While the first nine books of plinys letters follow a roughly chronological orderthe author disingenuously maintains hes just selected them casually, almost at randombook 10 is made up of official correspondence exchanged during his tenure as governor of bithynia part of modernday turkey. Pliny s letters are important as a social document of his times. Pliny the younger wrote hundreds of letters, of which 247 survive and are of great. They tell us about the man himself and his wide interests, and about his many friends, including tacitus, martial and suetonius. This final book was, significantly, not intended for publication. Especially noteworthy among the letters are two in which he describes the eruption of mount vesuvius in august 79, during which his uncle pliny the elder died 65 and 66 in this edition, and one in which he asks the emperor for instructions regarding official policy concerning christians trajan letter 97. He used to say that there was no book so bad that it was not useful at some point. Book x of the letters contains his correspondence with trajan during this period, and includes letters about the early christians.
I have now made a collection, not keeping to the original order as i was not writing history, but taking them as they came to my hand. The older man, gaius plinius secundus, is called pliny the elder. Plinys lively and very personal letters address an astonishing range of topics, from a deeply moving account of his uncles death in the eruption that engulfed pompeii, to observations on the early christiansa desperate. I have two consolations, however, which, though by no means equivalent to such a grief, still are consolations. He was educated at home and then in rome under quintilian.
Click on the l symbols to go the latin text of each letter. A witness to the eruption of vesuvius, pliny the younger 61 1 ad was a successful politician, public servant, and advisor to the emperor trajan. Clarus, is also notable for giving plinys reasons for collecting his letters. Chronologically, it is suggested that books 1 to 3 were written. Larcius macedo was beaten to death by his slaves, but lived long enough to have them killed. Pliny the younger, letters, book 3, letter 21, section 6. Its an encyclopedia of what passed for scientific information in that time. As a kind master, pliny is worried by the illness of his former slave, zosimus. Pliny the younger was born in novum comum como, northern italy around 61 ad, the son of lucius caecilius cilo, born there, and his wife plinia marcella, a sister of pliny the elder.
Gaius plinius caecilius secundus, usually known as pliny the younger, was born at como in 62 a. But, with the receipt of plinys letter, tacitus evidently was intrigued with plinys closing comment. Pliny the younger relates the suffering of macedo and the subsequent executions in epistles 3. Index of the letters of the younger pliny the letters of pliny the younger. This comprehensive general commentary on the nine books of the younger pliny s private letterswhich cover nearly aspect of roman life except warfareoffers a selfcontained discussion of each letter or group of associated letters and their rich array of information about the authors social, political, and legal life and times. Here pliny dictates his most famous letter as he and his mother observe the eruption of vesuvius. Crop of pliny the younger and his mother at misenum, 79 ad, by angelica kauffmann 1785. Pliny the younger, nephew of the great naturalist pliny the elder, was a roman orator. Pliny hoped to squelch this dangerous superstition.
Pliny saw himself as a writer and you can see that in his carefully thoughtout pleasing phrases and sentences. Providing a series of fascinating views of imperial rome, the letters of the younger pliny also offer one of the fullest selfportraits to survive from classical times. The route taken by pliny the elder in his rescue mission during the eruption. Pliny the younger married three times, firstly, when he was very young about 18, to a. Roman senator and writer, gaius plinius caecilius secundus otherwise known as pliny the younger, who was seventeen years old at the time of the eruption, had witnessed the vesuvius eruption of 79 ad from the home of his uncle in misenum and managed to write a very. Learn selected letters pliny pliny with free interactive flashcards. Primary sources letters of pliny the younger and the. Letters of pliny, by gaius plinius caecilius secundus. Jun 24, 2010 while the first nine books of plinys letters follow a roughly chronological orderthe author disingenuously maintains hes just selected them casually, almost at randombook 10 is made up of official correspondence exchanged during his tenure as governor of bithynia part of modernday turkey. He was at misenum at the time of the eruption of vesuvius in 79 described in two famous letters when the elder pliny died. In the last pages of book 36, pliny introduces the subject of glass by describing the relatively recent decorative technique of tiling vaulted ceilings with glass mosaics. Previous part 2 the greeks say, ignorance makes a man bold. Pliny the elder has 277 books on goodreads with 3818 ratings. The sickness lately in my family, which has carried off several of my servants, some of them, too, in the prime of their years, has been a great affliction to me.
Pliny the elders sister, plinia, married a man named caecilius, from the northern italian town of. Letters of pliny the younger and the emperor trajan. Keil with a commentary, and a life of pliny 1880 9781164919650. Dear acilius, 1 a terrible thing, worthy of more than just a letter, has been suffered at the hands of his slaves by larcius macedo, a man of praetorian rank, a haughty and savage master who remembered too little or rather too well that his own father had been a slave. Gibson and ruth morello frontmatter more information contents acknowledgements page ix list of abbreviations xi map. Letters of pliny the younger to the historian tacitus. His letters are arranged in ten books, of which the tenth consists entirely of letters to and from the emperor trajan. The letters of the younger pliny the letters of pliny the younger by pliny the younger part 3 out of 3. These letters are a unique testimony of roman administrative history and everyday life in the 1st century.
This work is licensed under a creative commons attributionsharealike 3. Then he recounts a fablelike tale about the discovery of glass, which takes place on the glistening sands along the belus river near mt. Letters of pliny by pliny the younger nook book ebook. You have to wait until the end of the book to see the breezy roman way he makes the decision to execute a couple of christian women. He was the grandson of senator and landowner gaius caecilius, revered his uncle, pliny the elder who at this time was extremely famous around the roman empire. You have often urged me to collect and publish any letters of mine which were composed with some care. The letters of the younger pliny by pliny the younger, 9780140441277, available at book depository with free delivery worldwide. Victor in paris in 1500, where it was collated and foliated, and still complete then. The tenth book consists of letters to and from the emperor trajan, mostly written during plinys governorship. Although macedo was a brutal master, pliny is horrified by his murder.
Pliny is shocked that the people walk out in the middle of recitations. Visa est enim mihi res digna consultatione, maxime propter periclitantium numerum. Book i 2 book ii 78 book iii 158 book iv 242 book v. They were not written with an eye to publication, and. Pliny book 1, letter 1 english translation pliny book 1, letter 1. Trajans reply to the letter by pliny from 2 days ago. Gaius plinius caecilius secundus, born gaius caecilius or gaius caecilius cilo 61 c. The horrid barbarity which the slaves of larcius macedo, a person of praetorian rank, lately exercised upon their master, is so extremely tragical, that it deserves to be the subject of something more considerable than a private letter.
Book 1, letter 3 pliny is shocked that the people walk out in the middle of recitations. Selected letters pliny pliny flashcards and study sets quizlet. The letters are a series of personal missives by pliny the younger directed to his friends and associates. As already mentioned above, highlights of these books include plinys. Free kindle book and epub digitized and proofread by project gutenberg. Pliny s lively and very personal letters address an astonishing range of topics, from a deeply moving account of his uncles death in the eruption that engulfed pompeii, to observations on the early christiansa desperate. Ideo dilata cognitione, ad consulendum te decucurri. His family consists of three children two of which are sons, whom he. L efkowitz fannia was granddaughter of the famous arria the elder, a stoic, who committed suicide when her husband, caecina paetus, was condemned to death in a. Ancestor of all the 10book mss, and originally complete. Roman literary life book 1, letter 1 pliny has accepited his friends advice and collected some of his letters for publication.
An xml version of this text is available for download, with the additional restriction that you offer perseus any modifications you make. Chapter 2 undertakes detailed study of book 6 as an artistic entity. Letters of pliny by pliny the younger free at loyal books. Jan 16, 2006 dear acilius, 1 a terrible thing, worthy of more than just a letter, has been suffered at the hands of his slaves by larcius macedo, a man of praetorian rank, a haughty and savage master who remembered too little or rather too well that his own father had been a slave. This was a delightful read, with much that is quotable. Dear acilius, 1 a terrible thing, worthy of more than just a letter, has been suffered at the hands of his slaves by larcius macedo, a man of praetorian rank. The letter which, in compliance with your request, i wrote to you concerning the death of my uncle has raised, it seems, your curiosity to know what terrors and dangers attended me while i continued at misenum. The two letters written by pliny the younger describing the. Multi enim omnis aetatis, omnis ordinis, utriusque sexus etiam vocantur in periculum et vocabuntur. The letters of the younger pliny by pliny the younger.
The younger pliny was born in 61 or 62 ce, the son of lucius caecilius of comum como and the elder plinys sister. The letter has been admired as a good piece of reporting and is frequently mentioned in studies on roman slavery as evidence for. Plinys letters are important as a social document of his times. He was only eight years old when his father caecilius died, and he was adopted by his uncle, the elder pliny, author of the natural history. Firth 1900 a few words and phrases have been modified. Literature was taken much more seriously in the time of the emperor. Pliny book 3, letter 2 english translation pliny book 3, letter 2. Choose from 401 different sets of selected letters pliny pliny flashcards on quizlet.
Clodius thrasea paetus, was condemned in 66, under nero. See key to translations for an explanation of the format. Pliny adds in conclusion, he and his mother his uncles sister had remained at misenuma fact, pliny tells tacitus, of no historical interest nor, for that matter, of relevance since tacitus had inquired only about his uncles death 6. Perseus provides credit for all accepted changes, storing new additions in a versioning system.
He wrote a number of books, but the natural history is the only one that survives. This comprehensive general commentary on the nine books of the younger plinys private letterswhich cover nearly aspect of roman life except warfareoffers a selfcontained discussion of each letter or group of associated letters and their rich array of information about the authors social, political, and legal life and times. These letters concern an episode which marks the first time the roman government recognized christianity as a. The project gutenberg ebook of letters of pliny, by pliny this ebook is for the use of. Her daughter, arria the younger, fannias mother, stopped from doing as her mother had when her own husband, p. The letters of the younger pliny the letters of pliny the. Literature was taken much more seriously in the time of the emperor claudius. Sep 16, 2012 trajans reply to the letter by pliny from 2 days ago. Jan 06, 2014 in the last pages of book 36, pliny introduces the subject of glass by describing the relatively recent decorative technique of tiling vaulted ceilings with glass mosaics. The style is very different from that in the panegyricus, and some commentators.
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