Table Of Content&
ARIS PHILLIPS CLASSICAL TEXTS
LUCRETIUS
De Rerum Natura V
Edited with a Translation, Introduction and Commentary
by
Monica R. Gale
AR.Is&
PHILLIPS CLASSICAL TEXTS
LUCRETIUS:
DE RERUM NATURA V
Edited with translation and commentary by
Monica R. Gale
Aris & Phillips Classical Texts
are published by
Oxbow Books, Oxford
© M. R. Gale, 2009
All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced or stored in a retrieval
system or transmitted in any form or by any means including photocopying
without the prior permission of the publishers in writing.
ISBN 978-0-85668-884-3 cloth
ISBN 978-0-85668-889-8 paper
A CIP record for this book is available from the British Library
Excerpts (] 115 words) from "De Rerum Natura"
edited by Bailey C (1922)
By permission of Oxford University Press
Printed and bound by Athenaeum Press, Gateshead, Tyne & Wear
CONTENTS
List of Illustrations 1v
Preface v
Abbreviations vn
Introduction
I Lucretius and the Late Republic 1
II Epicurus and his Philosophy 4
ill The Didactic Epic 8
IV De Rerum Natura V: Cosmology and Auman Prehistory 10
V Language and Style 12
VI The Transmission of the Text 13
Note on references to the Presocratic Philosophers 15
De Rerum Natura V 17
Commentary 109
Bibliography 217
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
Fig. 1 The changing angle of the earth in relation to the sun
in summer and winter, due to the tilt of the earth's
axis ( diagram by J. Hamwey, reprinted from J. Cornell,
The First Stargazers: An Introduction to the Origins
of Astronomy (London, 1981)) 152
Fig. 2 The annual path of the sun through the zodiac (reprinted
from J. Evans, The History and Practice of Ancient
Astronomy,© Oxford University Press, 1998) 152
Fig. 3 Shifting positions of sunrise and sunset in summer
and winter ( diagram by J. Hamwey, reprinted
from J. Cornell, The First Stargazers: An Introduction
to the Origins of Astronomy (London, 1981)) 153
Fig. 4 The phases of the moon (reprinted from J. Evans,
The History and Practice of Ancient Astronomy,
© Oxford University Press, 1998) 160
PREFACE
For a work written more than two thousand years ago, in a society in many
ways quite alien to our own, Lucretius' De Rerum Natura contains much of
striking - even startling - contemporary relevance. This is true, above all,
of the fifth book, which begins by putting a strong case against what it has
recently become fashionable to call 'intelligent design', and ends with an
account of human evolution and the development of society in which the
limitations of technological progress form a strong and occasionally explicit
subtext. Along the way, the poet touches on many themes which may strike
a chord with the twenty-first century reader: the fragility of our ecosystem,
the corruption of political life, the futility of consumerism and the desirability
of limiting our acquisitive instincts are all highly topical issues for us, as for
the poem's original audience. Though the underlying reasons for our interest
in such matters may be rather different from those of the ancient Epicurean
and his readers, De Rerum Natura 5 has interesting side-lights to shine on
contemporary debate, as well as offering a fascinating introduction to the world
view of the upper-class Roman of the first century BC. It is my hope that the
present edition (which complements existing Aris and Phillips commentaries
on books 3, 4 and 6) will help to make Lucretius' urgent and impassioned
argument, and something of his remarkable poetic style, accessible to a wider
audience, including those with little or no knowledge of Latin.
My aim in both translation and commentary has been two-fold: to explain
the scientific argument of the book (particularly in its more technical sections)
as clearly as possible; and to convey at least some impression of the poetic
texture of Lucretius' Latin. In many places, these goals have unavoidably
conflicted with each other; I have attempted, however, to follow the syntactical
structures and densely metaphorical style of the original Latin as closely
as possible in the translation; the notes will serve, it is hoped, to clarify
the logical and rhetorical progression of the argument, while also offering
comment of a more broadly literary, ideological and philosophical nature.
Neither the introduction nor the commentary presupposes any knowledge of
Latin; a few notes of a linguistic nature have been included, however, for the
benefit of readers tackling the work in the original language.
My debt to earlier scholars - particularly in textual matters - is
immeasurable; I have profited particularly from the editions and commentaries
Preface
VI
of Cyril Bailey, C. D. N. Costa and M. F. Smith. It is ·a pleasure, too, to
acknowledge the generous help of friends and colleagues. The late Malcolm
Wilcock offered kindly advice and encouragement in the early phases of
the project, as well as incisive comments on a sample of translation and
commentary submitted to Aris and Phillips for approval. George Huxley
brought his expertise in the field of ancient astronomy to bear on the central
section of the commentary, and gave invaluable assistance on a number of
technical points. I am grateful too to James Cornell for his immediate and
positive response to a request for permission to reprint two illustrations
from his book The First Stargazers; and to David Scourfield for scrutinizing
the translation with his customary care and acumen, for discussion of
many points of detail in the commentary, and for his constant support and
encouragement throughout the book's long gestation.
MR.G
Dublin, May 2007
ABBREVIATIONS
DK H. Diels and W. Kranz, Fragmente der Vorsokratiker (10th
edn., Berlin, 1961)
KRS G. S. Kirk, J.E. Raven and M. Schofield, The Presocratic
Philosophers (2nd edn., Cambridge, 1983)
MGLP J. W. Halpom, M. Ostwald and T. G. Rosenmeyer, The
Metres of Greek and Latin Poetry (2nd edn., Norman, OK,
1980)
NLS E. C. Woodcock, A New Latin Syntax (London, 1959)
OCIY S. Hornblower andA. Spawforth (eds), The Oxford Classical
Dictionary (3rd edn., Oxford, 1996)
OLD The Oxford Latin Dictionary (Oxford, 1968)
