Commentary on Valerius Maximus’ Book IX.1-10. A discourse on vitia: an apotreptic approach

Matravers, Simon Robert (2017). Commentary on Valerius Maximus’ Book IX.1-10. A discourse on vitia: an apotreptic approach. University of Birmingham. Ph.D.

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Abstract

Valerius Maximus situates his ninth and final book (henceforth referred as V9) in clear contrast to the rest of his output by adopting an apotreptic approach and focusing entirely on \(vitia\). This makes a break from the dispersive manner in which \(vitia\) had hitherto been treated by different authors across a myriad of works, nor was V9’s structure replicated in the same manner by any other Roman author since V. Worthy of note is also how V treats his subject exclusively in a single book, creating \(intensity\) as a technique \(per\) \(se\) to shock the reader into making them fully aware – beyond all reasonable doubt – how pernicious and dangerous \(vitia\) are. At the heart of V9 is the ubiquity of vice that transcends ethnicity. In fact V brings domestic and external \(exempla\) closer, vice is inherent in life itself; the characters inhabiting both the domestic and external sections are not opposites, but are presented as culpable of the same vices (although sometimes certain \(exempla\) are graded worse than others).

Type of Work:

Thesis (Doctorates > Ph.D.)

Award Type:

Doctorates > Ph.D.

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