Suetonius and the uiri illustres of Pliny the Younger

Bibliographic Data

ID23403247
AuthorsRoy K Gibson (0000-0001-8737-7481, corresponding author)
Year2014
Pages199-230
Publication date2014-07-03
Open AccessNo
TypeCHAPTER
VenueSuetonius the Biographer (SOURCE_BOOK)
PublisherOxford University Press (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199697106.003.0011
OpenAlexW65238391
ISBN9780199697106
LanguageEN
Citations received20

This chapter compares the literary figures mentioned in Pliny the Younger’s Letters with the biographical subjects in the remains of Suetonius’ Illustrious Men. Places of overlap and divergence between the two contemporary authors are discussed, and conclusions are drawn about their different reasons for including the names that they do. Pliny’s senatorial outlook is held to explain his greater emphasis on writers of the later Julio-Claudian era, and those of certain genres, such as accounts of famous deaths. Pliny’s Letters may be read as a critique and pre-empting of Suetonius’ biographical collection, especially since the former had probably seen the Illustrious Men, at least in draft form, prior to its publication. A useful list of Plinian passages in which literary men appear is included as an appendix to the chapter.

Art · Divergence (linguistics) · Linguistics · Literature · Augustinian Studies and Theology · Classical Antiquity Studies · Classics · History · Organic Chemistry Synthesis Methods · Philosophy

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