"Utopia Antiqua is a fresh look at conceptions of utopia and dystopia in ancient Rome through narratives of the Golden Age and decline of literature of the late Republic and imperial period (100 BCE-150 CE)." "Through the lens of utopian theory, Rhiannon Evans looks at the ways that Roman authors, such as Virgil, Ovid and Tacitus, use and reinvent Greek myths of the ages, considering them in their historical and artistic context." "Using case studies, it considers the cultural effects of importing luxury goods and the way that it gives rise to a rhetoric of Roman decline. She also looks at the idealization of farmers, soldiers and even primitive barbarians as parallels to the Golden Race and role models for Romans that had become ashamed of their own extravagance and corruption."--Jacket.