The Student's Companion to Latin Authors. Thomas Ross Mills
to writers and actors.
Livy xxvii. 37, ‘Decrevere pontifices ut virgines ter novenae per urbem euntes carmen canerent … conditum ab Livio poeta … Carmen in Iunonem reginam canentes ibant illa tempestate forsitan laudabile rudibus ingeniis, nunc abhorrens et inconditum, si referatur.’
Fest. p. 333, ‘Cum Livius Andronicus bello Punico secundo scripsisset carmen quod a virginibus est cantatum, quia prosperius res publica populi Romani geri coepta est, publice attributa est ei in Aventino aedis Minervae, in qua liceret scribis histrionibusque consistere ac dona ponere, in honorem Livi, quia is et scribebat fabulas et agebat.’
Livius had a twofold reason for writing, (a) To assist him in his profession as a schoolmaster he published a translation of the Odyssey; (b) as an actor, he wrote the plays he acted, and afterwards published them.
Sueton. Gramm. 1, ‘Livium et Ennium … quos utraque lingua domi forisque docuisse adnotatum est.’
Livy vii. 2, 8, ‘Livius … qui ab saturis ausus est primus argumento fabulam serere, idem scilicet, id quod omnes tum erant, suorum carminum actor.’
(2) WORKS.
1. Tragedies.—From the scanty fragments extant and from the titles (Achilles, Aegisthus, and six others are known) we see that these were close imitations of Greek plays. Thus l. 38 (Ribbeck),
‘Quem ego nefrendem alui lacteam immulgens opem,’
is, according to Conington, a rendering of Aesch. Choeph. 883–4,
μαστὸν πρὸς ᾧ σὺ πολλὰ δὴ βρίζων ἅμα
οὔλοισιν ἐξήμελξας εὐτραφὲς γάλα.
2. Comedies.—Slight fragments of three of these are extant.
3. A translation of the Odyssey in Saturnians.[1] This, though rough and incorrect, long remained a school-book. So Hor. Ep. ii. I, 69 sqq.,
‘Non equidem insector delendave carmina Livi
esse reor, memini quae plagosum mihi parvo
Orbilium dictare: sed emendata videri
pulchraque et exactis minimum distantia miror.’
For examples of translation, of. Gell, xviii. 9, 5, ‘Offendi … librum … Livi Andronici, qui inscriptus est Odyssea, in quo erat versus primus … ,
“Virúm mihí Caména | ínsecé versútum,”
factus ex illo Homeri versu,
Ἄνδρα μοι ἔννεπε, Μοῦσα, πολύτροπον.’
Fragments 2 and 3,
‘Meá puer, quid vérbi | éx tuo óre súpera
fugít?
neque ením te oblítus | Lértié, sum, nóster,’
represent Od. i. 64,
τέκνον ἐμὸν, ποῖόν σε ἔπος φύγεν ἕρκος ὀδόντων;
πῶς ἂν ἔπειτ’ Ὀδυσῆος ἐγὼ θείοιο λαθοίμην;
NAEVIUS.
(1) LIFE.
Cn. Naevius’ dates can only be given approximately as B.C. 269–199. As he served in the First Punic War, he cannot in any case have been born later than B.C. 257. He was a Campanian by birth.
Gell. i. 24, 2, ‘Epigramma Naevi plenum superbiae Campanae, quod testimonium esse iustum potuisset, nisi ab ipso dictum esset,
“Inmortales mortales si foret fas flere,
flerent divae Camenae Naevium poetam.
Itaque postquam est Orci traditus thesauro,
obliti sunt Romae loquier lingua Latina.” ’
Naevius’ first play was produced B.C. 235; the fact that he served as a soldier shows that he was not an actor.
Gell. xvii. 21, 45, ‘Eodem anno (A.U.C. Dxix.) Cn. Naevius poeta fabulas apud populum dedit, quem M. Varro in libris de poetis primo stipendia fecisse ait bello Poenico primo, idque ipsum Naevium dicere in eo carmine, quod de eodem bello scripsit.’
In his plays he attacked the senatorial party, particularly the Metelli, and was imprisoned, but afterwards released.
Gell. iii. 3, 15, ‘Sicuti de Naevio quoque accepimus, fabulas eum in carcere duas scripsisse, Hariolum et Leontem, cum ob assiduam maledicentiam et probra in principes civitatis de Graecorum poetarum more dicta in vincula Romae a triumviris coniectus esset. Unde post a tribunis plebis exemptus est, cum in his, quas supra dixi, fabulis delicta sua et petulantias dictorum, quibus multos ante laeserat, diluisset.’
Pseud.-Asconius on Cic. in Verr. act. prior, 29. ‘Dictum facete et contumeliose in Metellos antiquum Naevii est, “Fato Metelli Romai fiunt consules,” cui tunc Metellus consul (B.C. 206) iratus versu responderat … , “Dabunt malum Metelli Naevio poetae.” ’
Cf. the contemporary reference in Plaut. Mil. 212,
‘Nam os columnatum poetae esse indaudivi barbaro,[2] quoi bini custodes semper totis horis occubant.’
For Naevius’ freedom of speech cf. his comedies, l. 113 (Ribbeck),
‘Libera lingua loquemur ludis Liberalibus’;
l. 108 (on Scipio),
‘Etiam qui res magnas manu saepe gessit gloriose,
cuius facta viva nunc vigent, qui apud gentes solus praestat,
eum suus pater cum palliod unod ab amica abduxit.’
Naevius was banished and went to Utica, where he died, probably about B.C. 199. It must have been after peace was concluded (B.C. 202), as otherwise he could have reached Utica only by deserting to the enemy.[3] Jerome gives B.C. 201, Cicero B.C. 204, although he says Varro put the date later. The verses on Scipio quoted above could hardly have been written before the battle of Zama.
Jerome yr. Abr. 1816 = B.C. 201, ‘Naevius comicus Uticae moritur, pulsus Roma factione nobilium, ac praecipue Metelli.’
Cic. Brut. 60, ‘His consulibus (B.C. 204), ut in veteribus commentariis scriptum est, Naevius est mortuus; quamquam Varro noster, diligentissimus investigator antiquitatis, putat in hoc erratum vitamque Naevi producit longius.’
(2) WORKS.
1. Tragedies.—There are extant seven titles and a very few fragments.
2. Comedies.—There are titles of about thirty-four palliatae,[4] and upwards of one hundred and thirty lines extant.
Naevius seems to have adopted contaminatio[5] in his plays. Ter. Andr. prol. 15,
‘Id isti vituperant factum atque in eo disputant
contaminari non decere fabulas …
qui quom hunc accusant, Naevium Plautum Ennium
accusant.’
3. Praetextae.—Tragedies on Roman subjects, ‘Clastidium’ and ‘Romulus.’ The praetexta was invented by Naevius.
4. Bellum Punicum, an epic poem in Saturnians, divided later into seven