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A Moral Purpose, A Literary Game: Horace, Satires 1.4
- Classical World
- Classical Association of the Atlantic States
- Volume 104, Number 1, Fall 2010
- pp. 59-76
- 10.1353/clw.2010.a406981
- Article
- Additional Information
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In Satires 1.4 we are apparently shown Horace's views on the purpose of satire and its status as a literary genre. His possible irony and the extent to which he should be taken at face value (a long-standing source of debate are) are addressed here with particular reference to Aristotelian and Philodeman influence. This recently analyzed influence is reappraised and challenged with regard to its extent and implication. But first I look at the moral purpose—or otherwise—of Horatian satire as expressed in 1.4.