White Crow
At one point the author asserts that a “fortunate man is rare—rarer than a white crow.” The symbolism of the white crow refers to its portent that one’s future will hold the delivery of justice. But this is not quite an omen one hopes to see: the crow symbolizes that justice will be meted out properly whether one committed an act of good or evil.
Grasshoppers (Cicadas)
In response to a complain about “December’s north wind” blowing, a character says to another: “Shall I say 'Hold on, and wait till the grasshoppers arrive?” The inference is symbolically clear: grasshoppers (in some translations cicadas) are used, not for the only time in ancient text, as a harbinger of the heat of summer.
Elm Tree and Vines
In giving advice on the subject of nobility, the author strongly urges against trying to gain nobility by feeding upon the feats of others. Get out of their shadow and be a man! Earn your nobility! Otherwise, whether you a Senator name Cassius or a Senator named Lindsey, the structure eventually crumbles resulting in the “vine-shoot, trailing upon the ground” desperately longing for “the widowed elm.” This symbolism is not as obscure as it may seem: the elm tree and the elm vine had a long tradition of representing marriage between man and woman—whether literal or metaphorical—for some time before Juvenal’s use there.
Bread and Circuses
As always, bread is a symbol of the common man. It was so with Marie Antoinette with her famous saying about cake—the first part of which is “If they have no more bread”—and it is so with Juvenal. Circuses here refers not to literal circuses as we know them; a more appropriate translation for the modern age would be sports or athletics or, at the very least, games. Bread and circuses are symbols of the lowest of the common men: the herd, the mob, the Romans who once commanded legions but have now fallen to being satisfied with food and entertainment.
Storks
The image of the stork bringing newborn babies probably traces back in part to Juvenal. In opposition to vultures, he paints the stork as a “noble bird” who, “seems to salute her infant progeny, presaging pious love with her auspicious cry.” At any rate, the stork is a symbol of familial devotion.
