De Rerum Natura (Oxford Classical Texts) (Bks.1-6) (Latin Edition) Review

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(More customer reviews)Lucretius isn't an author most come across, but nevertheless the DE RERVM NATVRA is truly a classic. In it he explains his version of epicureanism, taken from Epicurus and tweaked by Lucretius himself. Don't think our word 'epicurean' and this epicureanism are the same thing: epicurean has taken on a set of meanings that usually aren't present in the early philosophy, or in Lucretius's laying-out of it. Epicureanism should appeal to moderns as a very scientific view of the universe (L. offers scientific explanations of natural phaenomena, and isn't afraid to suspend judgement), including early atomic theory. On the other hand, the poetry and storytelling are moving. It is philosophy rimmed with the honey of poetry (as Lucretius puts it himself). As per this edition, it's pricey, but well worth it to completely understand the poet. The book itself is handsome and just the right size, and layed out well. The commentary is actually useful, unlike so many classical commentaries. It's advanced, but doesn't neglect or take for granted too much. At the same time, it doesn't concentrate on matters with a specialistic or only tenuous connection to the poem. In all, this is the place to study Lucretius, and to read a beautiful poem containing a beautiful (because thoughtful and insightful) philosophy.

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The De Rerum Natura of Lucretius is a sustained and impassioned protest against religious superstition and irrationality. The poem takes the form of a detailed exposition of Epicurean physical theory - an extreme materialism designed to remove and discredit popular fears of the gods, death and an afterlife. Book III is generally accepted to be the finest in the whole poem; Lucretius argues there that the soul is as mortal as the body and shows that human response to the fact of mortality and death can be at once rational, dignified and liberating. Professor Kenney's commentary is the first to give proper critical emphasis to the techniques and intentions of Lucretius' poetry; it can be read with profit by all students of Latin from senior school level upwards.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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A. Persi Flacci et D. Iuni Iuuenalis Saturae (Oxford Classical Texts) Review

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(More customer reviews)A great book for collectors, if you are into latin classical books, this is must. An unusual book to have and great for those who like me enjoy building impressive libraries.

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Two highly influential writers of satirical poetry in the early Roman Empire, Persius and Juvenal are universally admired and enjoyed for the mordant wit and biting irony with which they exposed contemporary life and abuses under the notorious emperors Nero and Domitian. This new and revised edition--the first since the original publication in 1959--conveniently brings together both poets in a single volume, and contains, along with a freshly amended version of the text, a concise apparatus criticus at the foot of each page and a full Preface, giving a comprehensive overview of the state of the text in light of recent scholarship.

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Odes and Epodes (Loeb Classical Library) Review

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(More customer reviews)Very readable translation of Horace, good reading for a winter evening. The famous phrase carpe diem (seize the day or pluck the day) is from one of Horace's odes, in this book.

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The poetry of Horace (born 65 BCE) is richly varied, its focus moving between public and private concerns, urban and rural settings, Stoic and Epicurean thought. Here is a new Loeb Classical Library edition of the great Roman poet's Odes and Epodes, a fluid translation facing the Latin text.

Horace took pride in being the first Roman to write a body of lyric poetry. For models he turned to Greek lyric, especially to the poetry of Alcaeus, Sappho, and Pindar; but his poems are set in a Roman context. His four books of odes cover a wide range of moods and topics. Some are public poems, upholding the traditional values of courage, loyalty, and piety; and there are hymns to the gods. But most of the odes are on private themes: chiding or advising friends; speaking about love and amorous situations, often amusingly. Horace's seventeen epodes, which he called iambi, were also an innovation for Roman literature. Like the odes they were inspired by a Greek model: the seventh-century iambic poetry of Archilochus. Love and political concerns are frequent themes; here the tone is generally that of satirical lampoons. "In his language he is triumphantly adventurous," Quintilian said of Horace; this new translation reflects his different voices.

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