Author Description
While previous studies have concentrated largely upon political concerns, The Augustan Art of Poetry is an exploration of the influence of the Roman Augustan aesthetic on English neo-classical poets of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. At the conclusion of his translation of Virgil, Dryden claims implicitly to have given English poetry the kind of refinement in language and style that Virgil had given the Latin. In this timely new study Robin Sowerby offers a strong apologia for the fine artistry of the Augustans, concentrating in particular on the period's translations, a topic and method not hitherto ventured in any full-length comparative study. The mediation of the Augustan aesthetic is explored through the De Arte Poetica of Vida represented in the Augustan version of Pitt, and its culmination is represented by examination of Dryden's Virgil in relation to predecessors. The effect of the Augustan aesthetic upon versions of silver Latin poets and upon Pope's Homer is also assessed and comparisons are drawn with modern translations.
Menrva's Summary
THE THESIS
This study investigates how the Roman Augustan aesthetic influenced the refinement of language and style in English neo-classical poetry during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Robin Sowerby, a scholar of classical reception, argues that the period's translations of Latin and Greek classics were not merely derivative works but sophisticated artistic endeavors. By analyzing the technical choices made by poets like Dryden and Pope, Sowerby demonstrates how these writers sought to elevate English verse to the standards of their classical predecessors.
THE SCOPE MAP
What You Will Find
- Comparative analysis of seventeenth and eighteenth-century English translations of Virgil, Homer, and silver Latin poets.
- Examination of Vida's De Arte Poetica as mediated through Pitt's version.
- Critical assessment of the evolution of neo-classical poetic refinement.
Scope Limits
- The study does not focus on the political or social history of the Augustan era.
- It does not provide a comprehensive history of all translation practices, focusing instead on specific aesthetic influences.
THE AUTHORITY PERSPECTIVE
Scholars recognize this work as a significant contribution to the study of neo-classical translation techniques and the reception of classical literature. Readers frequently note the academic rigor and the specific focus on the artistry of translation as a primary strength of the text.
Page Count:
384
Publication Date:
2006-01-01
Publisher:
OUP Oxford
ISBN-10:
0191515957
ISBN-13:
9780191515958
Poetry
English & College Success
Literature History
Literary Criticism
English
Translation Studies
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