Providing a series of fascinating views of imperial rome, the letters of the younger pliny also offer one of the fullest selfportraits to survive from classical times. Pliny s letters are important as a social document of his times. Plinius traiano imperatori letter 40 letter 41 traianus plinio c. An xml version of this text is available for download, with the additional restriction that you offer perseus any modifications you make. Plinys letter to trajan christian history institute. Nonfiction harvard classics pliny the younger letters. Plinys uncle, pliny the elder, helped raise and educate him. This collection of letters contains an assortment of intimate personal correspondence with friends on various topics and book ten of this collection contains his. Pliny the younger quotes author of the letters of the. Mynors 1963, in the bibliotheca augustana pliny was born in comum in 61 or 62 a. Its an encyclopedia of what passed for scientific information in that time.
The younger pliny was born in 61 or 62 ce, the son of lucius caecilius of comum como and the elder plinys sister. They were both witnesses to the eruption of vesuvius on 24 august 79 ad. Letters of pliny by pliny the younger free at loyal books. Book 10, letter 110 the city of amisus is trying to reclaim a large grant it gave 20 years ago to a city official, who spent the money on city business. Some are addressed to reigning emperors or to notables such as the historian tacitus. We have a whole set of exchanges of his letters with the emperor trajan on a variety of administrative political matters. While the first nine books of plinys letters follow a roughly chronological orderthe author disingenuously maintains hes just selected them casually, almost at randombook 10 is made up of official correspondence exchanged during his tenure as governor of bithynia part of modernday turkey. He states that his uncle pliny the elder had the unusual ability to be able to write something worth reading and be able to do something worth recording. Plinys letter describing the christians allows modern scholars to accurately conceive of the christian experience in rome. This comprehensive general commentary on the nine books of the younger plinys private letterswhich cover nearly aspect of roman life except warfareoffers a selfcontained discussion of each letter or group of associated letters and their rich array of information about the authors social, political, and legal life and times. Letters of pliny by pliny the younger full audio book. Book 10, letter 111 such grants are technically illegal, but the official cannot be expected to return a 20year old grant now. Summaries those marked with an asterisk are a few of the more.
The introduction and letters really helps one become acquainted with pliny the man and value the live he lived nearly 2000 years ago. While this book does contain a lot of first hand information about life in imperial rome especially the legal system and the elaborate network of favors, obligations, and patronage in the senatorial class its not especially readable, being a collection of letters written by pliny and, near the end, by the emperor trajan to pliny. See key to translations for an explanation of the format. Perseus provides credit for all accepted changes, storing new additions in a versioning system. Pliny the younger wrote hundreds of letters, of which 247 survive and are of great historical value. The younger pliny was consul suffectus from september to october. Chapter 2 undertakes detailed study of book 6 as an artistic entity. The letters of pliny the younger gaius plinius caecilius secundus are presented here in the english translation by j. It is a rule, sir, which i inviolably observe, to refer myself to you in all my doubts. The epistulae are later copies of a series of personal missives by pliny the younger directed to his friends and associates. The text of the remainder of plinys letters was divided up into fifteen sections about the same length as the pt. The younger pliny was consul suffectus from september to. One of the first things that pliny the younger writes about, is how great his uncle was.
The letters, on which today his fame mainly rests, were largely written with a view to publication, and were arranged by pliny himself. The letters of pliny in book 10 were isolated from trajans and other correspondence. Plinys lively and very personal letters address an astonishing range of topics, from a deeply moving account of his uncles death in the eruption that engulfed pompeii, to observations on the early christiansa desperate. Click on the l symbols to go the latin text of each letter. Buy a cheap copy of the letters of the younger pliny book by pliny the younger. Chapter 1 traces plinys autobiographical narrative throughout the letters. These letters are a unique testimony of roman administrative history and everyday life in the 1st century. The letters of the younger pliny by pliny the younger.
They tell us about the man himself and his wide interests, and about his many friends, including tacitus, martial and suetonius. Click anywhere in the line to jump to another position. Fresh doubts on authenticity of plinys letter about the. They thus lack the spontaneity of ciceros impulsive utterances, but to most modern readers who are not special students of roman history they are even more interesting. While the first nine books of plinys letters follow a roughly chronological order the author disingenuously maintains hes just selected them casually, almost at random book 10 is made up. The letters of the younger pliny book by pliny the younger. Pliny served as an imperial magistrate under trajan reigned 98117, 2 and his letters to trajan provide one of the few surviving records of the. He was educated at home and then in rome under quintilian. The numbering of the letters in this book has been changed slightly to bring it into line with the most recent editions. This final book was, significantly, not intended for publication. Here i cover only the first six short books of plinys letters he wrote 10 in all. Sep 16, 2012 trajans reply to the letter by pliny from 2 days ago.
The text of the remainder of plinys letters was divided up into fifteen sections about the same length as. Book x of the letters contains his correspondence with trajan during this period, and includes letters about the early christians. An object in possession seldom retains the same charm that it had in pursuit. Plinys letter 96 called the pt the plinian testimonium was separated from the others. Ad 611 was also a prolific letterwriter, who numbered among his correspondents such eminent figures as tacitus. Letters and panegyricus i, letters books ivii by pliny the younger vi, 16 and vi, 20 summary. Pliny served as an imperial magistrate under trajan reigned 98117, and his letters to trajan provide one of the few surviving records of the relationship between the imperial office and provincial governors. Having never been present at any trials of the christians, i am unacquainted with the method and limits to be observed either in.
Pliny the elders sister, plinia, married a man named caecilius, from the northern italian town of. Letters, volume 1 letters, winifred margaret lambart hutchinson letters, winifred margaret lambart hutchinson issue 55. Pliny the younger was governor of pontus and bithynia from 1111 ce. The older man, gaius plinius secundus, is called pliny the elder. This penguin classics edition is translated with an introduction by betty radice.
All of his letters would fit into a comfortable volume. A collection of letters from about 1900 years ago might be dusty, out of date and a mere curiosity, but the letters of pliny are far from this. Firth 1900 a few words and phrases have been modified. Pliny the youngers letters are rare descriptions of roman administrative process and problems. Plinys letters are important as a social document of his times. These letters are a unique testimony of roman administrative history and everyday life in the 1st century ce. Read in english by andrew coleman the largest surviving body of pliny s work is his epistulae letters, a series of personal missives directed to his friends, associates and the emperor trajan. He wrote a number of books, but the natural history is the only one that survives.
He was at misenum at the time of the eruption of vesuvius in 79 described in two famous letters when the elder pliny died. Pliny on himself alpha classics by pliny the younger and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. Definitely recommended to those who are interested in looking into our ancient past. The last was written during his tour of administration of bithynia, during which he may well have died. The comments at the bottom of the letters have been added from various sources. Primary sources letters of pliny the younger and the. He states that his uncle pliny the elder had the unusual ability to be able to write something worth reading and be able to do something worth. This work is licensed under a creative commons attributionsharealike 3. The letters of the younger pliny penguin classics pdf. The younger pliny was born in 61 or 62 ce, the son of lucius caecilius of comum como and the elder pliny s sister. Letters of pliny, by gaius plinius caecilius secundus. The letters of the younger pliny penguin classics by pliny the younger and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at.
Letters of pliny the younger and the emperor trajan. Jun 24, 2010 while the first nine books of plinys letters follow a roughly chronological orderthe author disingenuously maintains hes just selected them casually, almost at randombook 10 is made up of official correspondence exchanged during his tenure as governor of bithynia part of modernday turkey. Pliny the younger, or gaius plinius caecilius secundus, was the nephew and adopted son of pliny the elder, the author of the famous and importantly influential natural history in thirtyseven. Lefkowitz fannia was granddaughter of the famous arria the elder, a stoic, who committed suicide when her husband, caecina paetus, was condemned to death in a. I am no latinist and know little of ancient rome, so it was a delight to find such an approachable translation.
And of course we have no idea how much of each session was taken up by applause. This comprehensive general commentary on the nine books of the younger pliny s private letters which cover nearly aspect of roman life except warfareoffers a selfcontained discussion of each letter or group of associated letters and their rich array of information about the authors social, political, and legal life and times. These letters concern an episode which marks the first time the roman government recognized christianity as a. This post belongs to a serialized translation and commentary of pliny the youngers letters 6.
Chapter 1 traces pliny s autobiographical narrative throughout the letters. A prominent lawyer and administrator, pliny was also a prolific letterwriter, who numbered among his correspondents such eminent figures as. Trajans reply to the letter by pliny from 2 days ago. Librivox recording of letters of pliny by pliny the younger. Jul 03, 2010 while the first nine books of pliny s letters follow a roughly chronological order the author disingenuously maintains hes just selected them casually, almost at random book 10 is made up. While this book does contain a lot of first hand information about life in imperial rome especially the legal system and the elaborate network of favors, obligations, and patronage in the senatorial class its not especially readable, being a collection of letters written. The style is very different from that in the panegyricus, and some commentators maintain that pliny initiated a new genre.