Petronius, a Roman author traditionally identified as the “arbiter of elegance” at Nero's court, wrote the Satyrica, a partially extant prosimetric novel that may have originally consisted of 24 books. The protagonist and narrator, Encolpius, is in love with the younger Giton, and they face various adventures together. The story is set in southern Italy and features well-crafted prose with different levels and registers of language.