Horace Satire 2.8 Flashcards
What is satire 2.8 about?
Nasidienus’ failed dinner party (and a criticism of being obsessed with appearances and living in excess)
What did the (exaggerated) nicknames for the guests mean?
Nomentanus = “name”
Nasidienus = “sense of smell”
Porcius = “pig”
Balatro = “clown”
What was the Nomentanus’ main flaw?
Provided annoying running commentary about where he got the food from, and how it was luxurious and rare - suggests his superficial lifestyle
He wants to imply he is high in society by doing this (subtly trying to suggest he has been to many fancy, luxurious dinner parties)
Note: the more wealthy you were in Roman times, the farther away your food comes from
NOTE - NOMENTANUS WAS NOT THE HOST, BUT A GOOD FRIEND OF THE HOST
Quote - porcius
“Gulping whole cakes at a time” - this is used as comic relief, but is also the first sign of disorder
Quote - host being pretentious
He claimed that “sweet apples were red when picked by the light of a waning moon” - this is completely nonsensical, shows the pretentious behaviour of the host (and his lack of knowledge)
What did some of the guests do that was disrespectful?
Began to take advantage and drink all of the expensive wine
Quote - what did the host fear?
Hard drinkers “who abuse each other too freely” - conversation is meant to be sophisticated and political, doesn’t want abuse and poor etiquette
What is the main incident at the party?
A wall hanging collapsed - anti climax for the meal, could also be karma as he is constantly showing off
Quote - host’s reaction to the dinner party being a disaster
He mourned “as if his son had met an untimely fate” - over the top reaction, horace’s criticism here is that the host is so caught up in keeping up appearances that he has lost all perspective
What was the response of the guests to the dinner party being a disaster?
They find it funny, treating it with mock seriousness and sarcasm
Then they abandon the party alltogether
Quote - what is the negative effect of dinner party culture on hosts?
The host is “tormented by every anxiety” - shows how the stress is a strain on your soul, city dinner parties are incredibly stressful, perhaps not worth it
What is the takeaway messsage of satire 2.8?
Shouldn’t be too obsessed with appearances (a host won’t have much success at a dinner party if he cares too much about how everything looks)
Guests can be rude, disrespectful, behave in a vulgar way
So both hosts and guests can be negatively affected and behave badly
Who is the narrator?
Fundanius (friend of Horace)
