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Imagery of Colour and Shining in Catullus, Propertius, and Horace

by Jacqueline Clarke (Author)
©2003 Monographs XIV, 340 Pages
Series: Lang Classical Studies, Volume 13

Summary

In recent years there has been growing interest in the concepts of pictorial vividness («enargeia») and pictorial description («ekphrasis») in the works of ancient writers. Colour imagery can play a significant part in such pictorial effects. This book explores the visual and stylistic contributions that words for colour and shining make to the poetry of Catullus, Propertius, and Horace. First, the instances of colour usage by the three poets are analyzed and compared with the colour imagery of other ancient poets and artists. «Colour readings» of selected poems follow, illustrating how colours are employed by these poets to heighten the visual impact of their poems and influence the reader’s emotional responses. This book fills a gap in the scholarship on colour in ancient poetry and provides fresh perspectives on the work of three important poets.

Details

Pages
XIV, 340
Publication Year
2003
ISBN (Hardcover)
9780820456720
Language
English
Keywords
poetry vividness pictorial description
Published
New York, Bern, Berlin, Bruxelles, Frankfurt/M., Oxford, Wien, 2003. XIV, 340 pp.

Biographical notes

Jacqueline Clarke (Author)

The Author: Jacqueline Clarke is Lecturer in Classics at the Centre for European Studies and General Linguistics at Adelaide University, Australia. She received her B.A. (Hons) from the University of Newcastle, Australia, in 1987 and her Ph.D. in classics from Adelaide University in 1999.

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Title: Imagery of Colour and Shining in Catullus, Propertius, and Horace