Over the centuries leading up to their composition many genres and authors have emerged as influences on Horace's Satires, which in turn has led to a wide variety of scholarly interpretations. This study aims to expand the existing dialogue by exploring further the intersection of ancient satire and ethics, focusing on the moral tradition of Epicureanism through the lens of one source in particular: Philodemus of Gadara. Philodemus was an Epicurean philosopher who wrote for a Roman audience and was one of Horace's contemporaries and neighbours in Italy. His works, which were preserved by the eruption of Vesuvius in AD 79 but have nevertheless not been widely read on account of their fragmentary nature, feature a range of ethical treatises on subjects including patronage, friendship, flattery, frankness, poverty, and wealth. Epicurean Ethics in Horace: The Psychology of Satire offers a serious consideration of the role of Philodemus' Epicurean teachings in Horace's Satires and argues that the central concerns of the philosopher's work not only lie at the heart of the poet's criticisms of Roman society and its shortcomings, but also lend to the collection a certain coherence and overall unity in its underlying convictions. The result is a ground-breaking study of the deep and pervasive influence of Epicurean ethical philosophy on Horace's Satires, which also reveals something of the poet behind the literary mask or persona by demonstrating the philosophical consistency of his position throughout the two books.

About the Author
Sergio Yona is Assistant Professor of Classical Studies at the University of Missouri and received his PhD in Classical Philology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. His current research interests include the reception of Greek philosophy in Rome, Augustan and Early Christian poetry, and textual criticism, and he has published articles on Plato, Vergil, and Epicureanism in Horace. He lives with his wife and six children in Columbia, MO.

Reviews
This landmark exploration of Epicurean ethics in Horace's Satires ... will prove to be especially indispensable to graduate as well as advanced undergraduate courses on Horatian satire. * Gregson Davis, Duke University, Religious Studies Review *
Yona shows that Philodemus is a foundational philosophical influence on Horace's moral and ethical thought in the Sermones, and in doing so widens new critical paths in the scholarship on these poems, especially for the riddling second book. Nearly 25 years on, it provides an invaluable complement to Freudenburg's The Walking Muse and one hopes that it will have a similar influence over the next couple of decades. * Mark Wright, Bryn Mawr Classical Review *
Sergio Yona has in this attractively presented and well-argued book given us a highly charged and concentrated account of Philodemus and Horace which breaks new ground and will inspire further research into this poetry. * John Godwin, Classics for All *



Book Information
ISBN 9780198786559
Author Sergio Yona
Format Hardback
Page Count 360
Imprint Oxford University Press
Publisher Oxford University Press
Weight(grams) 576g
Dimensions(mm) 222mm * 148mm * 29mm