Table of Contents

Introduction Guide to the Pronunciation of Latin Prelude: To the Reader 1: Love, and a Genre 2: Hate, Mockery, and the Physical World 3: Horace: The Sensation of Mediocrity 4: Vergil: The Unclassical Classic 5: Lucan and Seneca: Poets of Apocalypse 6: Science Fiction: Lucretius' De Rerum Natura and Ovid's Metamorphoses Epilogue Guide to Further Reading Glossary

About the Author

William Fitzgerald is Professor of Latin at King's College, London.

Reviews

It deserves strong support from all classicists, who should consult it themselves (for personal stimulation and as a way of enlivening their lectures) and recommend it warmly to others who will benefit from it. This book will do much for the popularity of the Latin languagge and Roman verse and will do much to help them survive and stay healthy. * Paul Murgatroyd, Latomus *
In this book William Fitzgerald acts as an expert guide through a carefully arranged selection of examples. ... the spirit of rediscovery which Fitzgerald invokes in his introduction will enchant the previously initiated. * Astrid Voigt, Museum Helveticum *
William Fitzgerald is a distinguished professor of Latin. He writes with charm and lucidity [...] This books helps remind one of how poetry can be incredibly rich without being incomprehensible. * Charles Moore, Daily Telegraph *
mercurial and bold. Fitzgerald animates the dead language, covering acres but often highlighting details, such as the expressive power of word order, or English derivations ... This attempt to return to Latin without being elitist and stuffy highlights a fault line in our discipline. The glass ceiling is still there; this book helps to demonstrate how we might smash it and why we should. * Roger Rees, Times Higher Education *
William Fitzgerald's book on Latin poetry for those who "can't read Latin yet" takes us right to the heart of Latin literature [...] Fitzgerald's book makes demands, but the dividends are immense. * The Scotsman, Michael Kerrigan *
The book can be warmly recommended to all curious about Roman poetry, even to those who have no intention of learning (or remembering) Latin any time soon. * Roy Gibson, Times Literary Supplemen *