P. Papinius Statius - Böcker

This new edition deals with Book 5 of Statius' Silvae, which has often been neglected in thematic treatments of the poet's work. The book is notable for its concern with Statius himself - one poem is a lament for his father, who was himself a poet and a teacher. As well as discussing issues of linguistic usage and textual problems (which are numerous), the commentary examines such aspects of literary interpretation as the use of allusion and the role of genre, and also includes a conspectus of the historical and cultural background. This is an invaluable introduction to the work of a learned, and increasingly appreciated, poet.

The five books of the Silvae bring together the occasional verses which Statius wrote in addition to his two epics. In these short descriptive poems Statius elaborates features taken from various genres into an original whole, in which description and eulogy play important roles. The main themes of the poems of his second book are consolation after bereavement and the contrast between nature and culture. The present work contains a general introduction, a text of Silvae II, a bibliography, and an index, together with a verse-by-verse commentary on the poems of this second book. This is the first commentary on a book of the Silvae since Vollmer's commentary on the whole of the Silvae of 1898. Emphasis is here placed on interpretation and moreover chiefly on the literary and stylistic aspects of the poems, which, compared with the epic poetry of Statius and his contemporaries, have hitherto received relatively little attention.