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Title: The Oxford Book of Classical Verse in Translation by Adrian Poole, Jeremy Maule ISBN: 0-19-214209-7 Publisher: Oxford Univ Pr on Demand Pub. Date: December, 1995 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $45.00

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Average Customer Rating: 4.5 (2 reviews)

Rating: 4
Summary: A very good, but not perfect, edition
Comment: It is not my intention to be niggardly with my praise, for this is indeed a fine and remarkably comprehensive volume -- incorporating passages from a vast number of Greek and Roman writers, translated by a veritable army of skilled English speakers -- but I feel that there is something amiss.

My complaints, some serious, some much less so, are as follows. The Greek tragedians are under-represented; the same might be said of Seneca through whose work, whatever one might think of it, Shakespeare gleaned some Euripides. Quite possibly Ovid is under-represented too. (That's more a of quibble.) Moreover, Virgil seems over-represented. And one might raise a critical eyebrow at the sparseness of the editors' introductions to each author, but perhaps that's understandable, for presumably once one starts it'd be hard to stop. It is certainly possible to wonder about the inclusion of the over-rated Lucan, wanting to see the incomparably more influential and important Livy and Tacitus instead but of course the latter wrote history not verse. Lastly, perhaps Heraclitus should have been included; his philosophical aphorisms are almost verse-like!

I will parenthetically note that it is a shame that the editors went to press before they could incorporate a snippet or two from either of Ted Hughes' final translations: viz., of Aeschylus' Trilogy and of Euripides' Alcestis. Hughes might be impugned for his accuracy but no-one can doubt the poetic power of his translations. But then poetic power rather than strict accuracy has been the hallmark of English renditions of classical verse from the get-go, as this splendidly useful volume shows us time and again.

A final point: my paperback copy seems robustly put together -- though I have a tinge of concern about the longevity of the paper -- and was affordable at around 30 Canadian dollars.

Rating: 5
Summary: Classical verse comes alive
Comment: The cultures of the ancient Mediterranean have given us some of the most enduring and important images in all of literature, and have been the model on which the vast majority of Western literature has been built, or against which it has rebelled. In this wonderful volume, Messers Poole and Maule have brought together some of the best and most beautiful renderings of the verse of the Greek and Roman worlds, and the result is, for lack of a less exuberant descriptor, magical.

The editors have collected translations from a variety of authors and time periods, presenting a unique and fascinating overview not only of the continuum of Greek and Latin poetry, but of English literature's attempt to interpret and adapt the myriad authors, styles, and subjects. The collection samples from every distinct period of Classical literature, from the earliest Homerica to Boethius, and in each case presents adaptations which, if not faithful to their originals, are at the very least imitative of their spirit.

For those without working knowledge of Latin and Greek, but who wish to experience a scintilla of the brilliance that characterised the writers of the ancient world, or at least of the pitifully small number that have survived, this collection is a welcome addition, and one that should be warmly welcomed into the library of any person who wishes to consider themselves genuinely well-read.