MASSOLIT: Petronius and the Satyrica (lecture by Dr Regine May)

This is a curriculum-linked video lecture from MASSOLIT presented by Dr Regine May (University of Leeds) as part of a short course on Petronius' Satyrica. The lecture introduces Petronius and his possible identification with Petronius Arbiter, discusses Tacitus' portrayal of Petronius, and outlines the circumstances of his death following the Pisonian conspiracy.

The lecture situates the Satyrica as a unique, fragmentary Latin novel characterised by parody and satire and explores Petronius' playful engagement with high literature, especially Virgil’s Aeneid. Dr May contrasts the epic hero Aeneas with the comic anti-hero Encolpius and explains how these literary interactions shape the novel's tone and meaning.

This video is produced for GCSE, A-Level and IB audiences and forms one of a sequence of lectures in the Petronius: Satyrica course, which examines characters (Encolpius, Trimalchio, Habinnas), themes (food and death), and individual episodes such as the Widow of Ephesus and the rivalry over Giton.