Encolpius is at a school and is complaining about how teachers use melodramatic and stylized examples to teach rhetoric (the art of speaking and writing persuasively) to Roman youths. Agamemnon, a teacher, agrees with Encolpius, but explains that teachers must find a way to keep the attention of their students. Agamemnon cleverly shows his rhetorical skill by shifting the blame from the teachers to parents, who are more interested in their children attaining worldly success than a solid education. Agamemnon complains that “as boys they fool around in school, and then as young men attract derision in the courts” (3), revealing that he thinks Roman society is heading in the wrong direction. Agamemnon then begins speaking in verse and urges those who want to be educated to focus on living a moral life, to resist getting seduced by wealth and luxury, and to read extensively from a selection of traditionally famous authors.

Because Encolpius was distracted by his discussion with Agamemnon, he did not notice that his friend Ascyltus had left the school. He now slips away and tries to find his way back to his lodgings.