Lucan, Bellum civile

Annemarie Ambühl (Johannes Gutenberg Universität Mainz)

Ed. by Sophia Papaioannou, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.1.2: Ancient Roman Writing and Culture (Republic and Empire), -750-476.
Vol. editors: William John Dominik (University of Otago), Giacomo Fedeli (University of Exeter), Thomas Habinek (University of Southern California), Emily Kneebone (University of Nottingham), Elodie Paillard (University of Sydney), Sophia Papaioannou (National and Kapodistrian University of Athens), Jula Wildberger (The American University of Paris)

Dates

First circulation or publication c. 61 - 65

Places

Ancient Rome (Republic & Empire) (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Epic
Poetry (any)

Resources

Summary

Lucan’s Bellum civile (often quoted under the alternative title Pharsalia) on the civil war between Caesar and Pompey proved to be one of the most influential Latin epics, in spite or probably just because of its challenging style and provocative subject-matter. The biographical tradition that depicts its author as a young genius meeting a premature tragic fate, as the emperor Nero forced him to commit suicide at the age of twenty-six, helped to turn the poet and his epic legacy into legendary figures.

Modern scholarship has struggled to come to terms with several issues raised by the work, resulting in widely divergent opinions about its alleged political or philosophical message (for the older …

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3837 words

Citation: Ambühl, Annemarie. "Bellum civile". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 03 August 2014 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=32160, accessed 22 November 2024.]

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