Pliny the elder has 280 books on goodreads with 3768 ratings. 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. Gaius plinius caecilius secundus, born gaius caecilius or gaius caecilius cilo 61 ad ca. See key to translations for an explanation of the format.
Roman literary life book 1, letter 1 pliny has accepited his friends advice and collected some of his letters for publication. What happens in each of the 24 books of the iliad by homer. Some contemporary texts polycarp to the philippians 110140 a. Pliny the elder 2379 ce, tireless researcher and writer, is author of the encyclopedic natural history, in 37 books, an unrivaled. Letters of pliny, by gaius plinius caecilius secundus. One of the famous seven hills upon which rome was situated. I cant remember ever passing the time so pleasantly as i did on my recent visit to spurinna.
Gaius plinius secundus 23 ad august 25, 79 ad, better known as pliny the elder, was a roman author, naturalist, and natural philosopher, as well as naval and army commander of the early roman empire, and personal friend of the emperor vespasian. Pliny the younger, the roman governor of bithynia and pontus now in modern turkey wrote a letter to emperor trajan around ad 112 and asked for counsel on dealing with the early christian community. This modern translation of the ten books of plinys letters provides a wealth of information on the social and political history of rome at the turn of the first century, including plinys famous account of the destruction of pompeii and his celebrated correspondence with the emperor trajan about the early christians. Previous part 2 the greeks say, ignorance makes a man bold. Pliny, martial and regulus, or the problem of lacking approval in lifetime scholars usually date book 19 of the letters to the period of 96108 ad5. The letters of the younger pliny by pliny the younger, 9780140441277, available at book depository with free delivery worldwide. Jan 06, 2014 book 1 indicates the sweep of the work in a detailed table of contents, accompanied by a list of established experts from whom pliny borrowed. Literature was taken much more seriously in the time of the emperor claudius. 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.
In the writings of the middle ages he leaves no trace. Gaius plinius caecilius secundus, usually known as pliny the younger, was born at como in 62 a. Two men named pliny are known to us from their writings, and that sometimes causes confusion. Pliny the younger was governor of pontusbithynia from 1111 ad. 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. It is one of the largest single works to have survived from the roman empire to the modern day and purports to cover the entire. 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. Book 1, letter 3 pliny is shocked that the people walk out in the middle of recitations. Nov 30, 2010 pliny s letter has been cited as evidence for the historicity of jesus, one of the best known examples of that being by josh mcdowell. Pliny book 1, letter 1 english translation pliny book 1, letter 1.
Ad 611 was also a prolific letterwriter, who numbered among his correspondents such eminent figures as tacitus. 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. Pliny the elders most popular book is natural history. The content of this section of the letters evolves over time. 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 first reference to plinys own activities as a poet is to be found in book 4, which sherwinwhite dates to 1045 ad6.
Plinys uncle, pliny the elder, helped raise and educate him and they were both witnesses to the eruption of vesuvius on 24 august 79 ad. Like the director of an overseas subsidiary, pliny writes to trajan for advice and direction. Buy a cheap copy of the letters of the younger pliny book by pliny the younger. He was educated at home and then in rome under quintilian.
This is the first general introduction to plinys letters published in any language, combining close readings with broader context and adopting a fresh and innovative approach to reading the letters as an artistically structured collection. This final book was, significantly, not intended for publication. Like the ceo, trajan replies succinctly with his decisions. A prominent lawyer and administrator, pliny was also a prolific letterwriter, who numbered among his correspondents such eminent.
This post belongs to a serialized translation and commentary of pliny the youngers letters 6. 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. Plinys uncle, pliny the elder, helped raise and educate him. The letters of the younger pliny the letters of pliny the.
The letters of the younger pliny are a good source to look into during this period of roman history to see the dangers and excitement in which these people lived there certainly was a lot of it. Go, wanton muse, but go with care, nor meet, illtimd, my plinys ear. Naturalis historia latin for natural history is an encyclopedia published circa ad 7779 by pliny the elder. Pliny saw himself as a writer and you can see that in his carefully thoughtout pleasing phrases and sentences. The letters of the younger pliny book by pliny the younger. The letters of the younger pliny the younger, pliny.
The letters of the younger pliny the letters of pliny the younger by pliny the younger part 3 out of 3. The epistulae are later copies of a series of personal missives by pliny the younger directed to his friends and associates. Gaius plinius caecilius secundus, born gaius caecilius or gaius caecilius cilo 61 c. Read complete letters by pliny the younger available from rakuten kobo. An xml version of this text is available for download, with the additional restriction that you offer perseus any modifications you make. This was a delightful read, with much that is quotable. He wrote a number of books, but the natural history is the only one that survives. The digital loeb classical library extends the founding mission of james loeb with an interconnected, fully searchable, perpetually growing virtual library of all that is important in greek and latin literature. Pliny the elder, roman savant and author of the celebrated natural history, an encyclopedic work of uneven accuracy that was an authority on scientific matters up to the middle ages. Lefkowitz 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. The first section forcefully condemns the murderers through vivid imagery and references to universal servile threats. These letters concern an episode which marks the first time the roman. Index of the letters of the younger pliny the letters of pliny the younger.
Pliny book 3, letter 2 english translation pliny book 3, letter 2. Its an encyclopedia of what passed for scientific information in that time. The younger pliny was born in 61 or 62 ce, the son of lucius caecilius of comum como and the elder plinys sister. Plinys letters have not lost their currency partly because the social topics are still timely, whether they are property values going up in tuscany, scandals over the acceptance of bribes or the adultery of public figures, an invitation to dinner, the playing of a prank, or just plain gossip. Those that give details of plinys life at his country villas are important. The roman law of succession in the letters of pliny the younger. Pliny the younger, latin in full gaius plinius caecilius secundus, born 6162 ce, comum italydied c. Book i the letters of pliny book i i to septicius clarus 1. This letter is usually mentioned as part of a collection of evidence since citations from multiple sources help to build the weight of the claim.
Essays and criticism on pliny the youngers the letters of pliny the younger critical evaluation. Letter xcvi is pliny s famous letter concerning the christians. Pliny the younger as governor of bithyniapontus, in c. You have constantly urged me to collect and publish the more highly finished of the letters that i may have written. Plinys letters provide a fascinating insight into roman life in. Pliny wants tacitus to record an incident from his career in the senate. Pliny was as much storyteller as scientist, and his writing is laced with both anecdotes and philosophical musings that, for the most part, bemoan mankinds misappropriation of nature. I know that immortal fame awaits him if his death is recorded by you. Originally intended as letters for historian tacitus, to describe and. Betty radice was an honorary fellow of st hildas college, oxford and vicepresident of the classical association. Learn pliny letter with free interactive flashcards.
During the reign of domitian, pliny and his colleague, senecio, had to prosecute the governor of baetica, who was a friend of the emperors. Ad 611, a prominent lawyer and administrator, was also a prolific letterwriter. This penguin classics edition is translated with an introduction by betty radice. At this time, pliny already had reached the peak of his political career. Chapter 1 traces plinys autobiographical narrative throughout the letters. Pliny the elder, tireless researcher and writer, is author of the encyclopedic natural history, in 37 books, an unrivaled compendium of roman knowledge the contents of the books are as follows. The style is very different from that in the panegyricus, and some commentators maintain that pliny initiated a new genre. The older man, gaius plinius secundus, is called pliny the elder.
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. Chronologically, it is suggested that books 1 to 3 were written between 97. The nook book ebook of the pliny s letters, books 1 and 2. Free kindle book and epub digitized and proofread by project gutenberg. Book i 2 book ii 78 book iii 158 book iv 242 book v. Librivox recording of the natural history, volume 3, by pliny the elder. The original source is pliny the younger, epistles 10. To tacitus your request that i would send you an account of my uncles death, in order to transmit a more exact relation of it to posterity, deserves my acknowledgments.
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 accurate account some 25 years later. Pliny to cornelius tacitus thank you for asking me to send you a description of my uncles death so that you can leave an accurate account of it for posterity1. An eye witness to history pliny the younger live from 61ad to 112ad and his letters to cornelius tacitus are the most famous report of the mt. Victor in paris in 1500, where it was collated and foliated, and still complete then. 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.
The text of books i to ix of the letters rests on three manuscript traditions, the 9book, the 10book and the 8book, known as. I got pliny the youngers letter to trajan from the notes to eusebius ecclesiastical history, book iii, ch. His family consists of three children two of which are sons, whom he. You have often urged me to collect and publish any letters of mine which were composed with some care. 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.
When the governor tried to intimidate sencecio, pliny jumped to his defence. The letters of the younger pliny penguin classics by pliny the younger and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. The work, which was largely complete by 77 ce, is divided into 37 books and covers such subjects as botany, zoology, and astronomy. A prominent lawyer and administrator, pliny was also a prolific letterwriter, who numbered among his correspondents such. These letters are a unique testimony of roman administrative history and everyday life in the 1st century. Chapter 2 undertakes detailed study of book 6 as an artistic entity. Prosopography highly selective birley, anthony richard. He, by sage minerva taught, gives the day to studious thought, and plans that eloquence divine, which shall to future ages shine, and rival, wondrous tully. Definitely recommended to those who are interested in looking into our ancient past.
The project gutenberg ebook of letters of pliny, by pliny this ebook is for the use of. He was at misenum at the time of the eruption of vesuvius in 79 described in two famous letters when the elder pliny died. Pliny the younger wrote a letter to the emperor in order to find out how to handle the superstition held by christians. Gibson and ruth morello frontmatter more information reading theletters of pliny the younger. The horrid barbarity which the slaves of larcius macedo, a person of praetorian rank, lately exercised upon their. Primary sources letters of pliny the younger and the. Ancestor of all the 10book mss, and originally complete. The letters of the younger pliny 9780140441277 by pliny. He used to say that there was no book so bad that it was not useful at some point. These are like corporate emails and i found them fascinating. She was a renowned translator of both latin and greek.
An xml version of this text is available for download, with the additional restric. We have a whole set of exchanges of his letters with the emperor trajan on a variety of administrative political matters. Click on the l symbols to go the latin text of each letter. The epistulae are a series of personal missives by pliny the younger directed to his friends and associates. The historians request this post belongs to a serialized translation and commentary of pliny the youngers letters 6. Pliny, who was only seventeen at the time of the eruption, was living with his mother and his uncle in the north of the bay of naples. Perseus provides credit for all accepted changes, storing new additions in a versioning system. Complete letters ebook by pliny the younger rakuten kobo. Choose from 465 different sets of pliny letter flashcards on quizlet. The letters of the younger pliny by pliny the younger. Letters of pliny the younger and the emperor trajan. This work is licensed under a creative commons attributionsharealike 3.