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{{Quotation|"Cyrnus, as I compose my poems for you, let a seal be placed on the verses; if stolen they will never pass undetected nor will anyone exchange their present good content for worse, but everyone will say: ''They are the verses of Theognis of Megara, a name known to all mankind.''"{{emdash}}lines 19–23<ref>translated by B. M. Knox, 'Theognis', ''The Cambridge History of Greek Literature:I Greek Literature'', Cambridge University Press (1985), P. Easterling and B. Knox (ed.s), page 138–9</ref>}}
The nature of this seal and its effectiveness in preserving his work is much disputed by scholars (see [[Theognis#Modern scholarship|Modern scholarship]] below).
===Subject matter===
All the poetry attributed to Theognis deals with subjects typically discussed at aristocratic [[Symposium|symposia]]{{emdash}}drinking parties that had symbolic and practical significance for the participants:
{{quote|"Authors as distant from each other as Theognis and Plato agree in seeing the symposium as a model for the city, a gathering where men may examine themselves in a playful but nonethless important way. Here we should note the repeated use of the word {{lang|grc|βάσανος}} ('touchstone', 'test': Theog. 415–18, 447–52, 1105–6, 1164; Pl. ''Laws'' 649d10, 650a2, 650b4) to describe the symposium. Moreover at the symposium poetry plays a significant part in teaching the participants the characteristics required of them to be good men."{{emdash}}N.T. Croally<ref>N.T. Croally, ''Euripidean Polemic: The Trojan Women and the function of tragedy'', Cambridge University Press (1994), pages 18–19</ref>}} [[File:Feuerbach symposium.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.2|A scene from Plato's philosophical work [[The Symposium]] by Anselm Feuerbach]]
Sympotic topics covered by Theognis include for example wine,<ref group ="nb">Example of a wine-theme: "Two demons of drink beset wretched mortals, enfeebling thirst and harsh drunkenness. I'll steer a middle course between them and you won't persuade me either not to drink or to drink too much."{{emdash}}lines 837–40, translated by Douglas Gerber, ''Loeb'', page 295</ref> politics,<ref group ="nb">Example of political theme:"Cyrnus, this city is pregnant and I am afraid she will give birth to a man who will set right our wicked insolence. The townsmen are still of sound mind but their leaders have changed and fallen into the depths of depravity."{{emdash}}lines 39–42, translated by Douglas Gerber, ''Loeb'', page 181</ref> friendship,<ref group ="nb">Example of friendship theme: "Many in truth are your comrades when there's food and drink, but not so many when the enterprise is serious."{{emdash}}lines 115–16, translated by Douglas Gerber, ''Loeb'' page 189</ref> war,<ref group ="nb">Example of war theme: "This is excellence, this the best human prize and the fairest for a man to win. This is a common benefit for the state and all the people, whenever a man with firm stance holds his ground among the front ranks."{{emdash}}lines 1003–6 (also attributed to [[Tyrtaeus]]), translated by Douglas Gerber, ''Loeb'' page 319</ref> life's brevity,<ref group ="nb">Example of [[carpe diem]] theme: "Enjoy your youth, my dear heart: soon it will be the turn of other men, and I'll be dead and become dark earth."{{emdash}}lines 877–78, translated by Douglas Gerber, ''Loeb'', page 301</ref> human nature,<ref group ="nb">Example of human nature theme: "It is easer to beget and rear a man than to put good sense in him. No one has yet devised a means whereby one has made the fool wise and a noble man out of one who is base."{{emdash}}lines 429–31, translated by Douglas Gerber, ''Loeb'' page 237</ref> wealth,<ref group ="nb">Example of Wealth theme: "O wretched poverty, why do you delay to leave me and go to another man? Don't be attached to me against my will, but go, visit another house, and don't always share this miserable life with me.{{emdash}}lines 351–54, translated by Douglas Gerber, ''Loeb'' page 225</ref> love<ref group ="nb">Example of a love theme: "Don't show affection for me in your words but keep your mind and heart elsewhere, if you love me and the mind within you is loyal. Either love me sincerely or renounce me, hate me and quarrel openly,"{{emdash}}lines 87–90, translated by Douglas Gerber, ''Loeb'' page 187</ref> and so on. Distinctions are frequently made between "good" ({{lang|grc|ἐσθλοί}}) and "bad" ({{lang|grc|κακοί}}), a dichotomy based on a class distinction between aristocrats and "others", typical of the period but usually implicit in the works of earlier poets such as Homer—"In Theognis it amounts to an obsession".<ref>Gerald F. Else, ''Aristotle's Poetics: The Argument'', Harvard University Press (1957), page 75</ref> The verses are addressed to Cyrnus and other individuals of unknown identity, such as Scythes, Simonides, Clearistus, Onomacritus, Democles, Academus, Timagoras, Demonax and Argyris and "Boy". Poems are also addressed to his own heart or spirit, and deities such as [[Zeus]], [[Apollo]], [[Artemis]], [[Castor and Pollux]], [[Eros]], [[Ploutos]], the [[Muses]] and [[Graces]].
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