L I T.
2 : W O R L D L I T E R A T U R E
R o m a n
Lite r a tu re
Presented by:
Basilan, Shaina M.
Cortado, Johanna Salva J.
AG E NDA
• Ancient Roman Literature
• The Golden Age
• The Silver Age
• The Later Age
Introduction
•The Roman Empire and its predecessor the
Roman Republic produced an abundance of celebrated
literature; poetry, comedies, dramas, histories, and
philosophical tracts; the Romans avoided tragedies.
•Roman Literature cannot stand alone. They owe a
debt to their neighbor, the Greeks (more specifically
Athens).
•Most educated Romans were well aware of their own
literary inferiority, and because of this Roman writers
could easily copy Greek classical themes, even going
so far as to translate many of the notable Greek works
into Latin.
Greek Influence
“Roman literature owes a debt
to the Greeks, more specifically
Athens.”
Ancient Roman Literature
• The history of Roman literature begins around the 3rd
century BC. It reached its "Golden Age" during the rule of
Augustus and the early part of the Roman Empire. The
Romans wrote a lot of poetry and history. They also wrote
letters and made a lot of formal speeches.
• Latin was the main language used for writing during
Ancient Rome. Greek was also a popular language
because it was used by so many people in the eastern
portion of the Roman empire.
• Important documents were written on papyrus scrolls
(made from the papyrus plant in Egypt) or on parchment
Augustus and the
(pages made from animal skin). They wrote with a metal Golden Age
pin that they dipped in ink. For more temporary day-to-
day writing they used a wax tablet or thin pieces of wood.
The three most famous Roman
poets
Virgil (70 BC to 19
BC)
•Virgil is known for writing the epic poem the Aeneid.
The Aeneid tells the story of a Trojan hero named
Aeneas. It incorporates many historic events in the
history of Rome.
Horace (65 BC 8 BC)
• Horace is known for a collection of lyric
poems called the Odes. Other works of
Horace include Satires and Epistles.
Ovid (43 BC to 17 AD)
• Ovid's most famous work was the epic
Metamorphoses. It tells the history of the world from
creation to when Julius Caesar was made a god. Ovid
was also famous for writing love poems.
Comic Playwrights
Roman literature began near the end of the 3rd
century BCE with the emergence of such comic
playwrights as Plautus, Terence, and Ennius.
Plautus (254 – 184 BCE).
• Of his more than 130 plays, only 20 complete works
survived.
• he was born in Umbria and began his career as a stage
carpenter.
• He did not begin to write anything until middle age,
adapting Greek comedies into Latin.
• He used the usual jokes, puns, and songs (duets and
arias) which quenched the Roman desire for slapstick.
• Two of his more notable works are Aulularia (The Pot of
Gold) and Captivi (The Prisoners).
Publius Terentius Afer
• better known as Terence (195 – 159 BCE)
• Terence arrived in Rome as a slave from North Africa,
eventually gaining both his freedom and an education.
• Many of his plays, such as the comedy Eunuchus (The
Eunuch), did not appeal to many of the
unsophisticated Romans; he was criticized by his
contemporaries for "cannibalizing" Greek plays.
Ennius (239 – 169 B
• was more highly touted than either Plautius or Terence
and is considered to be the "father of Latin poetry."
• Born in Calabria in southern Italy (Magna Graecia), he
served in the Roman army in Sardinia, arriving in Rome
with fellow writer Cato the Elder around 204 BCE,
eventually obtaining the much-desired Roman citizenship.
• Even though he claimed to be the reincarnation of Homer,
only fragments of his works have survived. Rodgers notes
that he demonstrated how Latin poetry had achieved
greatness while still emulating Greek forms.
• His Annals was a history of Rome from the mythical Trojan
hero Aeneas through his own day. Unfortunately, he died in
poverty.
The Golden Age
(c. 70 BCE – 14 CE)
Golden Age of Roman Poetry
Virgil Horace Ovid
Publius Vergilius Maro or Virgil (70 – 19
BCE)
• Unlike many of the poets who followed him,
Virgil provided his audience with a more
romanticized picture of Rome.
• Hailing from Cisalpine Gaul and a family of
modest farmers, many of Virgil's themes
demonstrate his love of the rural life.
Virgil
• His Eclogues, written around 37 BCE, spoke
of the loves and lives of shepherds, while his
• However, his mostGeorgics, written around 29 BCE,
memorable work is the Aeneid, an epicpraised
Roman country life: plowing, growing trees,
telling of the journeys of Aeneas after the fall of Troy through
tending cattle, and even keeping
the founding of Rome by Romulus and Remus to the age of bees.
Augustus. As Aeneas was the ideal model for the Roman way
Quintus Horatius Flaccus or Horace (65 BCE – 8
BCE)
• was the son of a freedman. Although he
fought on the wrong side at the Battle of
Philippi (against Augustus), he endeared
himself to the emperor partially because of
his poetry but also due to his friendship with
Virgil.
• In keeping with his Epicurean philosophy,
Horace Horace's poems demonstrated a joy for life
and a love of nature. Among his many works
are Satires, which was a criticism of the vice
that was rampant
• Horace always demonstrated a deep in Rome,and
respect Epodes, inspired
admiration of
by the Greek author Archilochus,
the Greeks and believed Rome had to acknowledge the Greek and Odes,
a celebration of life in Rome
superiority in all intellectual and cultural fields. during the age
Publius Ovidius Naro or Ovid (42 BCE – 18 CE).
• After Ovid, Roman poetry would take a brief
hiatus. Ovid Latin poetry had finally
attained an "elegance and lyricism" to rival
that of any Greek.
• To Ovid love was the only "game worth
playing." His Amores, published in 22 BCE,
Ovid told in a very lighthearted style about the
misadventures of a young man and his love
for an unobtainable young girl.
• His Heroides was a series of 15 letters
supposedly written by Greek and Roman
mythological female figures such as
Publius Ovidius Naro or Ovid (42 BCE – 18 CE).
• His Ars Amatoria mirrored Horace's Ars
Poetica. However, his most famous work is
the 15 books of mythology. Metamorphoses,
an epic poem that spoke not only of
humanity's interaction with the gods but
also of heroes and heroines.
Ovid • Although not appreciated during his lifetime,
his works of poetry have influenced many of
the great authors throughout history
including Chaucer, Milton, Dante,
Shakespeare, and Goethe.
Sextus Propertius (54 – 16 BCE)
• The first of these lovelorn poets was, the son of an
equestrian who unlike his fellow poets received legal training
but rejected any career in politics.
• His most famous book of poems was Elegies. A friend of both
Ovid and Virgil, he even received a home from the patron of
arts Maecenas on the Esquiline Hill; however, unlike some of
his contemporaries, he refused to write an epic about
emperor Augustus. Like Propertius, Albius Tibullus (50 – 19
BCE), another son of an equestrian family, wrote about a lost
love, Delia, and, like Virgil, he idealized the country life.
Gaius Valerius Catullus (84 BCE – 54 BCE)
• The leader of these emerging poets, is considered one of the
greatest of all Roman lyric poets. Avoiding any personal
involvement in politics, he looked to his neighbors to the east,
such Greek authors as Sappho and Callimachus, for inspiration.
• According to historian Rodgers, his poetry mingled both passion
and urbanity with an awareness of life's impermanence and he
"raised colloquial Latin to new heights" (386). Similarly, historian
Norman Cantor in his Antiquity said that Catullus recognized the
mortality of man and exposed a different side of Roman life.
• His poems revealed the existence of pessimism, individualism,
and deep feelings of self-indulgence within Roman society.
The Silver
Age
Two famous Roman poets linked to what has been called the Silver Age
of Roman poetry are
1. Marcus Annaeus Lucanus, better known as Lucan (39 – 65 CE)
• Pharsalia, his most famous work, dealt with the Roman civil war of
the 1st century BCE.
2. Publius Papinius Statius (45 – 96 CE).
• His lesser known contemporary Statius wrote the twelve books of
Thebaid concerning Oedipus's curse on Thebes.
Roman
Prose
Marcus Tullius Cicero (106 – 43 BCE)
• not only a brilliant statesman and author but also an orator who, besides his
911 letters, wrote on subjects ranging from art to education. In a series of
caustic letters, he spoke out against the corrupt ex-governor of Sicily Verres
forcing him into retirement, though the ex-governor would later be set free by
Caesar.
• He wrote political essays such as De re publica (On the State) and De legibus (On the
Laws) as well as five books in Latin on ancient philosophy – De finibus bonorum et
malorum. His Epistulae ad familiares (Letters to family and friends) act as vivid historical
and cultural documents of the period and give an insight into the inner workings of late
Republic.
• Unfortunately, he had spoken out against Julius Caesar, something that angered the
dictator's heir Octavian (Augustus). Having been exiled once, Cicero could not save
himself and was executed before he could escape Rome.
Roman
Prose
Lucius Annaeus Seneca (4 BCE – 65 CE)
• was a student of Stoic philosophy and tutor to Emperor Nero. Not only
an essayist, he wrote nine plays based on such Greek legends as
Oedipus, Heracles, and Medea.
• He also authored 124 essays on subjects ranging from vegetarianism
to the humane treatment of slaves. After being implicated in the Piso
conspiracy, he was forced to commit suicide by Nero.
Roman
Prose
Pliny the Elder (23 – 79 CE)
• Gaius Plinius Secundus was a Roman administrator who wrote on the
Germanic wars and whose Natural History (Naturalis Historia)
contained information on the known universe as well as tracts on
animals, trees, and plants, all in 37 volumes.
• Observing the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 CE, Pliny the Elder died
after inhaling fumes. His nephew Pliny the Younger (61 – c. 112 CE)
had a successful career as both a senator and consul under Emperor
Trajan. He is most noted for his long series of letters on a variety of
topics to the emperor.
T h e La t e r
A g e
LATER ROMAN LITERATURE
St. Ambrose (c. 340 –
397
• Ambrosius was CE)
the son of the praetorian
prefect of Gaul and schooled in the classical
Greek tradition. He served as bishop of both
Rome and Milan as well as governor of Aemilia-
Liguria despite often challenging the Emperor
Saint Ambrose of Milan
Theodosius. Among his writings are De officiis
ministrorum, a discussion of morality and
ecclesial discipline as well as De obitu
Valentiniani and De obitu Theodocii which
established the concept that a Christian
LATER ROMAN LITERATURE
Decimus Magnus Ausonius (310 –
395 CE)
• came from Bordeaux and served as the tutor
for the future emperor Gratian; he was a noted
grammarian and rhetorician. He was less
concerned with Christian values and wrote on a
variety of subjects. His more noted works are
Saint Ambrose of Milan
Praefatiunculae (Prefaces) and Eclogarum Liber
(Eclogues), verses on astronomy and astrology.
Lastly, one cannot forget the writings of St.
Augustine (354-430 CE). He is most famous for
his De civitate Dei (The City of God) which he
LATER ROMAN LITERATURE
Claudius Claudianus (370 – 404 CE)
• Claudianus, a native of Alexandria, was the
court poet under Emperor Honorius. He wrote
panegyrics for Honorius and Stilicho, the
Roman general. Influenced by earlier poets,
both Roman and Greek, he is considered the
Saint Ambrose of Milan
last important poet of the classical tradition.
Historia
Gaius Sallustius Crispus or Sallust
(c. 86 – 35 BCE)
• a former senator expelled for immorality. So
inspired by the Greek historian Thucydides, he
turned to writing history. An enemy of Cicero,
he sided with dictator-for-life Julius Caesar who
helped him fight charges of malpractice while
governor of Africa. His most famous works
include Bellum Catilinae, which dealt with the
Catiline conspiracy, Bellum Iugurthinum, a book
concerned with the Roman war against the
Numidian king Jugurtha, and Histories, which
remains only in fragments
Livy (59 BCE – 17 CE)
• wrote a detailed history of Rome in 142 books,
however, unfortunately only 35 survive. Although he
accepted many myths as fact, his history
demonstrated his belief in Rome's destiny.
Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus (c.
• must be mentioned. His De viris illustribus included
69 – c. 130 CE)
short biographies of Roman men of letters; poets,
grammarians, orators, and philosophers. His De vita
Caesarum (The Twelve Caesars) spoke of the Roman
'caesars' from Julius Caesar to Domitian. Using earlier
histories as sources, his works are considered
interesting but not totally reliable. They are concerned
more with an emperor's personal habits than with his
political accomplishments.
Thank
You
Reported by:
Johanna Salva
Cortado
Shaina Basilan
