Where did Satire Begin?
Many forms of literature find their origin in ancient Greek genres. However, Satire may be the only genre that was purely Roman. Quintilian, professor of rhetoric and grammar in the first century A.D. (C.E.) wrote a book entitled Institutio Oratoria in which he compared Greek and Roman literary genres. However, the book included no Greek equivalent of Roman Satire. He claims that Lucilius, a writer of the second century B.C. (B.C.E.), was the inventor of Satire. He also briefly mentions Ennius, a later author, as a satirist. What Characterizes Roman Satire? According to Michael Coffey (Roman Satire, 1989) in order for writings to be classified as a literary genre, two qualifications must be satisfied: • There must be an archetype – one that claims to be the first of its kind • It must follow the lex operis – “rules” of the genre must be followed and applied consistently Roman Satire does qualify. Ennius was the first author to use the term satura. He compiled all of his works into a bo
