27 pages • 54 minutes read
HoraceArs Poetica
Nonfiction | Essay / Speech | Adult | Published in 1991A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Index of Terms
Chorus
A chorus is a group of nondescript characters in a Greek or Roman drama that narrates and provides commentary on the plot and action in the story. On one hand, the chorus provides the audience with an omniscient, background description of the story. On the other hand, the chorus functions as an actor who comments on the narrative and instructs the audience on what they are hearing and watching. Some argue that the chorus can be considered the voice of the author, depending on the drama. Horace recommends that the function of the chorus should be to “sustain the part and manly character of an actor: nor let them sing anything between the acts which is not conducive to, and fitly coherent with, the main design” (Lines 189-219, Paragraph 2).
Epistle
An epistle is a text that is sent to a person or people, typically in a didactic form. This letter-writing genre of literature can be in prose or verse. Ars Poetica is a verse epistle addressed to the sons of Piso, a patron of Horace at the time. The secondary title of Ars Poetica is Epistle to the Pisos. Horace also wrote two books titled Epistles I and Epistles II. dedicated to various personages, including his primary patron, Maecenas, Emperor Augustus, and other contemporary poets. Epistles are characteristically more colloquial, intimate, and informal compared to treatises and orations.
Iambic
An iamb is a metrical foot used in poetry. It consists of a short syllable followed by a long syllable. It is a measurement of meter and is used in the study of prosody, the measurement of rhythm in poetry. In Ars Poetica, Horace examines the use of iambic meter to convey emotion, such as rage and passion. It can also, he says, be “adapted for dialogue […] to silence the noise of the populace, and calculated for action” (Lines 73-98, Paragraph 3). The relationship of iambic meter to the narrative content is an example of Horace’s emphasis on unity, consistency, and decorum in poetry.
Genius
Horace attributes the genius of the Greeks to their study of classical models and inspiration from divine sources, i.e., the Muses. The Roman education system, which produces “sordid rust and hankering after wealth,” corrupts the mind of the youth so that they cannot harness poetic genius (Lines 309-46, Paragraph 1). Horace attributes the decline in eloquence, wisdom, and beauty in the arts to the love of material wealth in Roman society. This preoccupation with money and commercial goods suffocates genius. To Horace, genius is not just a talent for creative and beautiful expression. It is the fruit of a life devoted to the study of truth and wisdom as discovered in daily life, classical literature, and nature.
Nature Versus Art
Horace refers to nature as the inherent or natural talent of the poet. Conversely, art is akin to the craft or study of rules and models. Horace is not interested in defining to what degree the poet possesses these qualities. His focus is practical. Both are essential for the success of a poet:
He who is industrious to reach the wished-for goal, has done and suffered much when a boy; he has sweated and shivered with cold; he has abstained from love and wine; he who sings the Pythian strains, was first a learner, and in awe of a master (Lines 391-408, Paragraph 2).
Untrained poets refuse to admit their ignorance yet never take the time to study and develop their knowledge. He says, “But [in poetry] it is now enough for a man to say of himself:—“I make admirable verses: a murrain seize the hindmost: it is scandalous for me to be outstripped, and fairly to acknowledge that I am ignorant of that which I never learned” (Lines 391-408, Paragraph 2). Overall, the poet must possess the natural talent that can be cultivated into excellence through training their craft.
Odes
An ode is a style of lyric poetry. The ode genre uses elegant language in a highly structured format to praise a thing, event, or person. The Horatian ode is one of the major styles in the genre. It consists of two- or four-line stanzas that address the subject with intimacy and dignity. The self-reflection and emotional register in a Horatian ode contrasts with the Greek odes of Pindar, which dealt with their subjects in a heroic style. Like the Ars Poetica, Horatian odes reflect the author’s preference for simple, uniform, and practical poetry that resonates with a reader’s emotions and daily life.
