The Roman poet and satirist Persius (34-62 CE) was unique among his peers for lampooning literary and social conventions from a distinctly Stoic point of view. A curious amalgam of mocking wit and philosophy, his Satires are rife with violent metapho...

People in the ancient world thought of vision as both an ethical tool and a tactile sense, akin to touch. Gazing upon someone – or oneself – was treated as a path to philosophical self-knowledge, but the question of tactility introduced an erotic ele...