Andrew Marvell and John Barclay's Satyricon

Abstract

An unidentified Latin verse quotation in Mr. Smirke proves to derive from John Barclay’s Satyricon (1607).  This discovery resolves what had seemed a textual crux in the standard edition of Mr. Smirke.  It also invites review of how Marvell deploys this material for his present purpose, what confessional considerations arise from the Catholic Barclay’s contribution, and whether Barclay’s example as a Menippean satirist informs Marvell’s successes in this kind.