Content

Sidonius argues that he and Aquilinus should bequeath their friendship to their children Apollinaris and Rusticus, given that this bond has already been shared by three generations: that of Sidonius’ and Aquilinus’ grandfathers, that of their fathers and, ultimately, by that of Sidonius and of the addressee.

The addressee Aquilinus

Aquilinus is a peer of Sidonius: the two are equal in age, they were both brought up in Lyon and they are said to have shared the same teacher (Ep. 5.9.3). This addressee is not otherwise known.

Genre: a declaration of friendship

Ep. 5.9 can be ascribed to the broad epistolary genre of declarations of friendship, correspondence which aims to maintain or re-establish not only a tie of friendship with the addressee, but also the obligations and mutual support entailed in that friendship. The presence of this letter in the collection can be interpreted either as a way to reconnect with Aquilinus, who lived in Lyon, since Sidonius appears to be already in Clermont at the time of writing, or, more likely, as a portrayal of the friend and of their aristocratic ancestry that poses as a letter. Although Sidonius is a bishop, he speaks exclusively as an aristocrat.

First of all, comparisons with Pliny can be made with regard to specific themes which occur in Ep. 5.9, since, when Sidonius refers to long-lasting bonds, he draws inspiration from a standardised repertoire of arguments. For instance, it seems useful to compare it to two remarkably similar Plinian passages: Epp. 1.19 and 2.13. The first is a letter to Romatius Firmus, where the list of the many reasons by virtue of which Pliny and Firmus are friends (contubernales) introduces a funding offer on the author's part.