Martial

ISBN: 9780715636206 出版年：2015 页码：158 Art L Spisak Bloomsbury Publishing

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 contehis poetry. For example, literary histories have given the impression that Martial wrote 'unobjectionably trivial' poems merely from patrons; they also suggelittle to say that was serious. In contrast, ththat Martial with his poetry played a serious and vitcommuniguide or conscience. The book's unique approach to Martial's poetry places him within the reactionary tradition of Indo-European blame/praise poetry. Poets in this tradition served a vital function for their community: in reaction to the perceived deterioration of the behaviour and conditions of their dpraised ideal behaviour, or, more commonly, ridiculed socially aberrant and destructive behaviour. By linking Martial with this particular tradition we are better able to account for, understand, and appreciate his themes and methods, and the effect of his poetry.