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9780801866661 Academic Inspection Copy

Horace

Image, Identity, and Audience
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Traditional views of Horace seek to present the poet as a consistent, vivid personality who stands behind and orchestrates the diverse ''Horatian'' writings that have come down to us. In recent years, however, an alternate tradition suggests that there may be many Horaces, that his work is more productively read as the constant invention of rhetorical techniques sensitively attuned to the requirements of different situations and audiences. As Randall L. B. McNeill argues, any sense that readers have of the ''real'' Horace is clearly deceptive; Horace offers us no unguarded self-portrait, but rather a number of consciously developed characterizations to suit diverse audiences, whether patron, peers, or the public. Horace: Image, Identity, and Audience provides a wide-ranging analysis of Horace's use of self-presentation in his poetry: in his portrayal of his relationships with his patron Maecenas and with his larger readership as a whole; in his discussion of the craft of poetry and his own identity as a poet; and in his handling of contemporary Roman political events in the light of his assumed role as critic of his own society. McNeill uncovers the techniques Horace uses to depict the intricacies of his personal existence; in the book's conclusion, he explores how similar techniques were adapted by later poets such as Ovid. This volume will interest scholars of Horace, Latin poetry, rhetoric, as well as those interested in the cultural studies aspect of persona and identity.


Contents:

Introduction: The Horaces of Horace



1 Poet and Patron

The Warmth of Friendship

Deflation and Anxiety

Amicitia and Patronage

Dealing with Pressure

Conclusion: The Horatian Invention



2 In the Public Eye

The Rings of Audience

The Core Readership

The Social Elite

Criticism and Envy

The Outer Ring

Conclusion: Audiences and Images



3 Craft and Concern

Poetry as Practical Tool

Poetry as Professional Activity

Poetry as Public Model

Conclusion: The Individual behind the Universal



4 Worldly Affairs

Writing for Rome

Preliminary Observations

The Personal Perspective

Savior of the State

The Poet's Burden

Free and Independent Support



Conclusion: Multiple Indirections

Conclusion: Creating Reality

""A fine read.""

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