Catulle, carm. 16, Martial et la poétique des vers et des livres « sexués »: les ressources rhétoriques de l’allégorie et de la similitude

There are different rhetorical strategies in Catullus 16 and in Martial (see esp. 1, 4; 1, 35; 11, 16; and 12, 95) in treating the literary motif of sexualized verses and books (new elements are provided for the interpretation of Catullus 16, 9‑11). In Catullus the versiculi are an allegory of the seductive power of poetry (on an adult male audience) and of the ego’s ability in controlling its production and sophisticated effects; in Martial the various similes in 1, 35 rather express the “theatricalization” of the action of the libelli, their power in the representation of desires on a varied audience.