The Sixteen Satires Style

The Sixteen Satires Style

Point of View

The point of view in this collection of satires is mostly third person and limited. The point of view is not reliable since a lot of it refers to mythology instead of history. It is also very subjective, giving Juvenal's opinions about different aspects of life in Rome which is important since the collection of satires should do just that. This subjectivity allows the reader to become acquainted with Juvenal's views on landlords, adultery, patronage, honesty and many other topics. He often expresses his opinions by directing them at a specific person, many of whom are unknown though presumably they were real people.

The satires are mostly exposition, which could also be seen as monologues since Juvenal is usually addressing someone, with very little dialogue, with the exceptions of the third and ninth satires. In the third satire, Juvenal's friend, Umbricius, carries on a monologue by himself after Juvenal introduces...
(read more)