The prose prefaces of Martial and Statius : a study in literary purpose

In this thesis I offer a detailed examination of the ten prose prefaces which head the Epigrams of Martial (AD c45-c96) and the Siluae of Statius (c45-c96). The most remarkable feature of these ten short pieces of prose lies in the field of literary history: these are the first extant instances of collections of verse which are headed with pieces of prose, and it is chiefly from this angle that the prefaces are studied. The body of the thesis (Section B) is devoted to a close thematic examination of the prefaces. Their content is discussed under three main headings, namely justification, information and request (chapters 5, 6 and 7 respectively). Within this framework the prefaces are examined in the terms suggested by the four chapters of Section A - the literary history of prefacing (both prose prefaces per se and proems to collections of verse), the production and dissemination of ancient literature, the patronage of letters, and the biographies of the two poets (chapters 1 to 4 respectively). All these topics are treated broadly in Section A and then with specific reference to the prefaces in Section B.

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

Classical Studies

Year dc:date.issued

1991

Author dc:creator

• Parker, Grant

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Coleman, K M

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/11427/22122

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/22122