The Satires of Horace (65-8 BC) written in the troubled decade ending with the establishment of Augustus' regime provide an amusing treatment of men's perennial enslavement to money power glory & sex Epistles I addressed to the poet's friends deals with the problem of achieving contentment amid the complexities of urban life while Epistles II & the Ars Poetica discuss Latin poetry
- its history & social functions & the craft required for its success Both works have had a powerful influence on later Western literature inspiring poets from Ben Jonson & Alexander Pope to W H Auden & Robert Frost The Satires of Persius (AD 34-62) are highly idiosyncratic containing a courageous attack on the poetry & morals of his wealthy contemporaries
- even the ruling emperor Nero