Description
Book SynopsisDescribes the intimate relationship between Latin literature and the politics of ancient Rome. This work shows that, from its beginnings in the late third century BC to its eclipse by Christian literature six hundred years later, classical literature served the evolving interests of Roman and, more particularly, aristocratic power.
Trade ReviewOne of Choice's Outstanding Academic Titles for 1998 "The importance of this book, the reason why it should be required reading for anyone interested in Roman society and culture, lies not so much in the answers it offers as in the questions it provokes and the new lines of enquiry it suggests... [It will] change the way we think about Latin literature."--Neville Morley, Classical Review "A superb analysis... These stimulating essays contribute to and complicate current debates about Latin literature."--Choice
Table of ContentsAcknowledgmentsIntroduction3Ch. 1Latin Literature and the Problem of Rome15Ch. 2Why Was Latin Literature Invented?34Ch. 3Cicero and the Bandits69Ch. 4Culture Wars in the First Century B.C.E.88Ch. 5Writing as Social Performance103Ch. 6Roman Women's Useless Knowledge122Ch. 7An Aristocracy of Virtue137Ch. 8Pannonia Domanda Est: The Construction of the Imperial Subject through Ovid's Poetry from Exile151Notes171Index of Passages Cited223General Index229
