(b) The Augustan Period.— P. Virgilius Maro (70-19 B.c.), the greatest epic writer of Rome, enjoyed the highest educational advan tages, was gentle and puret amiable, bashful, not a genius, but a slow, labonous worker, carefully polishing all he wrote. His extant poems are (Bucolics,' or (Eclog-x,) 10 in number, which are imitations of Theocritus; (Georgica,' in four books, in which he followed Hesiod, Aratus and others as models, though great independence is shown, as the subject. was congenial to his personal taste and expenence. The warmth and vividness, skilful use of language and pleasing arrangement of the episodes make these the most artistically perfect of all the Roman poems that have reached us. The (./Eneid,' in 12 books, never received the poet's finishing touch, so that he wished it to be destroyed. This masterly poem, one of the greatest epics of the world, treats .of the adven tures of /Eneas, the (Odyssey) being the model for the first six books, the 'Iliad' for the.last six. The language is elegant and at times sublime, but it lacks the simplicity of . the Homeric poems. Besides these, several minor poems are perhaps wrongly attributed to Virgil. Q. Horatius Flaccus (65-8 a.c.), the most pop.u lar poet of Rome, brought the satire to its highest perfection. We have two books of satire, the former containing 10, the latter eight, poems, of which the subject matter is varied, the tone good-natured, though at times sharp, and the style easy and conversational. At about the same time, and in like tone, wereproduced the Epodes, which, like the Odes in form, are like the Satires in content, though more specific and less generous. The Odes, by which Horace is probably best known, and which are based on Greek models, especially Alczus, Sappho and Anacreon, though not wholly de pendent on them, are elaborately wrought out, showing much warmth of feeling, but little of passion and imagination. The skilfully handled metres, the well-chosen language as well as the artistic and happy setting, make the Odes the delight of all. In his later years he pro duced the in two books, of which the first has 20, the latter three, poems. These are of the same general character with the Satires, but show greater care and better style. Especially famous is the third epistle of the second book, called by Quintilian eLiber de Arte Poetica," in which Horace discusses with fine taste a series of literary questions. Albius Tibullus (c. 54-19 ac.), the Roman elegiac poet, was passionate in nature, warm and sym pathetic. Four books of elegies are ascribed to him, of which the third and part of the fourth are spurious. They show a refined taste, great felicity of expression and smoothness of metre. Sextus Propertius (c. 50-15 ac.), a younger contemporary of Tibullus, also wrote elegies, of which we have five books. He was sensuous and passionate by nature, full of fire and origi nality, but often obscure and difficult on account of the multitude of mythological allusions. P. Ovidius Naso (48 s.c.-17 A.D.) was a man of vivid imagination and high poetic temperament, but frivolous and self-indulgent. He was a wonderful story-teller, and the elegance and grace of expression combined with the easy and skilful handling of the metres constitute Ovid's peculiar charm, but these very gifts of nature prevent him from taking the highest rank, for the labor of polishing was irksome to him. We have the following poems: (Epis (or 21 imaginary love let ters by men and women in the heroic age, in elegiac metre; in three books, chiefly erotic; 'Ars Ainatoria,) in three books, and the (Remedia Amoris,' in two books, its coun terpart; 'Medicamina faciei,' only partly ex tant; 'Metamorphoseon Libri XV,> in hexameter verse, treats of various myths and their sources after Greek models; 'Fastoruin Libri VP is a calendar, with an account of the origin of Roman festivals; 'Tristium Libri recounts the troubles of his journey and his wretched plight in a strange land; 'Epistularum ex Ponto Libri IV' are of a like nature and the a very abusive poem against some un known enemy, and finally the a didactic poem, in hexameters, of which only 132 lines are preserved, treating of the fish in the Black Sea. Here may also be mentioned Gratius Faliscus, whose is in a very imper fect state, and Manilius, whose work on astron omy (or better astrology) is dry but not without interest. The greatest prose writer of this age was T. Livius (59 ac.-17 A.D.) of Patavium, a man of vivid imagination, generous feelings, possessed with a love of truth and gifted with fine oratorical powers. His language, graceful and elegant, is made more charming by the archaisms and poetic coloring. Livy is a fine master in the portrayal of character and is perhaps the greatest stylist of the Romans. The charge of provincialism is hardly if at all dis cernible to us. Besides his philosophical and rhetorical works, which are now lost, he wrote the history of Rome in 142 books, 'Ab Urbe Condita,> of which books and XXI-XLV are preserved, while of the rest we have epitomx,.a very unsatisfactory substitute. Other prose writers of this period are Animus Seneca (c. 54 'i.e.-36 A.D.), a writer on rhetorical sub jects, Pomponius Trogus, who wrote a universal history in 44 books, of which a compendium was made by Justinus, and Vitruvius Pollio, from whom we have (De Architectura Libri In law, we may mention S. Sulpicius Rufus, A. Ofillus, M. Antonius Labes and C. Ateius Capito. In grammar and philology, P. Nigidius Figulus, who, besides his work on theology and natural sciences, wrote 30 books, (Commentarii Grammatici' ; M. Verrius Flaccus, author of (Fasti) and Verborum Significatu,) and lulius Hyginus, who wrote on history, geog raphy, agriculture, astronomy, etc., commen taries on Virgil and 277 fables.
IV. Silver
C. Velleius Paterculus (18 6.c.-31 A.D. ) the court historian under Tiberius, wrote an 'Abridgment of Roman History,' in two books, classical in vocabulary, but exag gerated and artificial in style. Valerius Maxi mus (fl. A.D. 26) was not an historian, but a compiler, and his 'Factorum et Dictorum Mem orabilium Libri IX,' without taste and some times without sense, seems to be a collection of models for rhetoricians. Much more import ant is A. Cornelius Celsus (fi. A.D. 50), the sci entist, of whose encyclopaedia we have still ex tant the eight books on medicine. Here also belongs Phzdrus, whose 92 fables in imitation of .
correspondence with Saint Paul is spurious, but there is now little doubt that the tragedies ascribed to him are genuine. Q. Curtius Rufus (fi. A.D 50) wrote (Historim Alexandri Magni Libri X,) of which books I and II are lost; not a great work, though at times, vivid and dra matic, resembling Livy in the words and phrase ology, but Seneca in the form of the sentences. Here may also be mentioned M. Columella, whose work, (De Re Rustica Libri XII,> shows considerable technical knowledge and good taste, and Pomponius Mela, whose
Situ
in three books, reflects Seneca's. style; A. Persius Flaccus (34-62 A.D.), the Stoic, whose six sat ires have been much admired on account of their ethical value. M. Annmus Lucanus (39 65 A.D.) wrote numerous poems, of which only 10 books of the
have reached us. This work has some fine passages, but the style is highly artificial like Seneca's, his uncle. To Petronius Arbiter is ascribed the satirical novel, originally in 20 books, of which only fragments are now extant, and of these the
V. Period of Decline,— The most important writer of this age is Suetonius, whose (Lives of the Twelve Caesars) and some fragments of his other works have come down to us. Here also belongs Florus, with his tasteless (Epit ome of Roman History,' the grammarian Terentius Scaurus, Fronto, the rhetorician; the jurists Ulpius, Marcellus and Gaius, Aulus Gel lius, whose
See also ASSYRIAN LITERATURE; EGYPTIAN LITERATURE; JEWISH LITERATURE; CHINESE LIT ERATURE; PERSIAN LITERATURE; SANSKRIT LIT