Broken Columns: Two Roman Epic Fragments - The Achilleid of Publius Statius & The Rape of Proserpine of Claudius Claudianus

by David R. (translator ) Slavitt

"With unerring instinct Slavitt has juxtaposed two witty and ironic post-Ovidian tales of coming of age, Statius's unfinished 'Deeds of Achilles' and Claudian's 'Rape of Proserpina.' Those were the mythical days when teenagers were charming and rape consensual (for Deidamia), or at least (for Proserpina) the path to queenly power. Epic was never the same after Ovid, whether in Statius's sentimental comedy of love and war or in Claudian's darker divine intrigue sacrificing a mother's love to avert an infernal coup d'etat. Slavitt's versatile idiom makes vivid the personalities of Statius's drama and updates Claudian's self-conscious poetics in versions that are both free and true to the poets' art."--Elaine Fanthom, Princeton University

Genres: Poetry, Classics

Paperback

First published January 27, 1997