Latin 520 (Tiberius): Assignment for Week 6 (Feb. 11-17)

 

On to PhaedrusÉ

 

As previously mentioned, we will be reading the bulk of HendersonÕs Telling Tales on Caesar (Oxford 2001), his book on Phaedrus that includes selections from the fables with Latin text, English translation, commentary, and discussion.  A copy of the book is on our reserve shelf, and a pdf of the sections we will read is posted to our course webpage:

 

http://faculty.washington.edu/alain/Lat520-Tiberius/Lat520TiberiusHome.html

 

 

For Tuesday: Henderson pp. 1-92 (this includes Phaedr. 2.5, 3.10, 3.Prologue)

 

For Thursday: Henderson pp. 131-148, 165-93 (this includes Phaedr. App. 10, 5.1, 1.14, 4.13, etc.)

 

NB: As the subtitle of his book indicates (ÔRoman stories from PhaedrusÕ), Henderson plucks from the Phaedran corpus the few stories that involve Romans – and stories that, directly or indirectly, reflect on ÔCaesarÕ (that is, the emperor).  But there is a good deal more Phaedrus than you will encounter in this book – there are 90 fables in 5 books, plus the so-called Appendix Perottina, which preserves an additional 30; the other fables are reworkings of Aesop.  They are entertaining and not hard to read, so if youÕre curious you can find the whole corpus here:

 

http://www.thelatinlibrary.com/phaedrus.html

 

 

Notwithstanding HendersonÕs translations, we will translate every fable we read (so be prepared for that).

 

The chief issue here is a simple one: what do these poems tell us about Tiberius or Tiberian Rome? 

 

Can you identify any common ground between Phaedrus and ValMax or VellPat?  WhatÕs new that Phaedrus brings to the cultural table? 

 

Conte calls Phaedrus Ôone of the glories of Latin LiteratureÕ.  Why should that be?  (If this taxes belief, you may find ConteÕs rationale in the few pages he devotes to Phaedrus in his Latin Literature: A History, pp. 433-35 -- copy of this in seminar room. You might find ConteÕs overview of Phaedrus useful.)

 

Henderson is invariably provocative, and deliberately so.  Identify and be prepared to talk about something he says that ÔprovokesÕ you (in either a good or bad way!).

 

Finally: in one of the very few references to Phaedrus in later literature (though he was to become, like ValMax, very popular indeed), Martial refers to him as improbus Phaedrus (3.20.5).  WhatÕs improbus about Phaedrus (at least in what you have read)? 

 

 

Although not included in the scan of Henderson, if you have time on your hands, you could read Chap. 4 (omitted not because irrelevant, but because one canÕt read everything)