Theocritus: A Selection: Idylls 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, 10, 11 and 13

by Theocritus, Richard L. Hunter (Editor)

This volume contains the text of eight poems by the third-century BC Greek poet Theocritus, together with an introduction and extensive commentary. This is the first full-scale commentary on the work of Theocritus since Gow's edition of 1950, and is the first to exploit the recent revolution in the study of Hellenistic and Roman poetry. It offers new readings of all the poems, which show both how Theocritus differs from subsequent pastoral poetry, and how his poems, through their influence on Virgil, established the Western pastoral tradition.

Genres: Classics, Poetry

324 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 261

About the author

Theocritus (Greek: Θεόκριτος; born c. 300 BC, died after 260 BC) was a Greek poet from Sicily, Magna Graecia, and the creator of Ancient Greek pastoral poetry.

Reviews

[Alex Cotterill · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some of the numbers are mislabelled and the explanations are not helpful if you know Latin instead of Greek in your Classics course. Texts were ok - Daphnis and Polyphemus ones were the most exciting

[Lucia Eriksson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had to read all the poems in this collection (aside from Idylls 4 and 10) for class. I really enjoyed them! Greek pastoral poetry is fascinating. Would recommend to anyone who (like me) had to read T.S. Eliot’s The Wasteland in high school and was forever changed (and damaged) by the experience.

[Bryant · Rating 4 out of 5]

I started translating these poems in February, and, as almost always happens during the process of translation, I came across strange riches that even the most celebrated published translations must gloss or twist. The paradox of Theocritus rests on his combining ordinary subject matter with epic language, meter, and the occasional stunning phrase. This is a clever, sensitive, and unfortunately under-read poet. The Greek is not always easygoing, and Hunter's commentary sheds light not only on difficult passages but also upon the larger literary framework in which we might situate Theocritus' accomplishment.