A not Unwilling Fish and the Emperor: Oppian’s Figurative Discourse (Halieutica 1. 56-72)

Abstract

Abstract: The article proposes a new interpretation of Oppian’s Halieutica, 1. 56-72. I
argue that the Oppianic image of the angling emperor generates some implicit meanings.
Namely, it appears to be a narrative of the relationship between the poet-talented
versifier and the emperor-angler, who appreciates a skillful artist. The final part of the
article demonstrates that the Greek concepts of paideia and πεπαιδευμένος as conceived
in Imperial times makes the dedication of this pleasurable poem of sea-fishing
to Marcus Aurelius, the Stoic emperor, programmatically abstaining from pleasure,
legitimate and fully justified.