Virgil's Elements: Physics and Poetry in the Georgics

Professor Ross presents the Georgics as a poem of science, of the power and ultimate failure of knowledge. Exploring the science that Virgil knew and used, he analyzes the oppositions and balances of lire and water, of the qualities of hot and cold, wet and dry, throughout the poem. These the farmer manipulates to create the balance necessary for growth, yet, in Virgil’s universe, the potential for destruction inevitably results in a profound pessimism.

Originally published in 1987.

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