Gellius the satirist

by Wytse Hette Keulen

"This monograph presents an original portrait of the second-century miscellanist Aulus Gellius, based on a detailed reading of Attic Nights against its contemporary background. Highlighting Gellius' use of humour and irony in his portrayals of controversial celebrities such as Favorinus and Herodes Atticus, the book provides a necessary corrective to interpretations of Gellius as an uncritical phillhellene or an a political bookworm. Distinguishing Gellius' various literary personae (the youthful sector, the independent researcher, the mature writer and adviser), the book uncovers the many-layered sophistication of Gellius' self-presentation. Noting previously unrecognised allusions to literal works and contemporary events, it offers a fresh perspective on Gellius as a satirical writer, whose Roman cultural programme reflects the ambiguities and complexities of Antonine intellectual life."--Jacket.