The first satire culminates in the allusion that everyone in Rome has ass’s ears (1.121 auriculas asini quis non habet?), but the question is: why? For antiquity, as seen in the uita Persi, this reference to Midas was intended as a direct attack against Nero, which was eventually lost due to expurgation, but this anecdote has been long refuted by Conington (1998). In this paper, however, I analyze an important vehicle of political discourse in Persius’ first satire, which remains understudied namely, the myth of Midas. Since Sullivan’s (1978, 1985) exploration of the anti-Neronian sentiments in Persius’ satires, novel and elaborate assessments of the satirist’s political agenda ensued.
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