Catholic Thought discussion

Summary

We meet Petronius, an older aristocrat, awakening to the start of the novel, benumbed after having spent the previous night at one of Nero’s feasts. After getting a message and a bath, his young nephew, Marcus Vinicius arrives, recently returned from Asia Minor and joins him in the bath. They talk about their mutual travels and assignments, the recent politics, and common acquaintances. They also talk about life and war and writing. When Petronius casually mentions Aulus Plautius, Vinicius tells of having stayed at Aulus’s home when he dislocated his arm and was nursed by a most beautiful young slave named Lygia, with whom he had fallen in love. Vinicius tells the story of how the Emperor Claudius in conquest of the Lygians had taken the girl, who was the Lygean King’s daughter as a political hostage and through several transactions wound up with Pomponia Graecina, the wife of Aulus Plautius, where Vinicius met her. He expresses his desire to have Lygia and implores Petronius to get Aulus to give her to him.

The two set out to the house of Aulus Plautius. On the way, Vinicius tells Petronius of his two meetings with Lygia. They travel through the heart of Rome where the city comes to life with activity. They stop at a book-shop, and Petronius purchases a book, Satyricon, and gifts it to Vinicius. Petronius tells him he is the author, but it is a secret and to not tell anyone. The two arrive at Aulus’s house and are let in. Aulus was a general under the Emperor Claudius in the conquest of Britain, and the three men have a discussion. They come to where his little child Aulus and Lygia are playing and then come to Plautius’s wife Pomponia in the garden. Pomponia is dressed in black mourning. When Lygia joins them, Vinicius quotes a love verse from Homer, and Lygia to everyone’s surprise knows and speaks the corresponding verse. She runs off, but Vinicius follows and woos her and asks her to live with him in Sicily. Meanwhile Petronius and Pomponia are discussing the gods when Pomponia tells him she only believes in one almighty God.

On the way home, Petronius pondered the philosophic implications of Pamponia’s one God. He speaks of this to Vinicius but Vinicius is focused solely on Lygia. He says he is completely captivated by her and must marry her. Petronius tries to calm him, and finally tells him he has a plan that if it works she will wind up in Vinicius’ house.

That evening Petronius goes to have a confidential conversation with Nero. In a few days a squad of praetorian soldiers headed by a centurion show up in Aulus’ house proclaiming that the emperor commands to take Lygia to his household since she is an offered hostage from the Lygian king. The household is in tears. All these years at the Aulus’ household, Lygia had become a daughter to Aulus and Pomponia. But despite the heartbreak, tears, and anger, Lygia must go. Lygia is consoled that she can take her retinue that came with her from Lygia, and who share her religion. Aulus promises he will speak to the emperor to reverse this.

But Nero denies Aulus a visit, and so Aulus goes to Seneca for assistance. Seneca laughs that he could have any sway over Nero, and that it might actually be counterproductive and Nero deny him in spite. They come to the conclusion that Petronius had put up Nero to taking Lygia. Aulus then goes to Vinicius’ home and tells him that Lygia has been taken away. This enrages Vinicius because he had understood the plan to be that Petronius would have her sent to his house, not the emperor’s.

Vinicius rushes to Petronius’s home in anger ready to exact violence. He believes that Petronius has betrayed him to keep Lygia for himself. Petronius stops him with his own strength but as Vinicius calms down, Petronius explains that this was part of his plan. It required Lygia to spend some time at the Emperor’s home because Lygia is technically a political hostage, and therefore it required a justification to take her from Aulus. In time Nero will authorizes her to go to Vinicius’ home. Vinicius is mollified and asks for forgiveness.

Petronius and the volatile, melodramatic Vinicius drive me crazy. I do like Lygia.

Vinicius is besotted, no question about it. We normally don't get such unfiltered declarations of love. I find it quite amusing. Here is the young buck not knowing where his head stands!

Petronius is a seasoned courtier. He knows how precariously his life hangs in the balance given Nero's volatile temper. He has to outsmart him given Lygia's complicated status. He also has no compunction to let the ends justify the means.

Kerstin: "Vinicius is besotted, no question about it. We normally don't get such unfiltered declarations of love. I find it quite amusing. Here is the young buck not knowing where his head stands!"

Exactly on the mark, Kerstin. It is very amusing. I think he is in lust rather than in love. After all, he doesn't even know the girl.

Yep.

So what is interesting is that I think Sienkiewicz is playing with Greco-Roman stoicism, and how Vinicius is the very opposite in contrast to Petronius and Aulus who hold to that model much better. Sienkiewicz goes out of his way to highlight Vinicius' over abundant emotion and lack of control. Vinicius is a total failure to hold up this Roman ideal. How this figures in the novel I don't think we've seen yet.

There's certainly some play with Stoicism, but I think Sienkiewicz is setting up kind of a three-way thing. You have Vinicius who is ruled by his emotions and desires, Petronius who is so logical as to be coldly ruthless, and the as yet mysterious Christians Pomponia and Lygia. Pitted against these is the overwhelming figure of Nero and his unpredictability so we may see a deep dive into how each character reacts when the winds shift, as it were.

Here is a description and graphics of how a Roman house looked like.
https://roman-empire.net/society/the-...

Years ago there was a traveling exhibit on Roman life here in Kansas City, and they had rebuilt an atrium with the pool in the middle, etc. It was fascinating.

In the second chapter Petronius and Vicinius visit the house of Aulus, and right from the beginning this house is set apart.

A young and sturdy "janitor" opened the door leading to the ostium, over which a magpie confined in a cage greeted them noisily with the word, "Salve!" On the way from the second antechamber, called the ostium, to the atrium itself, Vinicius said,—"Hast noticed that thee doorkeepers are without chains?" "This is a wonderful house," answered Petronius, in an undertone.
"Of course it is known to thee that Pomponia Græcina is suspected of entertaining that Eastern superstition which consists in honoring a certain Chrestos.

The description of the ornamentation of the house is a mixture of Christian and Pagan. None that is here would be particularly out of place to the Pagan, it may be different from other houses and but they attribute it to the specific taste of the owners. What they are missing and have no knowledge of is the specifically Christian symbolism on display here.

Meanwhile they had entered the atrium. The slave appointed to it, called atriensis, sent a nomenclator to announce the guests; and Petronius, who, imagining that eternal sadness reigned in this severe house, had never been in it, looked around with astonishment, and as it were with a feeling of disappointment, for the atrium produced rather an impression of cheerfulness. A sheaf of bright light falling from above through a large opening broke into a thousand sparks on a fountain in a quadrangular little basin, called the impluvium, which was in the middle to receive rain falling through the opening during bad weather; this was surrounded by anemones and lilies. In that house a special love for lilies was evident, for there were whole clumps of them, both white and red; and, finally, sapphire irises, whose delicate leaves were as if silvered from the spray of the fountain. Among the moist mosses, in which lily-pots were hidden, and among the bunches of lilies were little bronze statues representing children and water-birds. In one corner a bronze fawn, as if wishing to drink, was inclining its greenish head, grizzled, too, by dampness. The floor of the atrium was of mosaic; the walls, faced partly with red marble and partly with wood, on which were painted fish, birds, and griffins, attracted the eye by the play of colors. From the door to the side chamber they were ornamented with tortoise-shell or even ivory; at the walls between the doors were statues of Aulus's ancestors. Everywhere calm plenty was evident, remote from excess, but noble and self-trusting.

Anemones: passion of Christ, sorrow; the red spot on the flower is His blood, the triple leaf is the Trinity

Lillies: Virgin Mary, purity and sorrow, virginity

Red: blood of Christ, blood of martyrs, love

White: purity and holiness

Blue/sapphire: heaven, infinity, spiritual love, truth, fidelity

Iris: Virgin Mary, Queen of Heaven, Immaculate Conception, as the 'sword lily' it depicts the sorrow of the Virgin

Bronze/golden color: divine illumination, purity, divinity, kingship

Fawn/deer: Psalm 42 As the deer longs for streams of water, so my soul longs for you, O God. ...
Symbol of Christ, piety and devotion

Fish: Christ, belonging to a Christian community, baptism, immortality, resurrection (Jonah),
ICHTHUS symbol: Iesous Christos Theou Huios Soter = Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior.

Bird: winged souls, souls in paradise; many specific birds have their own symbolism, but here we only have the generic

Griffin: fabulous beast with head and talons of an eagle and body of a lion. In Christianity it depicts evil as the devil flying away with souls, also those who persecute Christians. Later in medieval times, the griffin represented Christ's power. Dante used the griffin as the symbol of Christ.

Thanks for this, Kerstin; I had only caught some of the symbolism and you provided the rest!

Wow. Beautiful, Kerstin! You went deep!

Thanks. I really enjoyed reading this description.

Madeleine wrote: "Wow. Beautiful, Kerstin! You went deep!"

I have books on Christian symbolism both in English and German. The English ones are:
Symbols of the Christian Faith
An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Traditional Symbols This one encompasses all major faith traditions, though it is interesting how the same things have meaning across the globe.

Initially my interest in this was being able to identify the symbolism in Christian artwork. You go into the often elaborately ornamented churches in Europe or look at Christian paintings and you have no clue as to what you are looking at.

I was rather impressed by how well-grounded Sienkiewicz seemed in the ancient Roman world; dare I say its “culture.” I looked for his sources on the topography and orientation. The Wikipedia information is impressive. I found additional information in Literatura Polska (Literatura Polska, #2) by Julian Krzyżanowski |(Encyclopedic Guide to Polish Literature, Vol. II N-Z) Goodreads which lists some sources Sienkiewicz used: Roman historians Tacitus (C. 56-c.120) and Suetonius (c. 69-c.122). He used 19th Century historians such a E. Renan’s “Antichrist” (1873, A. Giraud, “Flavieau ou de Rome desert” (1835), Ignacy Kraszewski, “Rzym za Nerona” (Rome During Nero” (1866) and Krasinski „Irydion”. The painter Henryk Siemiradzki was his friend. Sienkiewicz admired the painting shown on the Wikipedia page on “Quo Vadis.”

Sienkiewicz had the idea about the Lygians from W. Ketrzynski who thought that they were people living between the Oder and Vistula rivers. This was supported also by studies of K. Murawski.

I am impressed too Galicius on how Sienkiewicz captures the Roman mind. I have read that he spent a lot of time learning the culture and psychology. I think he did a superb job!

I should correct myself. Above I said that Petronius was a stoic like Aulus. I think that is incorrect. He enjoys his life well but he does it with a certain moderation. As pointed out in the summary, Petronius is the actual author of the ancient Roman novel the Satyricon. I'm not sure why Sienkiewicz placed in such a prominent position the author of a Roman decadent satire, but there has to reason. Are the views of the Satyricon endowed to Petronius? I don't know. I have not read the Satyricon. Petronius however strikes me more of an Epicurean, one who enjoys life without the extremes of hedonism but are typically cynical and godless and amoral.