Marziale. Epigrammi d'amore

by Marcus Valerius Martialis

Genres: Poetry

127 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 103

About the author

Born: March 1, 40 AD, in Augusta Bilbilis (now Calatayud, Spain); Died: ca. 102 AD--Marcus Valerius Martialis, known in English as Martial, was a Latin poet from Hispania (the Iberian Peninsula) best known for his twelve books of Epigrams, published in Rome between AD 86 and 103, during the reigns of the emperors Domitian, Nerva and Trajan. In these short, witty poems he cheerfully satirises city life and the scandalous activities of his acquaintances, and romanticises his provincial upbringing. Considered the creator of the modern epigram, Martial wrote a total of 1,561 - 1,235 of which are in elegiac couplets.

Reviews

[Manny]

We were having lunch at L'ivresse, one of our favourite cafés here in Geneva. Not, whose nose for interesting books is extraordinarily sensitive, went over to the used book shelf and immediately located this one, which cost us all of 4 Swiss francs. I started looking at it with our friend Y, and we could hardly believe our eyes.

Well, all I can say is, if you think dirty language is even a vaguely modern invention then think again. These epigrams - basically, short poems - were written about two thousand years ago, and the greater part look as though they'd be more at home on a toilet wall. They are startlingly filthy. I guess they are elegantly expressed (my Latin isn't really good enough to tell), but quite often you see things on toilet walls that are more elegant than you'd expect.

The poems are presented in bilingual form, with Latin on one side and French on the other. The French tends to be a bit obscure, and Not wanted to know what all the scandalised giggling was about; when we got home, I translated one, le voilà:

Quid me, Thai senem subinde dicis?
Nemo est, Thai senex ad irremandum

Pourquoi, Thaïs, me traites-tu toujours de vieux?
Personne, Thaïs, n'est trop vieux pour se faire sucer.

Thaïs, so I'm too old to fuck?
No one's so old that you won't suck.

That is in no way unusually crude, in fact the reverse. I just picked it because it was easier than average to translate. Not pronounced herself disappointed; she'd expected something sexy and fun. Sorry. Don't blame me, blame Martial.

[Lecturesdophechups]

http://www.leslecturesdophechups.fr/2...

En conclusion, il s'agit d'un très bel ouvrage, qui s'avère une excellente introduction à l'œuvre de Martial, et qui ne peut que donner envie d'aller plus loin dans nos recherches. Quelques petits points noirs m'empêchent cependant de mettre 5 étoiles, mais rien de grave : l'ensemble reste excellent.

[Elettra Cavana]

Più che una raccolta “erotica” nel senso moderno del termine, mi è sembrata soprattutto un modo molto diretto, sarcastico e spesso volutamente volgare per prendere in giro le persone della Roma dell’epoca. L’erotismo è quasi sempre usato come strumento di satira, provocazione o umiliazione, più che come qualcosa di realmente sensuale. Nonostante questo, li ho trovati divertenti: molti epigrammi hanno un ritmo rapido e una cattiveria ironica che funziona ancora oggi. Si percepisce benissimo il gusto di Marziale per la battuta pungente, per il doppio senso e per il colpo finale quasi “da stand-up comedian” ante litteram. Ovviamente bisogna contestualizzarli: per l’epoca dovevano risultare estremamente scabrosi e provocatori, sia per il linguaggio sia per i temi trattati. Oggi certi passaggi possono sembrare solo grossolani o ripetitivi, ma resta interessante vedere quanto fossero già presenti dinamiche di satira sociale, gossip e umorismo sessuale molto simili a quelle moderne.

[Tonari]

Beh diciamolo, nell'epoca pre-YouPorn aveva un suo effetto :D