This book applies some of the procedures of modern critical theory (in particular reception-theory, deconstruction, theories of dialogue and the hermeneutics associated with the German philosopher Gadamer) to the interpretation of Latin poetry. Charles Martindale argues that we neither can nor should attempt to return to an 'original' meaning for ancient poems, free from later accretions and the processes of appropriation; more traditional approaches to literary enquiry conceal a metaphysics which has been put in question by various anti-foundationalist accounts of the nature of meaning and the relationship between language and what it describes. From this perspective the author examines different readings of the poetry of Virgil, Ovid, Horace and Lucan, in order to suggest alternative ways in which those texts might more profitably be read. Finally he focuses on a key term for such study 'translation' and examines the epistemological questions it raises and seeks to circumvent.
Against a recent tendency to exaggerate Shakespeare's classical learning, this study examines how the playwright used his relatively restricted knowledge to create an unusually convincing picture of Rome.
In this book Mr. Martindale examines the use Milton made of ancient poets, and the way they influenced his style. Some surprising ingredients in the style of DEGREESIParadise Lost are uncoveredoHorace, for example. The book is a rare combination of scholarship, both classical and English, and critical judgmen
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