The Oxford History Of The Classical World

(Marvins-Underground-K-12) #1

Remains Of Horace's Villa At Licenza in the hills 40km east of Rome. The identification of the site as the Sabine farm
bestowed on the poet by Maecenas in 33 B.C. was made as early as the eighteenth century and is supported not only by
topographical indications in Horace's own writings but also by the styles of construction and decoration, characteristic of the
early Augustan period.


On the other hand, Horace is careful about himself and his image in his patronized position. In Satire 1.9, and in 1.6, the
poem in which he describes his acceptance into Maecenas' circle, he is careful to define that acceptance as an honourable
process, based on merit, and the circle as one of like-minded men free from the debasing procedures which characterized
many client-patron groupings. Indeed he terms himself the 'friend' (amicus) of Maecenas. Although the language of amicitia
was conventionally used between clients and patrons, and it would be quite clear who was the grand amicus and who was not,
there is much evidence that Horace genuinely was friendly in the full sense of the word with Maecenas and even with
Augustus. Indeed, he was familiar enough with Maecenas to allude in Epode 14 to an erotic liaison on the great man's part
with an actor, Bathyllus.


In Odes 1-3, belonging to the first Augustan period, Horace assumes the role of a Roman Alcaeus. It was the usefulness of the
image rather than the material of Alcaeus' texts that suggested this choice. Horace presents the image of Alcaeus, with
discreet distortion, as follows (Odes 1.32). Alcaeus was an intensely committed citizen-poet, engage, patriotically writing
about the burning issues of his time; he also knew, however, that there was a place on the margins of life for I leisure, for love
and wine, and for poetry of leisure, poetry of love and wine; and he wrote such leisure poetry, as well as engage poetry,

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