ISBN-13: 9780415088978 / Angielski / Twarda / 1996 / 282 str.
ISBN-13: 9780415088978 / Angielski / Twarda / 1996 / 282 str.
This work presents a comprehensive survey of the major surviving examples of Greek and Roman didactic poetry: Hesiod's Works and Days, Lucretius' On the Universe, Virgil's Georgics and Ovid's Art of Love amongst others. If didactic epic has one defining characteristic, it is instruction. All these poems were aimed at teaching a student about a concrete topic. At the same time, their poetic form makes these verse lessons highly readable pieces of literature. This volume understands reading didactic poetry as more than just teaching; it is also a leisure-time activity. The author balances a factual introduction to the literature with an interpretation of the texts.