Lygdamus
Lygdamus (probably a pseudonym) was a Roman poet who wrote six love poems in Classical Latin. His elegies, five of them concerning a girl named Neaera, are preserved in the ''Appendix Tibulliana'' alongside the apocryphal works of Tibullus. In poem 5, line 6, he describes himself as young and in 5.18 gives his birth year as the year "when both consuls died by equal fate" (that is, 43 BC). This line, however, is identical to one in Ovid's ''Tristia'' from AD 11, and it has been much debated by scholars. One suggestion, supported by the numerous features of vocabulary and style shared between Lygdamus and Ovid, is that "Lygdamus" is merely a pen name used by the young Ovid. Some more recent scholars, however, have argued that Lygdamus lived much later than Ovid and imitated his style. No other author mentions Lygdamus, making the mystery of his real identity all the more difficult.Unlike Tibullus's Delia and Nemesis, Neaera appears not to have been a courtesan, but is described by the poet as his wife, who left him for another man. Provided by Wikipedia
Lygdamus : Corpus Tibullianum III. 1-6: Lygdami elegiarum liber /
:
This volume is an in-depth study of the short poetic cycle of Lygdamus, one of the authors included in Book III of the Corpus Tibullianum . The Introduction analyzes the controversial quaestio Lygdamea (identity and dating of the poet), the relationship between Lygdamus and his beloved, Neaera, the incorporation of his poems into the Corpus Tibullianum , and the manuscript tradition. This is followed by a rigorous critical edition (taking fully into account the earliest editions and conjectures). Finally, there is a detailed and exhaustive line-by-line and word-by-word commentary on each poem, paying particular attention to elegiac terms and motifs. This is the first comprehensive study of the work of Lygdamus, considered as a poet with his own literary identity.
:
Originally presented as the author's thesis (doctoral--University of Seville), 1993. :
1 online resource (627 pages) :
Includes bibliographical references (p. 531-550) and index. :
9789004329805 :
0169-8958 ; :
Available to subscribing member institutions only.