Decimus Junius Juvenal
Decimus Junius Juvenal was a Roman satirical poet active in the late first and early second centuries AD. His biography is poorly documented: exact dates of birth and death are uncertain, and later lives require caution. His satires and references by contemporaries provide the principal evidence for his literary career.
Bust presumably of Decimus Junius Juvenal. 2nd century ADSixteen satires survive in five books: Book I contains Satires 1–5, II contains Satire 6, III contains 7–9, IV contains 10–12, and V contains 13–16. The final satire is incomplete.
Publication is generally associated with the reigns of Trajan and Hadrian, although precise dates remain debated. Rhetoric, indignation, exaggeration and literary conventions shape these poems; their satirical voice is not a neutral description of every Roman’s life.
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