Historical examples were the basic means of moral instruction in the ancient world from the earliest times. Valerius's aim of moral education achieved by imitation of great deeds is as old as Western literature.

From the time of Homer, examples were pointed out for the young to emulate, a practice not confined to youth but maintained throughout life. An educational practice dependent upon such a concept is a product of a particular kind of society, in which imitation and competition were closely connected, and the aim of success was to triumph over one's rivals. This is the attitude of Homer's...

This idea was thoroughly absorbed into Roman culture. Livius Andronicus created Latin epic by his translation of theOdysseyand originated Latin lyric and dramatic poetry, all for the purposes of education; these three forms of poetry were a traditional source of examples in Greece (Marrou, 1956, p. 251). However, in Latin, it was the historical rather than mythological epic which became most important (Marrou, 1956, p. 235), and the development of the patriotic historical epic shows the influence of Greek ideas of the moral purposes of poetry and history (D'Alton, 1931, p. 491).

The greatest of the early epics...

Classical and Hellenistic Greek education to a large degree depended upon the emulation of examples from literature, and the encouragement of the imitation of examples was part of the education of the Roman aristocrat even before the advent of Greek influence. TheEducation of an Orator, written by Quintilian in the late first century AD, shows how these influences were reflected in the practice of formal Roman education.

In this work, Quintilian deals with education from the earliest age right up to manhood, and it is significant of the importance of the education by examples that the need to instil...

The form of theMemorable Words and Deedssignifies Valerius's intention to provide his audience with moral guidance in as convenient a manner as possible. The importance of this aim is evident from the author's preface:

The Memorable Words and Deeds of the men of Rome and other nations are scattered among various authors and cannot easily be sought out, so I have decided to make a compilation from various authors to spare those requiring proofs the labour of long research.

Accessibility is achieved by the arrangement of material into thematically titled chapters, for although the present chapter headings are...

Perhaps the most widespread form of compilation of examples in Greek literature were the many books ofChreiaiorSayingsmade in the Hellenistic period. The original meaning of the Greek wordchreiaiis believed to be ‘something necessary, requisite for daily life’, signifying remarks and anecdotes which one should learn by heart in order to have them ready in all life’s situations. The title and genre are believed to have been invented by Metrocles, a Cynic philosopher of the third century BC; certainly the genre originated in a philosophical context (Dorrie, 1969, col. 1282; von Fritz, 1932, col. 1483;...

The question now remains to what extent Hellenistic compilations were known at Rome and whether these literary forms were imitated in Latin. We have already seen from references in Cicero’s works that Greek philosophical collections on set themes such asOn Dreamswere circulating in Rome in the first century BC. However, Rome made little or no advance on Greek philosophical thought and Roman philosophical works were in general mainly translations or syntheses of Greek works (Stahl, 1964, p. 311). It is not surprising, therefore, that we have little evidence for the composition of original Latin collections on particular philosophical...

As I suggested in the Introduction, the true purpose of Valerius’s work has been obscured by the gratuitous assumption that it was merely a handbook for rhetoricians and declaimers. That can be seen very clearly in Bloomer’s monograph. The author is well aware that Valerius’s examples from the past ‘serve as models of conduct’, that they are ‘types of morality or immorality’, that his chapters ‘are taken as the various departments of human life’, and that he does ‘advance a certain program of what is valuable and paradigmatic from the past’. In his conclusion, Bloomer refers to Valerius’s ‘pursuit of...

Besides what Valerius actually says about his purpose, his moralistic and instructive motivation can be deduced from the form and technique he uses. The very fact that he chose to use examples as the vehicle of his moral message in itself signifies an instructive form of argument which seeks to impose on the present the conduct of the past. Valerius stakes the success of his moral message entirely upon the efficacy of this device, and it is clearly important to understand his reasons for doing so. His beliefs concerning the effectiveness of examples are first made clear in the preface...

To be effective as moral persuasion,exemplahave to be believed. Valerius was a selector of examples, and so did not need to include any story which he did not expect his audience to accept. What sort of story counted as valid in their eyes? The basic text occurs inWonders,at the conclusion to an anecdote dealing with Ascanius and Aeneas (I. 8.7):

nec me praeterit de motu et voce deorum inmortalium humanis oculis auribusque percepto quam in ancipiti opinione aestimatio versetur, sed quia non nova dicuntur, sed tradita repetuntur, fidem auctores vindicent: nostrum est inclitis litterarum monumentis consecrata...

The status of the implied audience of theMemorable Words and Deedsis not only of interest for the study of Valerius Maximus but is also relevant to the role of examples in ancient Roman society. What inferences about audience demand can we make from Valerius's selection of material, and how was the work itself made available to that audience? Was it intended for public performance, or for private reading, or for casual consultation? A few indications concerning the social level of the intended readership can be gathered from the work itself. For instance, we can deduce something from his...

The followingLifeof Valerius Maximus was printed in the Venice edition of 1494 and at various times thereafter. It is not known who the author was, nor on what evidence it is based.

Valerius Maximus, civis Romanus, patricio genere natus, omnem pueritiam et magnam adulescentiae partem litteris percipiendis et honestis artibus dedit. Inde sumpta virili toga se contulit ad rei militaris disciplinam, ubi aliquamdiu stipendia fecisse et in Asiam cum Sex. Pompeio navigasse dicitur. Unde reversus, cum videret se patriae suae tam bene dicendo quam bene faciendo posse prodesse, a quo incepto studio militiae gloria detinuerat, eodem regressus statuit...