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Selected Satires of Lucian (The Norton Library)

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Lucian, the second century (AD) satirist from Syria, was a master storyteller with a peculiar talent for wit and sarcasm. He had a profound impact upon Desiderius Erasmus' writings, such as the "Praise of Folly" and the "Colloquies." Even St Thomas More was greatly indebted to Lucian, whose works More translated and admired. These works are a collection of short stories in narrative and dialogue form. They are very telling of life in the second century of our era, pointing mostly to the philosophical and religious milieu of the Hellenistic world. He attacks sophists and displays his disdain for the priests of the Mystery Cults through the use fierce rhetorical invective. The dialogues with the gods, also, are entertaining bits of literary genius, which will be useful to anyone seeking knowledge of the personality and background of the traditional gods of the Hellenistic world. The Norton edition of Lucian's satires is authoritative, reliable, and will ultimately be a prize for anyone interested in the literature of classical times

Lucian lived in the 2nd century A.C. He was a travelling orator. In those days people liked to listen to the witful language skills of those orators. Their speeches served no purpose, it was only meant to show off and to amuse. Besides his work as an orator, Lucian wrote a lot of 'Dialogues' or 'Satires', a kind of conversation in which he mocked several aspects of the society in those days. The most famous are 'Dialogues of the Gods', 'Dialogues of the Dead' and 'Dialogues of the courtesans'.

One of my favourite satires is 'The judgement of Paris'(from Dialogues of the Gods). Athena, Hera and Aphrodite want Paris to decide which of them is the most beautiful goddess. In the manners of a real beauty contest, the three goddesses try to sell their merchandise to Paris. Finally he chooses Aphrodite and in return she promises that the most beautiful woman on earth, Helen, will be his.(It will start the Trojan War but that's another matter).

If you read this book you will have a good idea of what the people in Antiquity called humour

If you ever get in a mood where you're suspecting that philosophy rots the brain, take a break and dip into this wonderful book.

Others have noted that Lucian influenced Erasmus. I would reply, "Not enough!" I have never been able to read more than two pages of the supposedly hilarious "In Praise of Folly," but I can read anything and everything by Lucian, including his great satire, "Philosophies For Sale," where Zeus tries to raise a little cash by auctioning off philosophers, beginning with "that long-haired guy over there," Pythagoras. His little dialogue, "Timon," has volumes to say about Wealth, and says it all in about fifteen pages.

Lucian loves to poke fun at Socrates, as well, openly doubting the "purity" of Socrates' love for handsome young men.

"Alexander the Quack Prophet" may be Lucian's best piece. It's based upon a real person who lived at the same time as Lucian. I think the most memorable character is one Rutilianus, who is a mature, sensible Roman who has served Rome well in many important functions, but has a serious screw loose when it comes to religious gullibility. The satire is really deadly, especially if you have ever known someone who fits "the Rutilianus Profile." :-)

It's fun reading, but, like most satire, it's making some serious points during all the fun.