Horace on Thinking and Living Life to Its Fullest

"Think to yourself that every day is your last; the hour to which you do not look forward will come as a welcome surprise."

-- Horace

Horace's Biography

Roman lyric poet, satirist, and critic Horace (Quintus Horatius Flaccus) was born in Apulia, Italy, in 65 B.C. His father, an Italian Freedman, sent him to the finest school in Rome?the grammaticus Orbilius. He then studied literature and philosophy in Athens. In 44 B.C., he became a staff officer in Brutus’ army. He fought in the battle of Philippi in 42 B.C., where Marc Antony and Octavian (later Augustus) defeated the forces of Brutus. Horace claimed to have fled from the battle, leaving his shield behind. As a result of the defeat, his military career was over and he lost his family’s estate.

Augustus offered amnesty to the defeated soldiers, and Horace moved to Rome where he worked as a clerk in the Treasury. It is unclear whether he wrote poems before this time, but he turned now to writing with the hope of receiving recognition and patronage. He became friends first with the poets Virgil and Varius, and in around 38 B.C. with Maecenas, who was an advisor to Augustus. Horace first published his Satires in two books in 35 B.C. Maecenas gave Horace a farm in the Sabine country, near Tivoli, which allowed Horace a modest income and the leisure to write. He enjoyed life on the farm; Suetonius reports that he often lay in bed until 10 a.m.

In 29 B.C. he published the Epodes, in 23 B.C. the first three book of Odes, and in 20 B.C. his first book of Epistles. Augustus asked Horace in 17 B.C. to write a ceremonial poem celebrating his reign to be read at the Saecular Games. In 14 B.C. he published he second book of Epistles, which he followed a year later with his fourth book of Odes. In the final years of his life, he wrote his Ars poetica. He died in 8 B.C.

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Biography sourced from poets.org. Featured image sourced from The Warburg Institute.