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As the riches of the Greek Anthology indicate, classical and late antique epigram was predominantly written and read (and probably also performed) by Greeks, but modern ideas about the genre have largely been shaped by the poetry-books of the important Latin epigrammatist Martial. Martial's Romanised version of epigram borrows heavily and without acknowledgement from contemporary Greeks writing satirical (‘skoptic') epigrams. This book looks at this influential and culturally revealing sub-genre. Although it looks back to Old and New Comedy, skoptic epigram was essentially new; the book demonstrates that it reflects concerns characteristic of Greek intellectual and literary culture (paideia) under the Roman Empire — the so-called ‘Second Sophistic'. The mysterious ‘Loukillios' is skoptic epigram's first major poet, heavily influencing subsequent epigrammatists including Nikarkhos and (probably) the famous satirist Lucian; culturally Greek but with a Roman-influenced name, he is Martial's main literary model. As the book shows, Loukillian humour is frequently aggressive, enforcing appropriate models of cultural and gendered identity. Its misogyny now makes it a difficult read. But it also engages subversively with Roman hegemony: several extant poems satirise the Emperor Nero. Following Loukillios, poets less well represented in the Anthology — among them the punning Ammianos, the literary critic Pollianos, and Leonides (whose poems are simultaneously numerical puzzles) — take the sub-genre in new creative directions. The book also samples a range of occasional epigrammatists, including several politically important Romans (among them the Emperor Trajan) but also many unknowns; the brief conclusion emphasises skoptic epigram's radical inclusivity and subversive potential.
Introduction: 'Skoptic epigram' -- 1. Reading Skoptic epigram -- 2. Situating Skoptic epigram -- 3. Loukillios -- 4. Nikarkhos -- 5. Broken masks: Skoptic epigram's identity crisis -- 6. Political epigram? Loukillios and Nero.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 214-222) and indexes.