Horace

The Odes of Horace are the lyric jewels of the golden age of Latin literature. They speak of the politics of the time, of the return to peace after the agony of civil war; they are imbued with consciousness of the brevity of life and the inevitability of death; but they are also filled with the pleasures of friendship, wine and love. The English have always responded to their humanity and humor, and have translated and quoted them more than any other Latin poetry. This new verse translation departs from the vogue for free verse and returns to rhyme and metre, thus imitating the strictness of Horace‘s own metrical discipline. It will delight those who already know something of Horace, but it is particularly ed for those, such as students of Classical Studies, who have never learned Latin, but who know the reputation of the Odes and wish to find out what they say. There are notes to explain the historical, social and personal context of each poem, and the Latin is set opposite the English, line for line.