Poetry and Empire: Martial and Juvenal

(3 Credit Hours) · Undergraduate

(Recommended for students who have completed CLLA 20003 or equivalent.) This third-year course builds on CLLA 2003 (Intermediate Latin) and offers close reading of the poetry of Martial and Juvenal, two poet friends living and writing in Rome during the reigns of the emperors Domitian, Nerva and Trajan (late 1st c. - early 2nd c. BCE). Martial's epigrams and Juvenal's satires are famous for their vivid and often wry portraits of city life and people, including everybody from emperors to slaves. Students will develop skills in translating and analyzing Latin epigram and satire and study the history and culture of the early Roman empire in which these literary genres flourished. This course prepares students for advanced offerings in Latin literature, especially CLLA 40033 (Roman Satire) and CLLA 40043 (Roman Comedy).