The University of Texas at Tyler Libraries

Martial : A Social Guide

By: Spisak, Art LMaterial type: TextTextSeries: eBooks on DemandPublisher: London : Bloomsbury Publishing, 2015Description: 1 online resource (158 p.)ISBN: 9781472537775Subject(s): Latin literature -- History and criticism | Latin poetry -- History and criticism | Martial -- Criticism and interpretationGenre/Form: Electronic books.Additional physical formats: Print version:: Martial : A Social GuideDDC classification: 870 LOC classification: PA6011Online resources: Click here to view this ebook.
Contents:
Cover; Contents; Introduction; The problem; The ancient Greek iambic tradition; Martial as iambographer; 1. Invective; The origin of Greek iambics; Roman invective; Martial's invective; 2. Amicitia; Reciprocity and friendship; Martial's amicitia: what is it?; Social exchange; Fides; 3. Poems of Praise; Praise poetry as social control; Reciprocity: you owe me; Martial's petitions to Domitian: secondary exchange; Marital as power broker; 4. The Good Life; The urban-rural antithesis; The pastoral ideal: epigram 10.47; The golden age of Saturn; Conclusion; Notes; Bibliography; Index
Summary: In the past both the significance and purpose of Martial's poetry have often been misinterpreted or missed altogether because of the particular literary and social background and context that inform his poetry. For example, literary histories have given the impression that Martial wrote 'unobjectionably trivial' poems merely to cull favour from patrons; they also suggest that he had little to say that was serious. In contrast, this book argues that Martial with his poetry played a serious and vital role in his community as a social guide or conscience. The book's unique approach to Martial's p
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Electronic Book UT Tyler Online
Online 		PA6011 (Browse shelf) http://uttyler.eblib.com/patron/FullRecord.aspx?p=1936340 Available EBL1936340

Cover; Contents; Introduction; The problem; The ancient Greek iambic tradition; Martial as iambographer; 1. Invective; The origin of Greek iambics; Roman invective; Martial's invective; 2. Amicitia; Reciprocity and friendship; Martial's amicitia: what is it?; Social exchange; Fides; 3. Poems of Praise; Praise poetry as social control; Reciprocity: you owe me; Martial's petitions to Domitian: secondary exchange; Marital as power broker; 4. The Good Life; The urban-rural antithesis; The pastoral ideal: epigram 10.47; The golden age of Saturn; Conclusion; Notes; Bibliography; Index

In the past both the significance and purpose of Martial's poetry have often been misinterpreted or missed altogether because of the particular literary and social background and context that inform his poetry. For example, literary histories have given the impression that Martial wrote 'unobjectionably trivial' poems merely to cull favour from patrons; they also suggest that he had little to say that was serious. In contrast, this book argues that Martial with his poetry played a serious and vital role in his community as a social guide or conscience. The book's unique approach to Martial's p

Description based upon print version of record.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

CHOICE Review

Martial is enjoying renewed popularity among classical scholars. The last 25 years or so have witnessed the publication of D.R. Shackleton Bailey's new editions of the poet's corpus in the Loeb and Teubner "classical libraries" series; six English commentaries on selections; and a flood of learned articles, scholarly monographs, and doctoral dissertations. Spisak (Missouri State Univ.) introduces this latest book-length study of the poet by asking how one can appreciate the literary qualities of Martial's epigrams in their social context. He offers a sociological analysis of Martial's poetry in connection with the themes of invective (chapter 1), friendship (chapter 2), praise poetry (chapter 3), and the good life (chapter 4). Spisak reads Martial in the tradition of Indo-European invective and praise poetry, as a spokesman for the social values of his community (Flavian Rome), and he proposes that the Latin poet upholds imperial Roman values by offering both negative and positive exemplar to his readers. This is a valuable basic introduction to the social conventions and literary traditions that animate Martial's epigrams. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-/upper-division undergraduates; general readers. A. M. Keith University of Toronto

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Art Spisak is Professor in the Department of Modern and Classical Languages, Missouri State University.

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