Petronius' Satyricon: The Archaeology of a Text

What fundamental questions do we ask when we confront a new piece of evidence, in this case, a literary text?

  • nomenclature
  • chronological context
  • authorship
  • length
  • geographical context
  • manuscript tradition
  • genre: the Greek novel (romance and adventure), Milesian tales (humor and incongruity) and Menippean satire (prosimetrum and varieties of language)

What kinds of evidence do we employ to answer these questions?

  • external evidence
  • internal evidence
    • historical evidence
    • linguistic evidence
    • literary evidence
What conclusions can we draw about this literary work?

What can we learn about Roman social customs and behaviors from this literary work?

  1. the world of slaves and freedmen and the relationships between and among them
  2. social status, class hierarchy, the nouveau riche and the role of wealth
  3. small-town living and "ordinary lives"
  4. language, literature and the legacy of Greece
  5. attitudes towards death and dying
  6. attitudes towards philosophy, the intellectual life and the symposium
  7. attitudes towards gender and sexuality
  8. dinner theater, food and the custom of dining
  9. gladiatorial games and chariot racing
  10. artifice and novelty, trickery and deception
  11. self-indulgence and decadence
  12. satire