The Epistles of Pliny

This volume brings together some of the best and most influential work to be published on the Epistles of Pliny the Younger in recent decades. Covering historical, (auto)biographical, and literary aspects of the Epistles and their reception, the 19 classic articles included here offer a wide and representative range of approaches to Pliny, from prosopography and social history to intertextuality and self-representation. Topics include Pliny's villas, friends, and career, alongside literary and historical readings of some of his most famous letters, such as those on the eruption of Vesuvius and the torture of Christians, and correspondence with and about his wife Calpurnia, his uncle Pliny the Elder, his rival Regulus, the historian Tacitus and the emperor Trajan. The volume includes several chapters currently out of print or scarcely available (such as Birley's on Pliny's career and Eco's on the first Vesuvius letter), one which has been wholely rewritten (Cameron on reception) and one newly translated from German (Schenk on intertextuality). In addition, most have been updated by their authors, and translations of all Latin and other foreign languages have been added. A substantial introductory chapter by the editors offers the first full account of the history of scholarship on the Epistles from the birth of printing to the present day, summarises important recent work in languages other than English, and contextualises the articles included within the broader context of modern approaches to Pliny.

Pliny the Younger's ten books of Epistles have only recently moved into the mainstream of classical studies from their traditional role as fodder for Latin beginners or filing cabinet for Roman historians. This volume marks and consolidates that shift by reprinting nineteen of the best and most influential contributions on Pliny and his Epistles from recent decades, newly edited, revised and/or translated into English. It begins with a new, substantial account of the history of Plinian scholarship and survey of the contemporary scholarly landscape. Together this collection offers a detailed study of the man, the events of his time, his career, his friends, even his possessions, and above all the varied artistic and ideological facets of his letters.

Roy Gibson is Professor of Latin at the University of Manchester. His publications include Ovid: Ars Amatoria Book 3 and, with R. Morello, Reading the Letters of Pliny the Younger: An Introduction. He is currently completing a biography of Pliny, Man of High Empire, and a commentary on Pliny, Letters Book 6.
Christopher Whitton is Lecturer in Classics at the University of Cambridge and Fellow of Emmanuel College. His publications include articles on literary, historical and linguistic aspects of Pliny's works and a commentary on Epistles Book 2.