The formation and development of both Russian and world literature was greatly influenced by the literature of Ancient Rome. Roman literature itself originated from Greek: Roman poets wrote poems and plays, imitating the Greeks. After all, it was quite difficult to create something new in modest Latin, when hundreds of plays were already written very close by: the inimitable epos of Homer, Hellenic mythology, poems and legends.
The origin of Roman literature
The first steps in the development of poetry are associated with the introduction of Greek culture in the Roman Empire. Widespread direction of lyric poetry. Thanks to Greek writers and thinkers, Roman poetry acquired the sensuality and experience of the lyrical hero, behind whom is the author of the work.
The first Roman writer
The pioneer in the literature of Ancient Rome, the first Roman poet was Livy Andronic, an ethnic Greek, a native of the city of Tarento. He began to show his talent as a child, but when the Romans captured his hometown, he fell into slavery and spent a long time as a slave, teaching literature and writing to the offspring of his owner. For good merit, Mr. Livy gave Andronicus a free letter, and he was able to fully engage in literary work.
Andronicus, the first Roman poet, translated Homer into Latin from the Greek Iliad, and he also translated Greek tragedies, plays and dramas. And once the college of pontiffs instructed him to write a hymn glorifying the goddess Juno.
Livy Andronic did not translate exactly - he allowed himself to change names, scenes and dialogues.
Nevi and Annius
Contemporaries of Livy Andronik were such Roman poets as Nevi and Ennius. Nevi in his work preferred tragedies and comedies, often borrowed stories from Greek writers and adapted them to the culture and life of Ancient Rome. His most important work was a poem about the first Punic War, in which he also briefly told the history of the Roman Empire. Annius described the history of Rome in detail - with dates and facts.
Nevi is a Roman poet whose poem became the first original literary work of Ancient Rome. He can rightfully be considered one of the most famous writers of antiquity.
The actor who wrote poetry
No less a contribution to the development of Roman literature and poetry was made by Tit Maktsii Plavt, an actor in the theater. He lived in the late III - early II century. BC e. and in his entire life he wrote about 300 poems, 20 of which have survived to this day. And although he worked exclusively in the comedy genre, his plays were staged in theaters throughout the Roman Empire, even after his death.
The plots of his works are not very original, but always exciting and varied. He wrote both about the everyday life of ordinary citizens and about the life of a soldier’s barracks. And always in his plays there were slaves, as a rule, resourceful, smart and dexterous.
The Roman poet and satirist Tit Macius Plavt is also considered one of the first writers of Ancient Rome and is not the last in his history.
Age of Golden Latin
Another prominent representative of early Roman literature was Tacitus, a Roman poet and author of the work “Annals”. Together with the “Punic War” of Nevius, the “Annals” became the most significant and great work of literature of Ancient Rome.
The apex of the Roman epic is considered to be the Aeneid written by Virgil. All Roman poets glorified it as the best work of the reign of Octavian Augustus.
Many also compared it with Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, although, in contrast to them, the Aeneid is a poem about the future rather than the past. The Roman poet Virgil tells in his poem about the wanderings and adventures of the legendary Aeneas, whose descendants considered themselves citizens of the Roman Empire. It also tells about the romance of the protagonist with Queen Carthage Didona, whom he was forced to leave on the orders of the main god of the Roman pantheon - Jupiter, in order to begin the existence of Rome.
Lyrics of Ancient Rome
The founder of the lyrics in the literature of Ancient Rome was the talented poet Catullus. For the most part, he wrote lyrical sonnets about love. Especially famous was the poem about the love of the Roman poet to the beautiful Claudia - the famous secular lady of Ancient Rome. Catullus was able to reflect in his work all shades of love: from enthusiasm and admiration, to torment and burning longing.
But the lyrics reached its climax in the work of the no less famous Roman poet Horace. His magnificent Odes brought him fame - four books of poems with different themes. Horace wrote, unlike Catullus, not only about love. He paid a lot of attention in his works to Octavian Augustus, singing and glorifying his mind and the power of Roman weapons, beingness and friendship.
Often Horace satirically ridiculed the morals of his contemporaries.
Love songs
By right, one of the most gifted Roman writers, along with Horace and Virgil, is also considered Ovid - their younger contemporary. Being already a famous Roman poet, Ovid wrote such works as The Art of Love and The Means of Love, which have survived to our days. And he was glorified by his earlier poems, which were included in the collection entitled "Songs of Love."
“The Art of Love” and “The Remedy for Love” are, rather, a parody of works in which advice is given to young lovers set forth with wit and satire. This is precisely the reason for sending Ovid to a long-term link. Emperor Octavian Augustus saw in his poems a mockery of his policies, which affected the institution of marriage and the family.
Ovid died away from Rome, having managed to write before his death “Messages from Pontus” and “Sorrowful Elegy”.
Philosophy in Ancient Rome
Philosophical systems did not arise in ancient Rome and generally long before its formation, but still the Romans were able to give the world many outstanding philosophers, writers and thinkers, one of which was Lucretius Car. He was a freethinker, was not afraid to rethink existing systems, for which he gained fame.
He was also a poet - he wrote both lyrical sonnets and plays for the theater. As a Roman poet, Lucretius also achieved considerable success. His poem “On the nature of things”, written by a unique Latin hexameter, is undoubtedly a masterpiece of all ancient Roman literature.
Comedy and tragedy
The comedic and tragic genre in Rome developed under the influence of images of Ancient Greece. Therefore, since ancient times, comedy and tragedy are not considered native genres for Roman culture. Originally a Roman genre called Satura. This word has the meaning of a dish filled with various products.
Then it began to mean a mixture of verses of various directions, united in a single image. The size did not matter, so the size of such verses could be both large and small.
One of the poets who worked in a similar style is Annius. He published his collection, which included both semi-entertaining and instructive poems.
A significant contribution to the development of satura was made by Lucilius Guy. In his work, a similar genre left a big mark. For incomplete 72 years, Lucius wrote about 30 saturas, in which the vices of humanity and contemporaries are exposed:
- corrupt practices;
- self-interest;
- moral "rot";
- greed.
For his works, Guy Lutsili found characters from real life. In those days, slavery and the economy flourished, and the successful conduct of hostilities of the Roman Empire led to an increase in wealth accumulated and concentrated in one hand among a narrow circle of the elite. Aristocrats in the pursuit of gold and money went through the so-called moral decay.
According to historians, satura gave birth to such a direction of literature as Roman realism. After the death of the great writer Lucilius, satura was defined as a small-volume work with revealing connotations.
The development of Roman literature
The works of Roman poets were very poetic, and their form was poetic. With the advent of ever new poets, poetic speech in Latin developed. In poems, poets began to express their philosophical thoughts and ideas. With the help of images and literary techniques created the movement of human feelings.
Deepening in the study of mythology, religion and art of Greece entailed the enrichment of Latin poetry. Writers, having come into contact with the rich history of Greek literature, broadened their horizons, creating more and more new works.
At the end of the existence of the Roman Empire, Catullus can be distinguished. He was a master of poetry who created lyrical poems of small volume. In them, the Roman poet described the basic feelings of any person:
- love;
- jealousy;
- joy;
- friendship;
- love of nature;
- love of homeland.
But besides them, works of Catullus distinguish works directed against the reign of Caesar, as well as against his slander, which were unbearably greedy. The main lever that had a significant impact on the poetry of Catullus was the Alexandrian creativity of poets. Alexandrian literature is distinguished by references to mythology, personal feelings and experiences of the poet himself. Creativity Catullus occupies an important place in world poetry. Even Pushkin himself highly praised the poems of the Roman writer.