Figuring Genre in Roman Satire

Fiction & Literature, Literary Theory & Criticism, Ancient & Classical
Cover of the book Figuring Genre in Roman Satire by Catherine Keane, Oxford University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Catherine Keane ISBN: 9780190293048
Publisher: Oxford University Press Publication: January 12, 2006
Imprint: Oxford University Press Language: English
Author: Catherine Keane
ISBN: 9780190293048
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Publication: January 12, 2006
Imprint: Oxford University Press
Language: English

Satirists are social critics, but they are also products of society. Horace, Persius, and Juvenal, the verse satirists of ancient Rome, exploit this double identity to produce their colorful commentaries on social life and behavior. In a fresh comparative study that combines literary and cultural analysis, Catherine Keane reveals how the satirists create such a vivid and incisive portrayal of the Roman social world. Throughout the tradition, the narrating satirist figure does not observe human behavior from a distance, but adopts a range of charged social roles to gain access to his subject matter. In his mission to entertain and moralize, he poses alternately as a theatrical performer and a spectator, a perpetrator and victim of violence, a jurist and criminal, a teacher and student. In these roles the satirist conducts penetrating analyses of Rome's definitive social practices "from the inside." Satire's reputation as the quintessential Roman genre is thus even more justified than previously recognized. As literary artists and social commentators, the satirists rival the grandest authors of the classical canon. They teach their ancient and modern readers two important lessons. First, satire reveals the inherent fragilities and complications, as well as acknowledging the benefits, of Roman society's most treasured institutions. The satiric perspective deepens our understanding of Roman ideologies and their fault lines. As the poets show, no system of judgment, punishment, entertainment, or social organization is without its flaws and failures. At the same time, readers are encouraged to view the satiric genre itself as a composite of these systems, loaded with cultural meaning and highly imperfect. The satirist who functions as both subject and critic trains his readers to develop a critical perspective on every kind of authority, including his own.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Satirists are social critics, but they are also products of society. Horace, Persius, and Juvenal, the verse satirists of ancient Rome, exploit this double identity to produce their colorful commentaries on social life and behavior. In a fresh comparative study that combines literary and cultural analysis, Catherine Keane reveals how the satirists create such a vivid and incisive portrayal of the Roman social world. Throughout the tradition, the narrating satirist figure does not observe human behavior from a distance, but adopts a range of charged social roles to gain access to his subject matter. In his mission to entertain and moralize, he poses alternately as a theatrical performer and a spectator, a perpetrator and victim of violence, a jurist and criminal, a teacher and student. In these roles the satirist conducts penetrating analyses of Rome's definitive social practices "from the inside." Satire's reputation as the quintessential Roman genre is thus even more justified than previously recognized. As literary artists and social commentators, the satirists rival the grandest authors of the classical canon. They teach their ancient and modern readers two important lessons. First, satire reveals the inherent fragilities and complications, as well as acknowledging the benefits, of Roman society's most treasured institutions. The satiric perspective deepens our understanding of Roman ideologies and their fault lines. As the poets show, no system of judgment, punishment, entertainment, or social organization is without its flaws and failures. At the same time, readers are encouraged to view the satiric genre itself as a composite of these systems, loaded with cultural meaning and highly imperfect. The satirist who functions as both subject and critic trains his readers to develop a critical perspective on every kind of authority, including his own.

More books from Oxford University Press

Cover of the book The United States of Excess by Catherine Keane
Cover of the book Could it be Adult ADHD? by Catherine Keane
Cover of the book Lincoln's Generals by Catherine Keane
Cover of the book Devouring Japan by Catherine Keane
Cover of the book The Analects of Dasan, Volume I by Catherine Keane
Cover of the book Strategies for Success in Musical Theatre by Catherine Keane
Cover of the book Police for the Future by Catherine Keane
Cover of the book Telethons by Catherine Keane
Cover of the book Under The March Sun : The Story Of Spring Training by Catherine Keane
Cover of the book Creative Teamwork by Catherine Keane
Cover of the book Pioneers of Jazz by Catherine Keane
Cover of the book Tri-Faith America by Catherine Keane
Cover of the book Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter by Catherine Keane
Cover of the book An Introduction to the Theory of Mechanism Design by Catherine Keane
Cover of the book Who Controls the Internet? : Illusions of a Borderless World by Catherine Keane
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy