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ANTI-MITOLOGIA ED EREDITÀ NEOTERICA IN MARZIALE: GENESI E FORME DI UNA POETICA. BY SILVIA MATTIACCI AND ANDREA PERRUCCIO. Pisa: Pacini Editore. 2007. Pp. 261.
THE BOOK UNDER REVIEW IS NOT - as one might assume from its title - exclusively devoted to Martial's anti-mythological polemics and his neoteric heritage. Rather, each of the two essays in this volume - "Polemica anti-mitologica tra Lucilio e Marziale" by Andrea Perruccio (11-134) and "Marziale e la fortuna del neoterismo nella prima età imperiale" by Silvia Mattiacci (137-218) - offers lengthy discussions of earlier literature before turning to the Flavian poet himself, in an effort to situate these two (distinct, but related) phenomena in Martial's epigrams within a broader literary context. Perruccio starts his examination with two introductory chapters, one on Lucilius' satirical response to the epic and tragic works of Ennius, Accius, and Pacuvius (14-40), the other on the treatment of myth and theatre in Horace and Persius (40-76), while Mattiacci first takes a look at Maecenas' poetic output (138-147) and the revival of neoteric-style poetry during the Neronian era, including Persius' parody thereof (147-161). After investigating the complex relationship between Martial and Catullus (162-195), she concludes her essay...