Abstract
The relationship between Silius and Lucan is often viewed as one of contrasts and differences, a characterization to which there is a good amount of truth. Silius had deep concerns about Rome's history of civil strife, and it is principally through Lucan that he gives voice to them. On an allusive level, the civil war between Caesar and Pompey is replayed twice, from start to finish, in the Punica , first during Rome's decline, then during Carthage's decline. This allusive strategy is evident in the first armed conflict of the Punica , the siege of Saguntum. The allusion unflatteringly identifies the Roman senate with the Egyptian king and hints that if Rome does not help her ally, her inaction would be tantamount to betrayal and dire consequences will follow, just as for Ptolemy who, after betraying his former ally Pompey, was dethroned by Julius Caesar and died soon after. Keywords: Carthage's decline; civil war; Julius Caesar; Lucan; Pompey; Punica ; Rome's history; Silius
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