Blackwell Reference Online

Extract

Catullus' neoteric masterpiece, his longest and most complex poem, belongs formally to the genre of epic, though its highly compressed quality has led modern critics to assign it to the category of epyllia (“mini-epics”). Insistent on its epic status, however, Catullus 64 demands to be read not only in relation to earlier epyllia (most prominently, Callimachus' Hecale ) and to the similar productions of his neoteric contemporaries (such as Calvus' Io and Cinna's Zmyrna), but also as a representative of the epic tradition, with a particularly intimate relationship with his Hellenistic predecessor, Apollonius' Argonautica, and through Apollonius with the genre's fount, Homer. The central importance of the Argonautica for Catullus 64 has long been recognized, for Catullus at first appears to be intent upon a retelling of the Argo legend and the related myth of Jason and Medea, and allusions to both stories are prevalent throughout the poem (Perotta 1931; Braga 1950 ; Avallone 1953 ; Clare 1996 ; LeFevre 2000 a). What has not been fully appreciated is just how strongly Catullus marks Apollonius' epic as his primary model in his opening and how integral a role the earlier poem plays in the structural frame of Catullus 64, as well as in Catullus' representation of himself in relation to his poem's narrative. A deeper understanding of the relationship between these two poets ... log in or subscribe to read full text