This Commentary takes critical account of recent writing on the Odes. It deals with detailed questions of interpretation, and shows how Horace combined the tact of a court-poet with a humane individualism, and how he wrote within a literary tradition without losing a highly personal voice. Though the book is not intended for beginners, the editors aim throughout at clarity.

• General Introduction


• 1: Horace's early life


• 2: The date of Odes I-III


• 3: The `Roman Odes'


• 4: Horace and Augustus


• 5: Maecenas and the other addressees


• 6: Horace's `love-poems'


• 7: Religion in Horace


• 8: The meaning of the author


• 9: Ambiguity


• 10: Person and persona


• 11: Genre


• 12: Style


• 13: Structure


• 14: The arrangement of the book


• 15: The text


• 16: The ancient commentators


• 17: Metre


• 18: Bibliography


• Commentary


• Indexes

R. G. M. Nisbet was formerly Corpus Christi Professor of Latin Language and Literature, University of Oxford
Niall Rudd was formerly Professor of Latin at Bristol University