
Memmius, 59.
Merobaudes, see Flavius.
MiliUry writings, xxx, 1x3, X33.
Mime, 38, 89.
Mineralogy, xxa.
Minucius Felix, X34.
Moderatus Columella, XX3.
Monumentum Ancyraniun, 79.
Mudus Scaevola, P. and Q., 3a.
Music, 83, X3X.
N.
Naevius, x8, aa, a4.
Namatianus, see Rutilius.
Nemesianus, xx8.
Neniae, see Hymns to the dead.
Nepos, see Cornelius.
Nero, 90.
New Academy, 65.
Nigidius Figulus, 84.
Nonius Marcellus, X30.
Notitia dignitatum, xa7.
Notitia Urbis Romae, xsa.
Novellae, xa9.
Novius, x6.
o.
Octavia, practexta, 89.
Ofilius, 84.
Oratoiy, x6, 39, 88, X05, 1x9.
Orosius, xa6.
Ovidius, 53.
P.
Pacuvius, aa.
Palladius Rutilius, X33.
Palliata, 17.
Pandects, xa9.
Panegyric literature, xxs.
Pantomime, 39, 89.
Papinianus, see ^milius.
Papinius Statins, 9X, 97.
Patristic literature, xxs, Z34<
Pedo Albinovanus, 40.
Persius Flaccus, 93.
Pervigilium Veneris, xx6.
Petronius Arbiter, 94.
Peutingeriana tabula, X3a.
Phaedrus, 96.
Philology, 3a, 83, 84, xxo, xaa, xag, 131.
Philosophy, 64, xo8, XX3, xax, X30.
Plautus, see Maccius.
Plinius maior, 99, xxa.
Plinius minor, 107.
Plotius Sacerdos, X3X.
Pompeius Festus, 84.
Pomponius, L., x6.
Pomponius Atticus, 69, Tt.
Pomponius Mela, xxa.
Pomponius Porphyrio, X3X.
Pomponius Secundus, 89.
Pomponius, Sextus, Jurist, xa7.
Popular Epos, 8, a3.
Pordus Cato censorius, a7, 30, 3a, 33.
Porphyrio, see Pomponius.
Postumius Albinus, a7.
Praetexta, 22.
Prisdanus, X3a.
Proculus, see Sempxonius.
Propertius, 57.
Provincial literature, 37, XX4.
INDEX.
151
Prudentius Clemens, xx6.
Publilius Syrus, 39.
Pylades, 39.
Q.
Quinctius Atta, aa.
Quintiliantis see Fabius.
R.
Rabirius, 40.
RecitationeSy 37.
Remmius Palaemo, xzx.
Rhetoric, 50* 58» 88, X05, 113, 1x4, 1x9,
X3X.
Rhetorica ad Herennium, 31.
Ritual precepts, 9.
Rosdus, comedian, 38.
Rutilius Namatianus, xz8.
Rutilius Rufus, 38.
S.
Sabinus, see Masurius.
Sacred songs, 9.
Sallustins, 76.
Salvius lulianus, X37.
Satire, as, 37, 40, 45, 47, 9a, 97.
Satura, 10, 16, 35.
Satura Menippea, 45.
Satumius versus, 8.
Scribonius Largus, 1x3.
Scriptores historix Augustae, X34.
Sempronius Asellio, s8.
Sempronius Proculus, ixo.
Sempronius Tuditanus, 38.
Seneca, rhetorician, see Annaeus.
Seneca, philosopher, see Annaeus.
Septimius Florens TertuUianus, 134.
Servius Honoratus, X33.
Sextii Nigri, 65.
Sidonius, see Apollinaris.
Silius Italicus, 91.
Sisenna, 38.
Solinus, see lulius.
Stage, the, in Rome, xo.
Statins Caecilius, 3X.
Statius, see Papinius.
Stoicism, 65, X09.
Suetonius, X33.
Sulla, see Cornelius.
Sulpicia, 97.
Sulpicius Apollinaris, X3X.
Sulpicius Galba, 30.
Sulpicius Rufus, 83.
Sulpicius Severus, X36.
Surveyors, x6x.
SymmachuSf see Aurelius.
T.
Tadtus, see Cornelius.
Terentianus, X3Z.
Terentius, P., ao.
Terentius Scaurus, X3X. •
Terentius Varro, pdlyhistor, 45, 83
Terentius Varro Atacinus, 40.
TertuUianus, see Septimius.
Theatre in Rome, 17.
Tiberius, 98.
TibuUus, see Albius.
Titinius, as.
Togata, 33.
Tragedy, 33.
Treaties, xx.
Trebatius Testa, 84.
Trebellius Pollio, X34.
Tribonianus, X38.
Triumph, songs of, 9.
Tucca, 44.
Tullius Cicero, 59.
Epic Poems, 40.
Orations, 63.
Rhetorical writings, 68.
Philosophical works, 64.
Letters, 68.
Hbtorical works, 73.
Character, 71.
Valerius
Valerius
Valerius
Valerius
Valerius
Valerius
Valerius
V (U).
Antias, 39.
Catullus, 53.
Flaccus, 9X.
Martialis, 97.
Maximus, xoo.
Messala, 59, 79
Probus, XXX.
iS»
ROMAN LITERATURE.
Varius, L., 40, 44.
Varro, see Terentius.
Vegetiiu, see Flaviua.
Velius Longus, xxx.
Velleius Paterculus, 99.
Venantius Fortunatus, xx8.
Vergilius, 4X, 51.
Verrius Flaccus, 84.
Vespasianus, 99* xxx.
Vettius Aquilius luvencus, 1x7.
Victorinus, see-Marius.
Vipsanius Agrippa, 79, 85.
Vitnivius PoUio, 85.
Ulptanust see Domidus.
Volcados GaUicanus, xa4.
z.
Zodlogy, xxa.
ALLEN m mssmm urn msm.
The PvhlUhers invite atterUion to the fcllomng features of
this book.
The first edition of Allen k Gbeenouoh's Latin Grahmab
was published in 1872, and was widely adopted, reaching a
sale of something over 30,000 copies. In 1877, availing them-
selves of numerous criticisms and a wide correspondence, —
in particular, of the counsel of teachers in several of the lead-
ing Preparatory Schools, — the editors completed a revision,
which has made the Grammar virtually a new work while re-
taining all the important features of the old. Attention is
invited to the following features of the Revised Edition.
1. The arrangement of topics by Chapters and Sections
(see Table of Contents), with the aid given to the eye by
running-titles, head-lines, etc. Sections and sub-sections of
the former edition are given in the margin.
2. The large amount of supplementary and illustrative
matter given in tabular form, or in the Appendix, offering to
the learner numerous points of interest as to the forms and
history of the language (see especially pp. 6, 64, 65, 145, 154,
167, 294, 301-306).
3. The information given in numerous introductory, sup-
plementary, and marginal Notes, on points of etymology,
comparative philology, and the meaning of forms. In this
department the Grammar is believed to be more full and com-
plete than any other existing school text-book, and to embody
the best results of recent study. Examples may be found in
Phonetic Changes (pp. 3, 4), Root and Stem (pp. 9, 10), Ad-
jective-forms (foot-notes, pp. 37, 38, 43, 46), Verb-forms (pp.
64, 65, 70-75), Derivation of Adverbs (pp. 97, 98), with the
entire chapter on the Formation of^Words (pp. 107-115);
particularly the section on Primary Sufi&xes (pp. 107 - 109),
and Derivative Forms (pp. 113-115), and Gerund-forms
(p. 209).
4. The numerous complete or extended Lists of forms and
constructions : for example, Nouns in es (p. 21), Neuters in al^
or (p. 22), forms of the 3d Declension (pp. 28 - 30), Defective
Nouns (p. 34), Verbs of special constructions (pp. 156, 157,
159, 209), Dative of Service (p. 161), Substantive Clauses as
following certain verbs or verbal phrases (pp. 239, 241, 242).
To these may be added the condensed Verb-lists (pp. 79, 81,
84, 85, 87, 89).
5. Tabulated examples of peculiar or idiomatic use : as of
Demonstratives and Indefinites (pp. 53-57), uses of the Sub-
junctive Mood (p. 60), Adverbs (pp. 99, 100), Prepositions
(pp. 101 - 103), Conjunctions (pp. 105, 106).
6. Numerous Introductory Notes in the department of
Syntax, giving a brief view of the theory of constructions :
for example. Elements of the Sentence (pp. 117, 118), Eela-
tives (pp. 133, 227), Case-constructions (p. 145), Moods (p.
184), Tenses (pp. 194, 200), Conditions (pp. 214-216), Sub-
stantive Clauses (pp. 238), Indirect Discourse (pp. 247, 251).
Many of these Notes are original contributions to the discus-
sion of the topics of which they treat ; and they are believed
greatly to simplify and illustrate the view of syntactical con-
struction, being taken from the point of view not of abstract
theory, or "metaphysics of the subjunctive," but of linguistic
science, that is, the actual or historical development of lan-
guage from its simplest forms. They are not designed for
class use, but as aids to the learner or teacher, and are not
included in the numbered sections.
7. Treatment of Special Topics of Syntax : for example, the
Structure of the Sentence (pp. 119-122), Syntax of Pro-
nouns (pp. 129-137), of Questions (pp. 142-144), Locative
Constructions (pp. 178-181), Sequence of Tenses (pp. 200-
202), Classification of Conditions (pp. 216-221), Clauses of
Characteristic (p. 230), Synopsis of Constructions (pp. 254,
255), Structure of the Period (pp. 261, 262). On these points
we invite comparison with other school-grammars on the score
of simplicity and clearness.
8. In Prosodt, the discussion, amongst others, of the fol-
lowing topics : Quantitative Verse (p. 253), Rhythm of Greek
and Latin Poetry (p. 271), Irrational Measures (p. 274), Loga-
oedic Verse (p. 284), with the relation of Glyconic and Phere-
cratic forms (p. 285), Early Prosody (p. 292). The views em-
bodied in this portion of the book are derived, mainly, from
study of the great work of Westphal, many of whose results
are given in the manual of Schmidt, just published by us
(translated by Prof. J. W. White).
It is not claimed that all the above points are either original
or peculiar to this Grammar. In all cases, however, they ex-
press the results of independent study of (it is believed) the
best original sources ; and, in many cases, the views are those
to which the editors have been independently led. Nothing
has been inserted for mere curiosity, or as the expression of
mere personal opinion ; and all has been strictly subordinated
to the uses of the class-room, or to serve the learner for prac-
tical acquaintance with the language, with the advice and aid
of several of our most experienced teachers. The rapid adop-
tion of this Grammar in nearly all the colleges and classical
schools of the country is believed to be a full guaranty for its
adaptation to the purposes of instruction.
We invite attention also to the list of Colleges and Schools
rising this booh, and to the strong testimonials in its favor from
the leading classical teachers of the country.
Sample copies sent to teachers, post-paid, on receipt of 91.00.
GINN AND HEATH.
Boston, June, 1878.
SCHMIDT'S
RHYTHMIC AND METRIC OF THE
CLASSICAL LANGUAGES.
Edited from the Gennan
By JOHN WILLIAMS WHITE, Ph.D.,
Assistant Professor af Greek in Harvard University.
DESIGNED AS A MANUAL FOB CLASSES IN THE GBEEK AND LATIN POETS.
The author has revised the present translation, and made important
additions. Many illustrations from English poets have been introduced ;
and the work has been otherwise adapted to the use of Englishnspeaking
students. It has a full Index.
No elementary book in English on the Rhythmic and Metric of the
Classical Lang^iages has appeared since Rossbach and Westphal began
their studies. Such a book, however, is certainly needed. A strong
persuasion of this has led the editor to publish this translation not only
here, but also in England, where Dr. Schmidt is likely to have had a
fairer hearing than in his own country. The three indexes that have
been added to the translation, and the table of contents will make the
book an easy one to use. Teachers will probably differ in opinion in
regard to the extent to which such a book as this should be used in
school and college instruction. But certainly no teacher can afford to
ignore the subject of which it treats. We may doubt whether pupils had
better learn to chant Homer as did the rhapsodist, but we can scarcely
do less than teach them to give the quantity and mark the ictus as they
read. The melody and dance of the Greek chorus may be gone forever ;
but it is hardly less than a breach of trust for the teacher not to unfold
the theory of its composition, and give to those under his instruction a
glimpse at least at the high art of the poet who was not only poet but
also musician and master of orchestrics.
From the " National Quarterly Review."
Here is a work that almost makes us regret our school days. We aU
remember the terrors of scansion, — an art bearing the same relation to the
music of Greek verse that the dry and cumbrous nomenclature of botany
bears to the floral kingdom. Scansion, as commonly practised, serves only
to mar the music and conceal the fine distinctions of poetry. Now all this
ALLEN & GREENOUGH'S LATIN GRAMMAR.
The first edition was published in 1872, and was widely adopted, reaching a
sale of aver 30,000 copies. In 1877, the editors completed a revision, which has
made it virtually a new work while retaining all the important features of the old.
Attention is invited to the following merits of the book :
I. The Supplementary and Marginal Notes on Etymology^ Comparative Philol-
ogy, and the meaning of forms. In this department it is believed to be more full
and complete than any other school text-book, and to embody the most advanced
views of comparative philologists.
2. Numerous Introductory Notes in the Syntax, giving a brief view of the theory
of constructions. These Notes are original contributions to the discussion of the
topics of which they treat ; they illustrate and greatly simplify syntactical construe-.
tion, and are not based upon abstract theory, or " metaphysics of the»subjunctive/*
but upon linguistic science, or upon the actual historical development of language
from its simplest forms.
3. Treatment of Special Topics of Syntax, On these points we invite compari>
son with other school grammars on the score of simplicity and clearness.
4. The extended, and often complete, lists of forms and constructions,
5. Tabulated examples of peculiar or idiomatic use,
6. The full and clear treatment of Rhythm and Versiftcation, corresponding
with the latest and best authorities on the subject.
7. The unusual brevity attained without sacrifice of completeness or clearness.
This Grammar expresses the results of independent study of the best original
sources. It has been strictly subordinated to the uses of the class-room through the
advice and aid of several of our most experienced teachers. The rapid adoption
of this Grammar in over three-fourths of the leading colleges and preparatory schools
of the country is believed to be a fiill guaranty for its adaptation to the purposes of
instruction.
ALLEN & GREENOUGH'S LATIN COURSE.
Leighton'a Latin Lesaoiis (designed to accompany the Grammar).
Six "Weekfl' Preparation for Reading Ceesar (designed to accompany
the Grammar, and also to prepare pupils for reading at sight).
Allen & Greenough'a Caesar * Cicero * Virgil,'*' Ovid,'^ Salluat, Cato
Major, Latin Composition, Preparatory Latin Course, No. IL
(with Vocabulary), containing four books of Caesar's Gallic War, and eight
Orations of Cicero.
Keep's Parallel Rules of Greek and Latin Syntax.
Allen's Latin Reader. Selections from Caesar. Curtius, Nepos, Sallust, Ovid,
Virgil, Plautus, Terence, Cicero, Pliny, and Tacitus. With Vocabulary.
Crowell & Richardson's Brief History of Roman Literature.
Cromwell's Selections from the Less Known Latin Poets.
Stickney's De Nattura Deorum.
Allen's (F. D.) Remnants of Early Tiatin.
Leighton's Critical History of Cicero's Letters.
Leighton's Elementary Treatise on Latin Orthography.
\!7hite's Junior Student's Latin-English Lexicons.
• With or without Vocabulary.
A Full Descriptive Catalogue mailed on Application.
anor & heath, Publishers, Boston, Uew York, and Ohicago.
GREEK TEXT-BOOKS.
Goodwin's Greek Grammar. Revised and Enlarged Edition for 1879.
// states geneml principles clearly and distinctly^ with special regard to those who an
preparing fir college,
// excludes all detail which belongs to a book of reference^ and admits whatever will
cud a pupil in mastering the great principles of Greek Grammar,
The sections on the Syntax of the Verb are generally condensed from the author's
larger work on the Greek Moods and Tenses, (See below.)
// contains a brief statement of the author's new classification of conditional sentences,
with its application to relative and temporal sentences, which appears now for the
first time in an elementary form.
It contains a catalogue of irregular verbs, constructed entirely with refererue to the
wants of peginners.
All forms are excluded {with a few exceptions) which are not found in the strictly
classic Greek before Aristotle.
"Wliite'a Firat Iieaaona in Greek. Prepared to accompany Goodwin's
Greek Grammar.
A series of Greek-English and English-Greek Exercises, taken mainly from the
first four books of Xenophoris Anabasis, with Additional Exercises on Forms, and
complete Vocabularies. The Lessons are carefully graded, and do not follow the
order of arrangement of the Grammar, but begin the study of the verb with the
second Lesson, and then pursue it ahernately with that of the remaining parts of
speech. // contains enough Greek Prose Composition for entrance into any college,
Leighton's Greek Leaaona. Prepared to accompany Goodwin's Greek
Grammar.
A progressive series of exercises (both Greek and English), mainly selected
firom the first book of Xenophon's Anabasis. The exercises on the Moods are
sufficient, it is believed, to develop the general principles as stated in the Grammar.
Gk>odwin & "Wliite'a Firat Four Booka of the Anabaaia.
Gk>odwin'a Greek Reader contains the first and second books of the Ana-
basis. Also, selections ft-om Plato, Herodotus, and Thucydides; being the
fiiU amount of Greek Prose required for admission at Harvard University.
Gk>od'mn'a Selectiona from Xenophon and Herodotua contains the
first four books of the Anabasis, the greater part of the second book of the Hel-
lenica of Xenophon, and extracts fi-om the sixth, seventh, and eighth books of
Herodotus.
Anderaon'a Firat Three Booka of Homer'a Biad.
Gk>od^rin'a Greek Mooda and Tenaea. Gives a plain statement of the
principles which govern the construction of the Greek Moods and Tenses,— >
the most important and the most difficult part of Greek Syntax.
F. D. Allen'a Prometheua of ^Sachyltta.
Tarbell'a Orationa of Demoathenea.
Flagg'a Public Haranguea of Demoathenea.
Tyler'a Selectiona from the Greek Lyric Poeta.
Seymour'a Selectiona from Pindar and the Bucolic Poeta
Wliiton'a Select Orationa of Lyaiaa.
Wliite'a OEIdipua Tyrannua of Sophodea
F. D. Allen'a Medea of Buripidea.
Sidgwick'a Introduction to Greek Proae Compoaitioa
\!7hite'a Schmidta Rhythmic and Metric of uie Claaaical Lan-
guagea.
liddell & Scotf a Greek-Bngliah Leaicona. Abridged and Unabridged.
A Full Descriptive Catalogue mailed on application.
dHOT Ac HEATH, Publishers, Boston, New York, and Ohioago.
NEW BOOKS
AND
NEW EDITIONS FOR 1879,
LATIN.
A BBIEF mSTOBT OF BOXAN UTEBATtJBE FOB SCHOOLS AHD
A COLLEGES. Translated and Edited from the German Edition of
Bender by Professor E. P. Crowell and H. B. Richardson, A.M., Amherst
College, Mass. (Ready in August,)
T\E KATUBA DEOBUH. Translated and Edited from the German
Edition of Schoeman by Professor Austin Stickney, formerly of Trin^
ity College, Hartford. (Ready in August,)
TjEMNAirrs OF EABLT LATDf, chiefly Insoriptioiii. Selected
^ and Explained, for use in Colleges, by Frederick D. Allen, Professor
of Latin in the University of Cincinnati. {Ready in June.)
Prepared to meet the need which many of our best teachers of Latin feel,
of acquainting students with the earliest forms of Latin, as an aid to the
better comprehension of the structure of the language. There is no such
book in existence, the nearest thing to it being the large and extensive
work of Wordsworth, which is not adapted to school use.
A CBinCAL HISTOBT OF CICEBO'S LETTEB8. By R. F. Leigh-
** ton, Ph.D., Principal of Brooklyn, N. Y., High School. The Historj-
of the Letters *'ad Familiares'* is nearly ready.
A ir ELEKEKTABT TBEATI8E OIT LATUT OBTHOGBAPHT. Em-
^^ bracing the Latest Researches of Brambach, Ritschel, and others.
With a Vocabulary of Words often Misspelled. By R. F. Leighton, Ph.D.,
Principal of Brooklyn, N. T., High School.
OELECTIOJfS FBOH THE LESS-KKOWK LATIH POETS — viz., Ca-
"^ tullus, Lucretius, the Elegiac Writers, Lucan and Martial. By E. P.
Crowell, A.M., Professor of Latin, Amherst College.
pABALLEL SYKTAX OF THE HOODS DT 6BEEK AlTD LATIH.
* Prepared by R. P. Keep, Ph.D., Instructor in the Classical Depart-
ment of Williston Seminary, at Easthampton, Mass. (Ready in June.)
II HEW AHD COMPLETE VIBOIL. This Edition will be printed from
^^ wholly new plates, and will be full}' annotated by Professor J. B.
Greenough, Harvard University. It will also have numerous illustrations
from the antique.
diss in HEATH, Publishers, Boetoii, New York, and Ohicaga
2 ANNOUNCEMENTS OF NEW BOOKS.
A BEVISEB EBinOir OF ALLEH*S LATUr €N)MPOSITIOK. Simpli-
*^ fiedf carefully Graded, and Adapted to the New Allen & Greenough's
I^tin Grammar. By W. F. Allen, Professor of Latin and History at Uni-
versity of Wisconsin and Lecturer at Johns Hopkins University. (Ready
in September. )
mSE ASaXOOUL n TACITUB. Editied for School and Oollege Vtk by
^ W. F. Allen, Ptofessor of Latin in University of Wiscoiaiil.
GREEK.
Vnu PXOMBTHEUB OV ABSGHTLUft. Edited, with Notes and Intro-
^ duction, by Frederick D. Alleoi ProlesBor of Gf^eek in the UniTersfty
of Cincinnati.
QELECT OSATIOirS OF DEHOBXAElrES. Edited by l^nk B. Tar-
^ bell. Tale College. This work Will contain the three Philippics and
the Oration On the Chersonese, fh)m the ZUrich Editioli of the Text, with
an Extended Historical Introduction and Explanatory Notes.
IflttS TJJtUC HASAH0TTS8 OF DEXOSTRXinBS. Edited by Isaac
* Flagg, Ph. D., Professor of Greek in Coriiell University, Ithaca,
N.Y.
Tliis work has been undertaken in view of the fact that several speeches
belonging to this head, of great merit and importance, have not as yet ap-
peared in a form convenient for college reading. The commentary, ap-
pended to a carefully edited text, will be adapted to the requirements of
students well advanced in Greek. Part First, forming a small volume by
itself, will contain the three Hellenic Orations, ISjfmm&ries, Megalopolitans^
and Jihodiaru.
OELECTIONB FBOH THE GBEEK ITKIC POETS, with an ^torieal
^ Introduction and Explanatory Notes. By Henry M. Tyler, Professor
of Greek and Latin in Smith College, Northampton, Mass. [Ready in
June.)
flELECnpirS FBOH FIKDAB AND THE BVGOLIC POETS, Contain-
^ ing six Odes of Pindar, four Idylls of Theocritus, a Hymn of Calli-
machus, a Hymn of Cleanthes, and one of the Homeric Hymns; in all
thirteen hundred lines. Edited by Professor T. D. Seymour, Western Reserve
College, Ohio. (Ready in January j 1880.)
mHE FIB8T THBEE BOOKS OF HOMEB'S lUAD. By Professor F.
E. Anderson, ofHar^'ard University.
ipIEST TWELVE BOOKS OF HOMEB'B ODYSSEY. With Tntrodnc-
•■■ tion, Notes, and Tables of Homeric Forms, for School Use. By W.
W. Merry, A.M., Fellow and Lecturer of Lincoln College, Oxford. England.
QDOr & HEATH, Publishers, Boston, New Tork, and Ohicaga
Live Music Archive
Librivox Free Audio
Metropolitan Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Internet Arcade
Console Living Room
Books to Borrow
Open Library
TV News
Understanding 9/11