Home › Glossary › Letter S

Silius Italicus

Literary Character
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

Flavian-era Roman poet best known for the epic "Punica," which dramatizes the Second Punic War in Virgilian style.

Detailed Definition
Silius’s 17-book epic on Hannibal and Scipio blends historical detail with mythological grandeur in Virgilian style. In poetry, he appears as a Flavian traditionalist, symbolizing the persistence of epic ambition in imperial Rome and the poetic glorification of Roman military virtue.
Example
Example in poetry:
Silius Italicus’ "Punica" constructs Scipio Africanus as a Stoic epic hero guided by divine visions; His portrayal of Hannibal blends villainy with tragic grandeur; Though derivative of Virgil, Silius gives secondary characters like Marcellus emotional depth; His epic exemplifies how Flavian poets used historical figures as moral and national symbols in verse.
Additional Notes
Silius Italicus, author of the "Punica," an epic on the Second Punic War, populates his poem with stoic Roman heroes and tragic Carthaginians; his literary characters reflect Flavian-era values of endurance and fate, offering a lens into how historical epic constructs national identity through poetic persona.
Also Known As
Tiberius Catius Asconius Silius Italicus
Skip to main content