lucretius on the nature of things translation

Meticulous, judicious and reader-friendly in equal measure, it embodies the fruits of a lifetime's study of Lucretius' poetic masterpiece. Smith has incorporated the most recent research, including the new discoveries of Epicurean materials from Herculaneum.Ĭharles Segal, Harvard University For anyone concerned to understand the Epicurean philosophical tradition from the inside, the republication, in an updated version, of Martin Ferguson Smith's little-known translation of Lucretius is welcome news. The background on what is known of Lucretius' life, contemporary events, and Epicureanism is all very helpful. It provides the basic information to the non-specialist reader without overburdening him or her with excessive details. The great fact of Lucretiuss life, at least of what is known of it, is his poem, a didactic epic in six books (7,415 verses, not counting lines lost in transmission) bearing the title De Rerum Natura (On the Nature of Things) evidence that Lucretius gave his work this title is that he plays upon it in the proem to book 1. Gordon Campbell, Hermathena The translation is accurate, clear, readable, and vigorous. But of course, the translation is the most important part of the work. Smith outlines in a highly accessible manner what little is known of Lucretius' life and times, the poem's position and status in the Epic and Didactic tradition, and the philosophy of Epicurus that Lucretius puts forward, but also manages to include some of the most up to date research, including recent scholarship on the Herculaneum papyri. Read more as we open his Lucretius, and this expectation is certainly borne out by the quality of this sensitive and thoughtful edition. We should expect from the beginning then that we are in the hands of a wise and learned guide as soon. Martin Ferguson Smith has for many years been one of the leading Lucretian scholars in the world. 'In Smith's translation, the annotations are particularly helpful providing a wealth of supplementary information.'

Lucretius on the nature of things translation