The poet himself, in all his glory.
By the time he wrote the satirical ‘Apocolocyntosis‘, Seneca had lived a rather interesting life: born in Spain during the first decade b.c, he arrived in Rome by 5 a.d, where he was taught to be a philosopher. By the end of Tiberius’ reign (30’s a.d.) he had risen to prominence, skilled in the courts of law and writing many literary pieces, including several philosophical treatises, works of poetry and tragedies. Unfortunately, for some time afterwards, his luck would change: in 34 a.d. he lost favor with the young emperor Gaius Caesar (commonly known by his nickname, ‘Caligula’), and in 41 a.d. the emperor Claudius exiled him to the nearby island of Corsica, claiming that the philosopher was having an adulterous relationship with his daughter. In 49 a.d. the emperor consented to the request of his wife Agrippina the Younger (his niece and last wife) and allowed him to return to Rome, where he once again rose to political and literary prominence.
In 50 a.d. (a few years before Claudius died) he was made the tutor of Agrippina’s son (by a previous marriage, not with Claudius), a boy by the name of Nero Claudius Caesar Drusus Germanicus (but commonly known as simply Nero). When the boy ascended to the purple (became emperor) Seneca remained as his tutor, acting as one of the voices of reason for the young emperor (the others being his mother Agrippina and the praetorian prefect, Sextus Afranius Burrus). He was a great influence for the first few years of Nero’s reign, but their relationship quickly deteriorated, and by 62 a.d. he voluntarily retired to his country estate, removing himself from the imperial court and the public eye. In 65 a.d. he was caught up in a conspiracy that aimed to assassinate the emperor, and when it was put down Nero ordered Seneca to commit suicide, which he promptly did.
To commit suicide, Seneca first slit his wrists. When the blood flowed too slow he ordered to be placed in a bath; the warm environment sped up his blood, and he quickly bled to death.
Seneca wrote the Apocolocyntosis for two reasons: to vent his frustration and anger with Claudius; and to promote the newly-risen Nero. By the time of Claudius’ death Seneca didn’t think fondly of the emperor, never forgiving him for being sent into exile and generally not fond of his manner of governing (Claudius’ unusual ascension led to feelings of insecurity, and he eventually ordered the executions of several senators). Nero’s succession was a blank slate, a fresh start and a chance to work upon his politics and writings without much interference. Plus, praising the new emperor was a good way to gain favor, both with the public (even though this work was most likely not circulated publicly) and with the imperial court (the action of praising the new emperor and ridiculing the old would become almost a tradition further on in the empire, occurring with each new succession, but at this time period it wasn’t necessarily common).
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