Recommendations for a Starter

Discuss meter, interpretation, and all things Latin Poetry
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ilovcroketas
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Recommendations for a Starter

Post by ilovcroketas »

Hey,

I am a Literature Student who is starting to learn latin. I've been five months with it now and I wanted some recommendations on where to start in latin poerty in latin. I really like Vergil and Ovid, I'm also very into satire but haven't read Horace or Juvenal yet.

I also appreciate any recommendations on where to start reading Latin literature, even if it's translated. Any help is welcome :)

Thank you very much^^

Ehol77
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Re: Recommendations for a Starter

Post by Ehol77 »

I'm just starting as well,since Christmas, and I'm curious if you found any poetry suitable for beginners?

KHay
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Re: Recommendations for a Starter

Post by KHay »

Hello to ilovcroketas and Ehol77,

I have a book with the poems of Catullus, which I like very much. This is a translation published by Penguin Classics:

The Poems of Catullus (translated by Peter Whigham).

In this book are short poems and not so short poems, giving a cultural and political portrait of Rome in the time of Catullus. It also has short biographical notes on most of the people mentioned in the poems.

I think it would not be difficult to find these poems in Latin as well!

ilovcroketas
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Re: Recommendations for a Starter

Post by ilovcroketas »

Thank you so much, Khay. I'll give it a look :)

mwh
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Re: Recommendations for a Starter

Post by mwh »

Well if you really like Ovid you could start with one or two of the Amores in the original Latin. And some of the shorter poems of Catullus—but be sure to leave some for later!

Poems are always in verse, so you should learn to read them metrically, and pay attention to their structural artistry.

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