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Hermes Books Series
Pindar
Pindar has for centuries been the least understood and appreciated of the great classical poets, for the type of composition by which he is now chiefly represent—the ode written on commission to praise a victorious athlete—does not seem to fit our notions of what a lyric poem should be. This book by D.S. Carne-Ross sets out to recover Pindar as a vital presence in the Western tradition. Through critical discussion, comparison with more familiar poets past and present, and selective translation, Carne-Ross demonstrates the craftsmanship and beauty of a Pindaric ode.
The first chapter examines the form of the victory ode—an inherited form with its required, recurrent features—and shows how, in Pindar’s hands, its disparate elements compose a complex, harmonious whole. The rest of the book consists of close readings of a dozen odes illustrating different aspects of Pindar’s genius and the wide range of experience that this seemingly limited genre can cover.
Written to convey to the general reader the skill and power of Pindar’s poetry, this book assumes no knowledge of the specialist literature. However, a number of Carne-Ross’s interpretations do break fresh critical ground, and thus the book will also be of interest to scholars in the field.
The first chapter examines the form of the victory ode—an inherited form with its required, recurrent features—and shows how, in Pindar’s hands, its disparate elements compose a complex, harmonious whole. The rest of the book consists of close readings of a dozen odes illustrating different aspects of Pindar’s genius and the wide range of experience that this seemingly limited genre can cover.
Written to convey to the general reader the skill and power of Pindar’s poetry, this book assumes no knowledge of the specialist literature. However, a number of Carne-Ross’s interpretations do break fresh critical ground, and thus the book will also be of interest to scholars in the field.
- GenresCriticism
216 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 1985
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December 1, 2016
I got this book as a gift from a teacher of mine who wanted to introduce me to the poetry of Pindar. He probably could not have picked a better one. I wish I was as good at praising as the poet himself!
Carne-Ross does an excellent job at introducing the notoriously difficult author (Voltaire quipped that everybody loves Pindar because no one understands him) to the general reader of our day. He (or she? I am actually not sure) shows what basic formal elements are at play in structuring the poem and how Pindar developes these themes. At the same time Carne-Ross eschews formalist simplifications but gives us careful close readings of one Victory Ode per chapter – not necessarily the most famous ones – but great poems all of them nonetheless.
I do not know the literature well enough to fully appreciate how CR positions himself against older generations of interpreters but he does give indications of his scholarly positions without letting that interfere with the introductory aims of the book.
If I had to highlight one great feature it would be the middle chapter in which he foregoes the scholarly approach and in a novelistic style imagines Pindar arriving at a town and crafting an ode – a wonderful feat of the imagination that alone would justify getting the book!
I will certainly come back to Pindar in the future...
Carne-Ross does an excellent job at introducing the notoriously difficult author (Voltaire quipped that everybody loves Pindar because no one understands him) to the general reader of our day. He (or she? I am actually not sure) shows what basic formal elements are at play in structuring the poem and how Pindar developes these themes. At the same time Carne-Ross eschews formalist simplifications but gives us careful close readings of one Victory Ode per chapter – not necessarily the most famous ones – but great poems all of them nonetheless.
I do not know the literature well enough to fully appreciate how CR positions himself against older generations of interpreters but he does give indications of his scholarly positions without letting that interfere with the introductory aims of the book.
If I had to highlight one great feature it would be the middle chapter in which he foregoes the scholarly approach and in a novelistic style imagines Pindar arriving at a town and crafting an ode – a wonderful feat of the imagination that alone would justify getting the book!
I will certainly come back to Pindar in the future...
Displaying 1 of 1 review