Martial

Arthur Spisak (University of Iowa)

Ed. by William John Dominik, University of Otago
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.1.2: Ancient Roman Writing and Culture (Republic and Empire), -750-476.
Vol. editors: William John Dominik (University of Otago), Giacomo Fedeli (University of Exeter), Thomas Habinek (University of Southern California), Emily Kneebone (University of Nottingham), Elodie Paillard (University of Sydney), Sophia Papaioannou (National and Kapodistrian University of Athens), Jula Wildberger (The American University of Paris)

Dates

Born 1 Mar 40
Died 103
Activity c. 60-103

Places

Born in Ancient Rome (Republic & Empire)
Active in Ancient Rome (Republic & Empire)

Activities

Primary

Poet
Story-writer

Resources

Marcus Valerius Martialis, or Martial, as he is generally now known, was unique in the particular type of poetry he wrote and its effect. Following in the Indo-European tradition of the blame poet, he had special license to treat social transgressions with cutting wit and humor, as well as with extreme frankness, which included the use of obscenities and graphic sexual content. Typically Martial, in reaction to any perceived deterioration of norms of behavior, ridiculed socially aberrant and dangerously destructive behavior; or, less often, in an effort to prescribe and encourage socially acceptable behavior, he praised examples of ideal behavior. The aggregate result of this blame and praise poetry was a guide that voiced and …

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3550 words

Citation: Spisak, Arthur. "Martial". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 21 October 2007 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=2960, accessed 22 November 2024.]

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