To watch anothers labouring anguish far, not that we. On the nature of things has been divided into the following sections. Evelyns complete extant translation lacking book 2 not published until john. On the nature of things is a firstcentury bc didactic poem by the roman poet and philosopher lucretius c. Book i book ii book iii book iv book v book vi card. Lucretius, on the nature of things loeb classical library. It is a formidable task to put 7,500 latin hexameter lines into english verse, but mr. I care about clarity and ease of reading more than accuracy or aesthetics. Lucretius has 110 books on goodreads with 78091 ratings.
Its earliest published translation into any language french did not occur until 1650. This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Don fowler 2007 lucretius on creation and evolution. The poem explores lucretius belief about the gods, humanity, the senses, the world, and the universe, all through the philosophical framework of epicurus. Trn, isbn 080185055x, isbn 9780801850554, brand new, free shipping in the us titus lucretius carus was probably born in the early first century. Humphries admirable and exciting translation makes it easy to grasp the shape and the magnitude of lucretius conception. On the nature of things by lucretius, part of the internet classics archive. This abridged presentation of lucretius famous sixbook poem on. In six books compounded of solid reasoning, brilliant imagination, and noble poetry, he expounds the scientific theories of the greek philosopher epicurus, with the aim of dispelling fear of. Among digressions about the importance of philosophy in mens life and praises of epicurus, lucretius. Englerts translation of the poem is indeed accurate and readable. It is sweet, when on the great sea the winds trouble its waters, to behold from land anothers deep distress. Lucretius ii an ethics of motion download free movies.
He knows the poem as thoroughly as he knows the scholarship that bears on it an admirable translation, admirably supported by scholarly. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. Click anywhere in the line to jump to another position. On the nature of things by lucretius the internet classics archive.
Mother of aeneas and his race, darling of men and venus, aid me in my work gods, nurturing venus, a who beneath the smoothmoving heavenly signs fill with yourself the sea fullladen with ships, the earth that bears the crops, since through you every kind of living thing is conceived and rising up looks on the light of the sun. Until now, there has been no adequate english verse translation of lucretius s work. Please click here to go to our dedicated site for lucretius. Martin ferguson smiths work on lucretius is both well known and highly regarded. A useful recent translation of lucretius on the nature of things by cassius amicus published october, 2012 introductory material, lucretius, texts on epicurus until today i was unaware of a 2010 edition of on the nature of things produced by ian johnston and available at the website linked here. On the nature of things watson translation by carus. The internet classics archive on the nature of things by. A useful recent translation of lucretius on the nature.
This translation is based primarily upon the latin text of h. Book i 94k book ii 106k book iii 95k book iv 117k book v 9k book vi 122k download. This work is licensed under a creative commons attributionsharealike 3. Online shopping from a great selection at books store. On the nature of things work by lucretius britannica. Hide browse bar your current position in the text is marked in blue.
This sumptuous account of a secular cosmos argues that the soul is mortal, that pleasure is the object of life, and. Who is able with mighty mind to build a song worthy the divine discoveries of epicurus of the majesty of nature and these discoveries. But of course i admire lucretius and his predecessor, epicurus and his predecessor because he really buckled down and looked out at the world, and inside himself, and showed in his logic the possible fortitude of the human mind. Lucretius has been credited with originating the concept. The title of lucretius s work translates that of the chief work of epicurus, peri physeos on nature.
Illud in his rebus non est mirabile, quare, omnia cum rerum primordia sint in motu, summa tamen summa videatur stare quiete, 310 praeter quam siquid proprio dat corpore motus. His greatest success is in persuading the reader to see the poem as a whole, as a single, strange work of art, in which the. Home collectionstexts perseus catalog research grants open source about help. Anthony esolen fills that gap with a version that reproduceswith remarkable faithfulnessthe meaning, pace, and tone of the original latin. Humphries easy, varied lines are thoroughly readable. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book without typos from the publisher. Or who is so potent in speech as to devise praises fit for his merits, who by his own intellect winning and gaining such treasures, has left them to us.
So, if you know a little latin, but youre not really great at it, this compact volume with the latin on the lefthand page and the english on the right, is the book for you. Its earliest published translation into any language french did not occur. In the present reprint the translation has been adapted. If livy is easy and horace is hard, then lucretius is much closer to horace in difficulty.
By the mid1600s another translation into english by puritan lucy hutchinson was. The poem, written in some 7,400 dactylic hexameters, is divided into six untitled books, and explores epicurean physics through poetic. Once more, we all from seed celestial spring, to all is that same father, from whom earth, the fostering mother, as she takes the drops. Lucretius s most popular book is the way things are. Proem mother of rome, delight of gods and men, dear venus that beneath the gliding stars makest to teem the manyvoyaged main and fruitful lands for all of living things. Readers will share our excitement in the discovery of this accurate and fluent prose rendering. The poem is the fullest extant statement of the physical theory of the greek philosopher epicurus. Book ii deals with the motion and forms of the atoms, and. The latin text of lucretius latin and english edition by lucretius, william ellery leonard, et al. In book 2 he explains atomic movement, the variety of atomic shapes, and. Editions containing works of lucretius titus lucretius carus lucretius on atomic motion. My main goal is to understand epicurean philosophy, though of course it would be nice if it sounded good too. For a more detailed description of the contents of each book, please consult the.