Description
Book SynopsisCatullus is one of the liveliest and most appealing Roman poets. His emotion, charm, and apparent spontaneity resonate with readers as strongly today as in antiquity. This sophisticated literary and historical introduction brings Catullus to life for the modern reader and presents his poetry in all its variety of emotions, subjects, and styles.
Trade Review"Gaisser (emer., Bryn Mawr College), who has written extensively on ancient Roman poetry and Renaissance Latin literature, has produced an excellent comprehensive guide to the major Roman poet Catullus." (
CHOICE, December 2009)
"Such a simple and yet profound book could only have been written by someone with the authority conferred by a detailed knowledge of Catullus' work, its transmission and its reception over the ages. … I consider [it] the best existing survey on Catullus." (
Bryn Mawr Classical Review, December 2009)
Table of ContentsList of Figures viii
Preface ix
1 Introduction: The Young Poet in Rome 1
2 Poetry Books 22
3 The Catullan Persona 45
4 What Makes It Poetry 72
5 Poetic Architecture 100
6 Songs for Mixed Voices: Allusions, Intertexts, and Translations 133
7 Receiving Catullus 1: From Antiquity through the Sixteenth Century 166
8 Receiving Catullus 2: England and America 194
Appendix 1 Catullus' Meters 222
Appendix 2 Glossary of Metrical and Rhetorical Terms 223
Bibliography 225
General Index 235
Index of Catullus' Poems 242
