Publius Papinius Statius (; c. 45 – c. 96
AD) was a Roman poet of the 1st century AD
(Silver Age of Latin literature). His surviving
Latin poetry includes an epic in twelve books,
the Thebaid; a collection of occasional poetry,
the Silvae; and an unfinished epic, the Achilleid.
He is also known for his appearance as a guide
in the Purgatory section of Dante's epic poem,
the Divine Comedy.
== Life ==
=== Family background ===
Information about Statius' life is almost
entirely drawn from his Silvae and a mention
by the satirist Juvenal. He was born to a
family of Graeco-Campanian origin; his Roman
cognomen suggests that at some time an ancestor
of his was freed and adopted the name of his
former master, although neither Statius nor
his father were slaves. The poet's father
(whose name is unknown) was a native of Velia
but later moved to Naples and spent time in
Rome where he taught with marked success.
From boyhood to adulthood, Statius' father
proved himself a champion in the poetic contests
at Naples in the Augustalia and in the Nemean,
Pythian, and Isthmian games, which served
as important events to display poetic skill
during the early empire. Statius declares
in his lament for his father (Silv. 5.3) that
his father was in his time equal to any literary
task, whether in prose or verse. He mentioned
Mevania, and may have spent time there, or
been impressed by the confrontation of Vitellius
and Vespasian in 69. Statius' father was a
Roman eques, but may have lost his status
because of money troubles. At Naples, he was
a teacher of Greek and Roman literature who
attracted many pupils who were destined for
religious offices in Rome. He died in 79 AD.
From Pliny the Younger's Letters, it has recently
been deduced that Statius also wrote under
the pseudonym of Propertius.
=== Birth and career ===
Less is known of the events of Statius' life.
He was born c. 45 AD. From his boyhood he
was victorious in poetic contests many times
at his native Naples and three times at the
Alban Festival, where he received the golden
crown from the hand of the emperor Domitian
who had instituted the contest. For the Alban
Festival, Statius composed a poem on the German
and Dacian campaigns of Domitian which Juvenal
lampoons in his seventh satire. Statius is
thought to have moved to Rome c. 90 after
his father's death where he published his
acclaimed epic poem the Thebaid c. 92. In
the capital, Statius seems to have made many
connections among the Roman aristocracy and
court, and he was probably supported through
their patronage. Statius produced the first
three books of occasional poetry, his Silvae,
which were published in 93, which sketch his
patrons and acquaintances of this period and
mention his attendance at one of Domitian's
Saturnalia banquets. He competed in the great
Capitoline competition, although it is not
known in what year, although 94 has been suggested.
Statius failed to win the coveted prize, a
loss he took very hard. The disappointment
may have prompted his return to Naples around
94, the home of his youth. In existence is
a poem he addressed to his wife, Claudia,
the widow of a famous singer who had a musically
talented daughter by her first husband, on
this occasion (Silv. 3.5).
=== Later years at Naples ===
Statius' first three books of the Silvae seem
to have received some criticism, and in response
he composed a fourth book' at Naples, which
was published in 95. During this period at
Naples, Statius maintained his relations with
the court and his patrons, earning himself
another invitation to a palace banquet (Silv.
4.2). He seems to have taken an interest in
the marriage and career of his stepdaughter
and he also took a young slave boy under his
wing, as he was childless, who died c. 95.
In that same year Statius embarked on a new
epic, the Achilleid, giving popular recitations
of his work (Juv. 7.83) only to complete a
book and a half before dying in 95, leaving
the poem unfinished. His fifth book of Silvae
were published after his death c. 96.
== Works ==
As a poet, Statius was versatile in his abilities
and contrived to represent his work as otium.
Taught by his educated father, Statius was
familiar with the breadth of classical literature
and displayed his learning in his poetry which
is densely allusive and has been described
as elaborate and mannerist. He was able to
compose in hexameter, hendecasyllable, Alcaic
and Sapphic meters, to produce deeply researched
and highly refined epic and polished impromptu
pieces, and to treat a variety of themes with
the dazzling rhetorical and poetic skill that
inspired the support of his patrons and the
emperor. Some of Statius' works, such as his
poems for his competitions, have been lost;
he is recorded as having written an Agave
mime, and a four line fragment remains of
his poem on Domitian's military campaigns,
the De Bello Germanico composed for the Alban
Games in the scholia to Juvenal 4.94.
=== The Thebaid ===
Based on Statius' own testimony, the Thebaid
was written c. 80 – c. 92 AD, beginning
when the poet was around 35, and the work
is thought to have been published in 91 or
92. The poem is divided into twelve books
in imitation of Virgil's Aeneid and is composed
in dactylic hexameter. In the Silvae, Statius
speaks of his extensive work in polishing
and revising the Thebaid and his public recitations
of the poem. From the epilogue it seems clear
that Statius considered the Thebaid to be
his magnum opus and believed that it would
secure him fame for the future. In the poem,
Statius follows Virgil closely as a model
(in the epilogue he acknowledges his debt
to Virgil), but he also refers to a wide range
of sources in his handling of meter and episodes.
The poem's theme is the myth of the Seven
Against Thebes, the story of the battle between
the sons of Oedipus for the throne of Thebes.
The poem opens (Book 1) with the disgraced
Oedipus' curse on his two sons, Eteocles and
Polyneices, who have decided to hold the throne
of Thebes in alternate years, one ruling,
the other in exile. Jupiter plans a war between
Thebes and Argos, although Juno begs him not
to incite it. Polyneices in exile fights with
Tydeus, another exile at Adrastus' palace;
the two are entertained and marry Adrastus'
daughters. In Book 2, Tydeus goes to Eteocles
to ask him to lay down the throne and yield
power, but he refuses and tries to kill Tydeus
with an ambush. Tydeus slaughters the Thebans
and escapes to Argos, causing Adrastus and
Polyneices to declare war on Thebes (Book
3). In the fourth book the Argive forces gather,
commanded by the seven champions Adrastus,
Polyneices, Amphiaraus, Capaneus, Parthenopaeus,
Hippomedon, and Tydeus and march to Thebes,
but at Nemea, Bacchus causes a drought. The
army meets Hypsipyle who shows them a spring
then tells them the story of the Women of
Lemnos (Book 5). While she is speaking, her
ward, Opheltes, is killed by a snake; in Book
6, the Argives perform games for the dead
child, instituting the Nemean Games. In 7,
Jupiter urges the Argives to march on Thebes
where battle breaks out during which Amphiaraus
is swallowed in the earth. In 8, Tydeus, wounded
and dying, kills Melanippus and eats his head;
a battle over his body leads to the death
of Hippomedon and Parthenopaeus (Book 9).
In 10, Juno causes sleep to overcome the Thebans
and the Argives slaughter many in the camp;
Menoeceus sacrifices himself to save Thebes
and Jupiter kills the wicked Capaneus with
a thunderbolt. In 11, Polyneices and Eteocles
join in single combat and kill each other;
Jocasta kills herself and Creon assumes power,
forbidding burial of the Argive dead. In the
final book, the Argive widows go to Athens
to ask Theseus to force Creon to allow their
husbands' burial while Argia, Polyneices'
wife, burns him illicitly. Theseus musters
an army and kills Creon. The Thebaid ends
with an epilogue in which the poet prays that
his poem will be successful, cautions it not
to rival the Aeneid, and hopes that his fame
will outlive him.
Modern critics of the Thebaid have been divided
over interpretations of the epic's tone. Earlier
critics in the 19th and 20th century considered
the poem a piece of elaborate flattery that
vindicated the regime of Domitian; however,
more recent scholars have viewed the poem
as a subversive work that criticizes the authoritarianism
and violence of the Flavians by focusing on
extreme violence and social chaos. Statius'
use of allegory in the Thebaid and his abstract
treatment of the gods has been seen as an
important innovation in the tradition of classical
poetry which ushered in Medieval conventions.
Finally, although earlier scholars criticized
the style of the poem as episodic, current
scholars have noted the subtlety and skill
with which Statius organizes and controls
his narrative and description.
=== The Silvae ===
The Silvae were probably composed by Statius
between 89–96 AD. The first three books
seem to have been published together after
93 AD, Book 4 was probably released in 95
AD, and Book 5 is thought to have been released
posthumously c. 96. The title of the collection,
(silvae meaning "forest" or "raw material")
was used to describe the draft of a poet's
work which was composed impromptu in a moment
of strong inspiration and which was then revised
into a polished, metrical poem. This suggests
that the Silvae are revised, impromptu pieces
of occasional poetry which were composed in
the space of a few days' time. There are thirty-two
poems in the collection (almost all with a
dedicatee), divided into five books, each
with a dedicatory epistle. Of nearly four
thousand lines which the books contain, more
than five-sixths are hexameters. Four of the
pieces are written in the hendecasyllabic
metre, and there is one Alcaic and one Sapphic
ode.
The subjects of the Silvae vary widely. Five
poems are devoted to the emperor and his favorites,
including a description of Domitian's equestrian
statue in the Forum (1.1), praise for his
construction of the Via Domitiana (4.3), and
a poem on the dedication of the hair of Earinus,
a eunuch favorite of Domitian's, to a shrine
of Aesculapius (3.4). Six are lamentations
for deaths or consolations to survivors, including
the highly personal poems on the death of
Statius' father and his foster-son (5.3,5).
The poems on loss are particularly notable
in the collection and range from consolations
on the death of wives (3.3) to pieces on the
death of a favorite parrot (2.4) and a lion
in the arena (2.5). Another group of the Silvae
give picturesque descriptions of the villas,
gardens, and artworks of the poet's friends.
In these we have a more vivid representation
than elsewhere of the surroundings Roman aristocrats
of the empire lived in the country. Important
examples include a piece on Pollius' temple
to Hercules (3.1), the aetiology of the tree
at Atedius' villa (2.3), an antique statue
of Lysippus' Heracles (4.6) and a description
of Pollius' villa at Surrentum (2.2). The
rest of the Silvae consist of congratulatory
addresses to friends, and poems for special
occasions such as the wedding poem for Stella
and Violentilla (2.2), the poem commemorating
the poet Lucan's birthday (2.7), and a joking
piece to Plotius Grypus on a Saturnalia gift
(4.9).
As with the Thebaid, Statius' relationship
to Domitian and his court caused him to fall
out of favor with critics and readers, but
in recent times, the Silvae have been rehabilitated
by scholars. Domitian is an important presence
in the Silvae, and many of the poems appear
to flatter the emperor and court. The content
of the Silvae is primarily dictated by the
needs of Statius' patrons, and many of the
addressees come from the wealthy, privileged
class of landowners and politicians. Statius'
flattery of these elites has been interpreted
in two ways by scholars; some maintain that
the collection is highly subversive and is
a subtle criticism of Domitian and the Roman
aristocracy. Others urge a reading of the
Silvae as individual pieces that respond to
specific circumstances with their own unique
viewpoints.
=== The Achilleid ===
A fragment of his epic poem on the life of
Achilles—the Achilleid—is also extant,
consisting of one book and a few hundred lines
of a second. What was completed of this poem
was composed between 94–95 AD based on Silvae
4.7.21ff. Statius records that there were
recitations of the poem. It is thought that
Statius' death in 95 is the reason that the
poem remains unfinished. In the first book,
Thetis, having foreknowledge of her son's
death in the Trojan War, attempts to hide
Achilles on the island of Scyros by dressing
him up as a girl. On the island, Achilles
falls in love with Deidamia and forces her
to have sex with him. Ulysses arrives to recruit
Achilles for the war effort and reveals his
identity. In the second book, Ulysses and
Achilles depart and Achilles gives an account
of his early life and tutelage by the centaur
Chiron. The poem breaks off at the end of
his speech. In general, scholars have remarked
on the markedly different tone of the Achilleid
in comparison with the Thebaid, equating it
more to the style of Ovid than Virgil. Some
have also noted the predominance of feminine
themes and feminine power in the fragment
and focus on the poem's perspectives on gender
relations.
== Statius' influence and literary afterlife
==
Statius' poetry was very popular in his lifetime,
although he was not without his critics who
apparently had problems with his ex tempore
style. Juvenal is thought to extensively lampoon
Statius' type of court poetry in his fourth
satire on the turbot of Domitian, but he also
mentions the immense popularity of Statius'
recitations in Satire 7.82ff. In late antiquity,
the Thebaid which was by then a classic received
a commentary by a Lactantius Placidus.
Throughout the Middle Ages, the Thebaid remained
a popular text, inspiring a 12th-century French
romance and works by Boccaccio and Chaucer.
Statius' development of allegory helped establish
the importance of that technique in Medieval
poetry. In the Renaissance, the Silvae, thanks
to Poliziano, helped inspire an entire genre
of collections of miscellaneous, occasional
poetry called Sylvae which remained popular
throughout the period, inspiring works by
Hugo Grotius and John Dryden. Dante mentions
Statius in De vulgari eloquentia along with
Ovid, Virgil, and Lucan as one of the four
regulati poetae (ii, vi, 7). In Divina Commedia,
Dante and Virgil are caught up with Statius
as they leave the Fifth Terrace (reserved
for the avaricious and the prodigal) and enter
the Sixth (reserved for the gluttonous). Statius'
redemption is heard in Canto XX (the mountain
trembles and the penitent souls cry out "Gloria
in excelsis Deo") and he joins Dante and Virgil
in Canto XXI. He then ascends Mount Purgatory
with them and stays with Dante in the Earthly
Paradise at the mountain's summit, after Virgil
has returned to Limbo. He is last mentioned
in Canto XXXIII, making him one of the longest
recurring characters in the comedy, fourth
to Dante, Virgil and Beatrice. He is not mentioned
in Paradise, though he presumably ascends
like Dante. Dante appears to claim that Statius
was a secret convert to Christianity as a
result of his reading of Virgil, although
his conversion is not attested in any historical
source. A 2012 study dedicated to Dante's
writing of Statius's relation to Christianity
has shown the significance of the fact that
Dante does not state that Statius ever converted
to Christianity, but that his Neapolitan predecessor
let himself be "baptized" by Christians.In
Restoration England, John Dryden wrote a poem
entitled "To Sir Robert Howard" that refers
to Statius' Achilleid; Dryden criticizes Statius'
unfinished epic, calling it "too bold."
== Notes ==
== References ==
Newlands, Carol. (2012). Statius, Poet between
Rome and Naples. Classical literature and
society. London: Bristol Classical Press.
Vessey, David. (1973). Statius and the Thebaid.
Cambridge, UK: Cambridge Univ. Press.
=== Editions ===
David R. Slavitt (tr.), Broken Columns: Two
Roman Epic Fragments: The Achilleid of Publius
Papinius Statius and The Rape of Proserpine
of Claudius Claudianus, with an Afterword
by David Konstan (Philadelphia: University
of Pennsylvania Press, 1997).
Betty Rose Nagle, The Silvae of Statius. Translated
with Notes and Introduction (Bloomington,
IN: Indiana University Press, 2004).
Karla F.L. Pollmann, Statius, Thebaid 12:
Introduction, Text, and Commentary, Studien
zur Geschichte und Kultur des Altertums. Neue
Folge. 1. Reihe, Band 25 (Paderborn: Ferdinand
Schoeningh, 2004).
Gibson, Bruce, Statius. Silvae 5. Edited with
Introduction, Translation and Commentary,
Oxford Classical Monographs (Oxford, Oxford
University Press, 2006).
Jane Wilson Joyce (ed.), Statius. Thebaid:
A Song of Thebes (Ithaca: Cornell University
Press, 2008) (Masters of Latin Literature).
Pavan, Alberto (ed., trans., comm.), La gara
delle quadrighe e il gioco della guerra: Saggio
di commento a P. Papinii Statii Thebaidos
liber VI 238–549, Minima philologica 6 (Alessandria,
Edizioni dell'Orso, 2009).
=== Studies ===
Andreacchio, M. "Dante's Statius and Christianity:
A Reading of Purgatorio XXI and XXII in their
Poetic Context." Interpretation: A Journal
of Political Philosophy (Vol. 39:1, 2012);
pp. 55–82.
Fantham, E. "Chironis Exemplum: on teachers
and surrogate fathers in Achilleid and Silvae",
Hermathena 167 (1999), 59–70.
Feeney, D. "Tenui... latens discrimine: spotting
the differences in Statius' Achilleid, Materiali
e discussioni per l'analisi dei testi classici
52 (2004), 85–106.
Ganiban, Randall T. (2007). Statius and Virgil:
The Thebaid and the Reinterpretation of the
Aeneid. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge Univ. Press.
Hardie, A. Statius and the Silvae (Liverpool,
1983).
Heslin, P.J. The Transvestite Achilles: Gender
and Genre in Statius' Achilleid (Cambridge,
2005).
Johannsen, N. Dichter ueber ihre Gedichte:
Die Prosavorreden in den 'Epigrammaton libri'
Martials und in den 'Silvae' des Statius,
Hypomnemata, 166 (Goettingen: Vandenhoeck
& Ruprecht, 2006).
Lewis, C.S. "Dante's Statius." Studies in
Medieval and Renaissance Literature (Cambridge,
1966).
Lovatt, H. Statius and Epic Games: Sport,
Politics, and Poetics in the Thebaid, Cambridge
Classical Studies (Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press, 2005).
McNelis, Charles. (2002). "Greek Grammarians
and Roman Society During the Early Empire:
Statius’ Father and his Contemporaries."
Classical Antiquity 21: 67–94.
McNelis, Charles. (2007). Statius’ Thebaid
and the Poetics of Civil War. Cambridge, UK:
Cambridge Univ. Press.
Mendelsohn, D. "Empty Nest, Abandoned Cave:
maternal anxiety in Achilleid 1", ClAnt 9.2
(1990), 295–308.
Newlands, Carol. (2012). Statius, Poet between
Rome and Naples. Classical literature and
society. London: Bristol Classical Press.
Newlands, C. Statius' Silvae and the Poetics
of Empire (Cambridge, 2002).
Shackleton Bailey, D. R. Statius Silvae (Cambridge,
Mass.; London, 2003).
Vessey, David. (1973). Statius and the Thebaid.
Cambridge, UK: Cambridge Univ. Press.
== External links ==
Works by Statius at Perseus Digital Library
Statius, J. H. Mozley (ed.), 2 voll., London,
William Heinemann Ltd - New York, G. P. Putnam's
sons, 1928: vol. 1, vol. 2.
This article incorporates text from a publication
now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh,
ed. (1911). "Statius, Publius Papinius". Encyclopædia
Britannica. 25 (11th ed.). Cambridge University
Press. pp. 811–812.
Lactantius Placidus in Statii Thebaida commentum,
vol. 1, R. D. Sweeney (ed.), Stutgardiae et
Lipsiae, in aedibus B. G. Teubneri, 1997.
Online text: Statius, Thebaid & Achilleid
translated by J.H. Mozley
Online text: Statius, Thebaid, Achilleid & Silvae
(Latin)
SORGLL: Statius, Thebes I.46–87; read by
Stephen Daitz
