By Gilbert Lawall

Description

Students will delight in Petronius’ highly entertaining stories, including his famous “dinner party,” which provide a colorful view of life in first century CE Rome. Some 901 lines of unadapted Latin with facing- and same-page syntax and vocabulary notes make this text an excellent transition to authentic, connected Latin for advanced high school and intermediate college students.

Special Features

• Introduction places the Satyricon within its literary and historical context
• Unadapted text includes five selections:
  - A Scene at the Marketplace (76 lines) Satyricon: 12–15
  - Trimalchio’s Dinner, five selections (687 lines) Satyricon: 26–33, 41–46, 47–49, 61–64, 67–78
  - The Matron of Ephesus (78 lines) Satyricon: 111–112
  - The Death of Lichas (36 lines) Satyricon: 115
  - Eating Human Flesh for Money (24 lines) Satyricon: 141
• Macrons throughout
• Mastery-oriented vocabulary—with its fourth appearance, word is no longer provided in facing- and same-page notes
• Comprehensive grammatical, syntactical, and vocabulary facing- and same-page notes
• Diagram of triclinium seating arrangement
• Appendix of Petronius’ Language and Style
• Complete Vocabulary

Comments and Reviews

Lawall’s Petronius is a rara avis indeed. His edition is one of the few, real Latin texts that a relative beginner to Latin can both manage and enjoy. As early as the second quarter of Latin I have introduced the class to Petronius. Inevitably the reaction has been enthusiastic. Would that there were similar editions of other Latin authors! With Petronius the teacher has no difficulty convincing students that studying Latin is worthwhile.

— Sheila K. Dickison
University of Florida
1988

The last two decades have seen a revival of interest in the Satyricon: Fellini’s film, the Millionaire’s Dinner Party, M. S. Smith’s Oxford edition of the Cena and a complete Penguin translation. Nonetheless, this American edition could well fill a gap, offering as it does a selection of episodes (only 37 chapters of the original, rather fewer than the size of the book suggests) together with vocabularies and brief notes. Produced originally for (and in part by) students at the University of Massachusetts, it could find an English context in post-O-level reading of Latin literature . . . but a class equipped with this book will find Petronius instructive and entertaining.

— Ian Pratt
JACT

Certainly the use of a reader such as this will not only enliven an introductory course but will also provide substantial connected reading and exposure to many aspects of Roman culture . . .

— David Perry
Rye High School
Rye, New York
1988

Material for this book was assembled by students participating in a seminar on Petronius conducted at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst in the fall of 1974. The text of Petronius is basically that of Konrad Muller (Munich, 1961) with some changes on the basis of Martin S. Smith’s 1975 Oxford University Press edition. Running vocabularies face each page of the text. When a word occurs a second time it is marked with an asterisk, a third time with two asterisks, and a fourth time with three asterisks. Then it is dropped from the vocabulary lists. A word marked with three asterisks may be found at the end of the book in a vocabulary. Certain basic words with which the reader should be familiar before beginning the text are not included in the running vocabulary and are given in the instructions for using the book (pp. 6–9). The general introduction provides a brief summary of the story line of the Satyricon. The five reading selections of unequal length are titled as follows: A Scene at the Market Place; Dinner at Trimalchio’s; The Matron of Ephesus; The Death of Lichas; Eating Human Flesh for Money.

The notes at the bottom of each page are helpful and copious. The running vocabulary allows the student to proceed rapidly through the text. The passages selected seem interesting and appealing. Expressions regarded traditionally as obscene or scatological are not omitted but are treated gingerly in the notes and vocabulary. For example on pp. 70–71 the expression frigori laecasin dico is translated in the notes as “I say to hell with the cold.” In the running vocabulary laecasin is explained as “an obscene word either from the Greek laikazein (=Latin fornicari) or leichazein (=Latin fellare).” This attractive edition, while obviously prepared for college students, would be useful for mature high school students. The format lends itself well to independent reading and study. The book is beautifully printed.

— Rudolph Masciantonio
Emeritus teacher, Philadelphia school systems
The Classical Bulletin

Author Bio

Gilbert W. Lawall is a Classics Professor Emeritus at the Univerity of Massachusetts, Amherst. He earned his BA at Oberlin College in 1957 and his PhD at Yale University in 1961. Research interests include Greek and Latin poetry, Hellenistic Greek poetry and its influence on Latin poetry, Senecan drama, and Greek and Latin pedagogy.