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"l'âge emporte tout même la mémoire Souvent, il m'en souvient, lorsque j'étais enfant, je passais de longues journées à chanter : maintenant j'ai oublié tous ces vers" ... (in Méris)
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Eclogues and Georgics
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With the Eclogues, Virgil established his reputation as a major poet, and with the Georgics, he created a masterpiece of Latin poetry. Virgil drew upon the tradition of Greek pastoral poetry, importing it into an Italian setting and providing in these two works the model for subsequent European interpretations of the genre.
The Eclogues unfolds in an idyllic landscape, under less-than-tranquil circumstances. Its shepherds tend their flocks amid not only the inner turmoil of unrequited love but also the external pressures of the civil war that followed Julius Caesar's assassination in 44 B.C. Forced from their homes, the dispossessed shepherds voice a heartfelt longing for peace.
Dryden declared the Georgics "the best poem by the best poet," and through the ages, it has been much admired and imitated. A paean to Italy and the country's natural beauty, it rejoices in the values of rustic piety, the pleasures of family life, and the vitality of the Italian people.
The Eclogues unfolds in an idyllic landscape, under less-than-tranquil circumstances. Its shepherds tend their flocks amid not only the inner turmoil of unrequited love but also the external pressures of the civil war that followed Julius Caesar's assassination in 44 B.C. Forced from their homes, the dispossessed shepherds voice a heartfelt longing for peace.
Dryden declared the Georgics "the best poem by the best poet," and through the ages, it has been much admired and imitated. A paean to Italy and the country's natural beauty, it rejoices in the values of rustic piety, the pleasures of family life, and the vitality of the Italian people.
112 pages, Paperback
First published January 1,-0038
This edition
- Format
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112 pages, Paperback
- Published
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September 3, 2005 by Dover Publications
- ISBN
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9780486445595
- ASIN
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0486445593
- Language
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English
About the author
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born 15 October 70 BC
died 21 September 19 BC
Roman poet Virgil, also Vergil, originally Publius Vergilius Maro, composed the Aeneid, an epic telling after the sack of Troy of the wanderings of Aeneas.
Work of Virgil greatly influenced on western literature; in most notably Divine Comedy of Dante Alighieri.
died 21 September 19 BC
Roman poet Virgil, also Vergil, originally Publius Vergilius Maro, composed the Aeneid, an epic telling after the sack of Troy of the wanderings of Aeneas.
Work of Virgil greatly influenced on western literature; in most notably Divine Comedy of Dante Alighieri.
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Rating(4 / 5.0, 76 votes)
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76 reviews All reviews
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A fantastic translation of Virgil’s poetry - unusual, free, interpretive and contemplative. It’s not a straight translation, so those looking for something following Virgil’s meter and form should look elsewhere. But this interpretative translation adds a whole another dimension, relating the ancient Roman world to modern times.
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This book proves I’m not very pastoral.
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I decided to take a break from Mishima and relax with a bit of pastoral poetry. The Eclogues were quite beautiful in their evocation of a idealized country life while the Georgics were at times tedious due to their agricultural theme. I found Hesiod's Works and Days that had the same topic much more entertaining due to Hesiod's entreaties to his good for nothing brother which made it humorous at times while the Georgics interspersed agricultural advice with allegory and mythological ruminations of a perhaps darker nature(I'm particularly thinking of the end of book III here).
Much like the Aeneid, I felt the tone of the Georgics to be a bit too affected for my liking. I liked the Eclogues where Virgil is more playful in his content and imagery a lot more.
Much like the Aeneid, I felt the tone of the Georgics to be a bit too affected for my liking. I liked the Eclogues where Virgil is more playful in his content and imagery a lot more.
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No it's not the most faithful translation. But it's a fun interpretation and as a hobbyist Classicist, I enjoyed it, especially the Georgics.
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I appreciate "the pastoral this and the pastoral that"; Ecologue X where we can accredit the notion "love conquers all" is probably the only thing i'll remember though.
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Meh. Eclogue #4 is kind-of interesting given the big discussion in Christendom on whether or not it can be considered a prophecy of Christ, but the rest is not my type of poetry.
Rating: 2-2.5 Stars (Okay).
Rating: 2-2.5 Stars (Okay).
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I read this concurrently w/ 'Less is More' by Jason Hickel, which starts out w/ a (pretty simplistic) synopsis of the history of Capitalism. The central argument though is that the Capitalist system was initially enabled by the artificial creation of scarcity and the violent appropriation of others' wealth. And the author talks about this taking place first during the enclosure movement - which kicked peasants off of land and out of communities that were largely self sustaining, all in the name of progress and increasing the productivity of the land and the peasants. (Howard Zinn makes a similar argument).
Hickel argues that the enclosure movement was the first time in history that people were systematically removed from their livelihoods in this fashion - but of course we know that's not true. The same was happening in Virgil's time and for largely similar reasons. Farmers were removed from public land in Roman Italy by force, first by rich urban elites consolidating their holdings during the Gracchi troubles and then by all of the soldiers who needed to be placated after the civil wars wound down. It's striking to read these two things side by side, and to think that similar socio-economic contexts operated in 50 BCE and 1500 CE.
I know this is a bit trite, but it's really got me thinking about human history as a struggle between a large and dispersed group of people who are living fairly contentedly with their lot and a much smaller group who are trying to take common resources to accrue greater economic/political power for themselves. Soil actually seems like a great representation of that. Farmers working an area for their livelihood have every incentive to treat soil well and keep crops in healthy rotation. It's only when you have a market incentive based on cash crops that you try to suck out as much fertility as possible before moving onto the next plot of land. Capitalism provides both incentive and method for unsustainable exploitation of natural resources. On the other hand, Virgil's writing is a very beautiful demonstration of the knowledge developed and care taken of the land by people who lived on it.
None of these are new ideas. I do wonder though if, as they make their way into mainstream consciousness and the environmental movement, they might allow for a pendulum swing of history back away from concentration of power in the hands of elites and the resultant pillaging of the environment. I still feel like rewilding is a potential philosophical torch to lead the way. But it seems like some ... class consciousness (to borrow a phrase from a movement that didn't work out very well) is required to motivate people shake off the old ways and follow the positive vision rewilding provides.
Hickel argues that the enclosure movement was the first time in history that people were systematically removed from their livelihoods in this fashion - but of course we know that's not true. The same was happening in Virgil's time and for largely similar reasons. Farmers were removed from public land in Roman Italy by force, first by rich urban elites consolidating their holdings during the Gracchi troubles and then by all of the soldiers who needed to be placated after the civil wars wound down. It's striking to read these two things side by side, and to think that similar socio-economic contexts operated in 50 BCE and 1500 CE.
I know this is a bit trite, but it's really got me thinking about human history as a struggle between a large and dispersed group of people who are living fairly contentedly with their lot and a much smaller group who are trying to take common resources to accrue greater economic/political power for themselves. Soil actually seems like a great representation of that. Farmers working an area for their livelihood have every incentive to treat soil well and keep crops in healthy rotation. It's only when you have a market incentive based on cash crops that you try to suck out as much fertility as possible before moving onto the next plot of land. Capitalism provides both incentive and method for unsustainable exploitation of natural resources. On the other hand, Virgil's writing is a very beautiful demonstration of the knowledge developed and care taken of the land by people who lived on it.
None of these are new ideas. I do wonder though if, as they make their way into mainstream consciousness and the environmental movement, they might allow for a pendulum swing of history back away from concentration of power in the hands of elites and the resultant pillaging of the environment. I still feel like rewilding is a potential philosophical torch to lead the way. But it seems like some ... class consciousness (to borrow a phrase from a movement that didn't work out very well) is required to motivate people shake off the old ways and follow the positive vision rewilding provides.
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