Propertius: Elegies: Book II

by Propertius, W.A. Camps

Propertius, though his works are small in volume, is one of the foremost poets of the Augustan age and his writing has a certain appeal to modern tastes. Book II is especially suitable for the reader wanting a representative selection of Propertius' poetry. It stands on its own, having appeared in the first place as a separate collection; it reflects a distinct phase of the poet's activity (and of his emotional development); and it is the book which made his reputation. This edition is designed for the pocket of the university student, but it should find a wider audience among classicists of all ages. The introduction provides the necessary historical and critical background and relates Book II to the rest of the elegies; the notes are helpful and to the point; and the text has a reasonable minimum of apparatus. There are no modern editions of this size and scope.

248 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1991

About the author

Sextus Aurelius Propertius was a Latin elegiac poet who was born around 50–45 BCE in Mevania (though other cities of Umbria also claim this dignity—Hespillus, Ameria, Perusia, Assisium) and died shortly after 15 BCE.

Propertius' surviving work comprises four books of Elegies. He was friends with the poets Gallus and Virgil, and had with them as his patron Maecenas, and through Maecenas, the emperor Augustus.

Reviews

[James Carrigy · Rating 4 out of 5]

8/10

Favourite Poems: "Cheated and locked out", "He defends that choice", "A dream of Cynthia shipwrecked", "Only the lover knows when he will die", "Arrested by Amorini".


Propertius and Cynthia must have been the Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks of the Ancient Roman literary world.