Literature of Ancient Rome

Readings on World Literary Masterpieces

Weekly Learning Packet No. 5
Intended Learning Outcome
• Explain the characteristics of Roman
Literature. 
• Point out the parallel elements between the
Greek and Roman Literatures.
• Appreciate the influence of Roman epic to the
present body of literature. 
Introduction to Literature of Ancient Rome
• Roman Literature is written in Latin language, the lingua franca
of the Roman Empire and the world until the Middle Ages. 
• Latin literature drew heavily on the traditions of other
cultures, particularly the more matured literary tradition of
Greece. 
• Catullus pioneered the naturalization of Greek lyric verse
forms into Latin.
• The Hellenizing tendencies of Golden Age Latin reached their
apex in the epic poetry of Virgil, the odes and satires of Horace
and the elegiac couplets of Ovid.
Introduction to Literature of Ancient Rome

• Formal Latin literature began in 240 BC.

• Livius Andronicus translated Homer's Greek epic The Odyssey
into an old type of Latin verse called Saturnian.
• Gnaeus Naevius was the first Latin poet to write on a Roman
theme. He composed an epic poem about the first Punic War, in
which he had fought.
• Naevius's dramas were mainly reworkings of Greek originals,
but he also created tragedies based on Roman myths and
history.
The Roman Literary
Giants - Ovid
• Publius Ovidius Naso or Ovid was one of
the greatest Roman poets.
• He wrote about love, seduction and
mythological transformation.
• He is considered a master of the elegiac
couplet.
• Metamorphoses is his masterpiece and
is considered to have decisively
influenced European art and literature,
including Chaucer, Dante, Shakespeare
and Milton.
The Roman Literary Giants – Ovid’s other work
1. Heroines – a collection of 21
letters of heroines to their
partners.
2. Amores – is a three-book
collection of love poems.
3. Ars Amatoria – a didactic elegiac
poem in three books which sets
out to teach the arts of seduction
and love.
The Roman Literary
Giants - Horace
• Quintus Horatius Flaccus or Horace
was one of the greatest Roman
poets.
• Studied in Athens and became a
soldier.
• His work would deeply influence
later writers including Ben Jonson,
Alexander Pope, W.H. Auden, Robert
Frost, and many others.
The Roman Literary Giants – Horace’s works
1. Epodes – a poem of great similarity
with Greek verses.
2. Epistles – a compilation of letters
published in two volumes.
3. Ars Poetica – is a poem written in
which he advises poets on the art of
writing poetry and drama.
4. Odes – his classical masterpiece 
The Roman Literary
Giants – Virgil
• He was born in the village of Andes, near
Mantua.
• He worked on the Aeneid during the last
ten years of his life.
• He caught a fever and died in Brundisium
harbor on September 21st, 19 BCE.
• Augustus Caesar ordered the publication
of Aeneid despite his wish to have it
burned. 
The Roman Literary
Giants – Virgil’s work
• Best known for his three major
works:
1. The Eclogues (or Bucolics),
2. The Georgics and
3. The Aeneid – his masterpiece.

Several minor poems are also

attributed to him.
The Aenid and Its
Background

• Aeneid was written to

uplift the Romans' faith in
the "Greatness of Rome."
• Augustus Caesar made the
epic as an awareness
campaign to institute a
new era of prosperity and
peace, specifically through
the re- introduction of
traditional Roman moral
values.
 The Roman Literary Giants –
Ovid’s other work

• It depicts the heroic Aeneas as a man

devoted and loyal to his country and its
prominence, rather than personal gains,
and going off on a journey for the
betterment of Rome.
• It attempted to legitimize the rule of
Julius Caesar as part of the prophecy
given to Aeneas in the Underworld.
The Roman Literary Giants – Horace’s works
1. Epodes – a poem of great similarity
with Greek verses.
2. Epistles – a compilation of letters
published in two volumes.
3. Ars Poetica – is a poem written in
which he advises poets on the art of
writing poetry and drama.
4. Odes – his classical masterpiece