San Antonio College Library

This volume offers new insight into the poetry of Horace. In a reading of all the poetry, but focusing especially on problematic areas, the author examines Horace's art of self-presentation. A variety of themes are elucidated, from the poet's relations with his patron to Roman sexual attitudes. Close scrutiny is given to about 30 passages which the author claims have been misread.

"Ten years after publishing his first collection of lyric poetry, Odes I-III, Horace (65 B.C.-8 B.C.) returned to lyric and published another book of fifteen odes, Odes IV. These later lyrics, which praise Augustus, the imperial family, and other political insiders, have often been treated more as propaganda than art. But in A Symposion of Praise, Timothy Johnson examines the richly textured ambiguities of Odes IV that elevate the book beyond propaganda...

This book explores the whole range of the output of an exceptionally versatile and innovative poet, from the Epodes to the literary-critical Epistles. Distinguished scholars of diverse background and interests introduce readers to a variety of critical approaches to Horace and to Latin poetry. Close attention is paid throughout to the actual text of Horace, with many of the chapters focusing on reading a single poem. These close readings are then...