[5] To further alleviate the fear of non-existence, Lucretius makes use of the symmetry argument: he argues that the eternal oblivion awaiting all humans after death is exactly the same as the infinite nothingness that preceded our birth. , ). Epicurean Philosophy Online. De rerum natura (Latin: [deː ˈreːrʊn naːˈtuːraː]; On the Nature of Things) is a first-century BC didactic poem by the Roman poet and philosopher Lucretius (c. 99 BC – c. 55 BC) with the goal of explaining Epicurean philosophy to a Roman audience. [15] Near the end of his first book, Lucretius defends his fusion of Epicureanism and poetry with a simile, arguing that the philosophy he espouses is like a medicine: life-saving but often unpleasant. in insula Samo, mortuus Athenis 271 aut 270 a.C.n.) [45] Nevertheless, a small minority of scholars argue that Jerome's assertion may be credible. De rerum natura(English: On the Nature of Things) is the only known work of Lucretius. [62][63], It is also believed that the Roman poet Virgil referenced Lucretius and his work in the second book of his Georgics when he wrote: "Happy is he who has discovered the causes of things and has cast beneath his feet all fears, unavoidable fate, and the din of the devouring Underworld" (felix qui potuit rerum cognoscere causas/atque metus omnis et inexorabile fatum/subiecit pedibus strepitumque Acherontis avari). "[35], Despite his advocacy of empiricism and his many correct conjectures about atomism and the nature of the physical world, Lucretius concludes his first book stressing the absurdity of the (by then well-established) round earth theory, favor instead a flat earth cosmology. Epicurus (Graece Ἐπίκουρος; natus 342 aut 341 a.C.n. Additionally, although only published in 1996, Lucy Hutchinson's translation of De rerum natura was in all likelihood the first in English and was most likely completed some time in the late 1640s or 1650s. Ruim tweeduizend jaar geleden schreef Titus Lucretius Carus het leerdicht De Rerum Natura, Over de Natuur van de Dingen, waarmee hij de filosofie van de Griekse wijsgeer Epicurus onder de aandacht van het Romeinse publiek wilde brengen.Rome werd in die dagen verscheurd door burgeroorlogen, corruptie en schandalen en de bevolking snakte naar vrede en vriendschap. [3], The fourth book is devoted to the theory of the senses, sight, hearing, taste, smell, of sleep and of dreams, ending with a disquisition upon love and sex. [48] O is currently housed at Leiden University. [93] His Essays contain almost a hundred quotes from De rerum natura. The first three books provide a fundamental account of being and nothingness, matter and space, the atoms and their movement, the infinity of the universe both as regards time and space, the regularity of reproduction (no prodigies, everything in its proper habitat), the nature of mind (animus, directing thought) and spirit (anima, sentience) as material bodily entities, and their mortality, since, according to Lucretius, they and their functions (consciousness, pain) end with the bodies that contain them and with which they are interwoven. 20 20. THE PROOEMIA OF DE RERUM NATURA 347 Lucretius' devotion to Epicurus, or by seek-ing a solution in the text of Lucretius. Epicurus freely admitted that this method is insufficient to establish answers to all questions, but he stressed that it was sufficient to eliminate the false contentions of the priests and the Platonic philosophers. It has been suggested that Dante (1265–1321) might have read Lucretius's poem, as a few verses of his Divine Comedy exhibit a great affinity with De rerum natura, but there is no conclusive evidence that Dante ever read Lucretius. On the Nature of Things (De Rerum Natura) by Titus Lucretius Carus (c. 99 - c. 55 BCE) This abridged presentation of Lucretius' famous six-book poem on nature focuses mostly on those passages essential to Epicureanism based on translations by Sisson and Rouse. He was unable to tell his readers how to determine which of these alternatives might be the true one. To the Greek philosopher Epicurus, the unhappiness and degradation of humans arose largely from the dread which they entertained of the power of the deities, from terror of their wrath. [1], The Italian scholar Guido Billanovich demonstrated that Lucretius' poem was well known in its entirety by Lovato Lovati (1241–1309) and some other Paduan pre-humanists during the thirteenth century. A Cyclical Cosmos: The Female in Lucretius’ De Rerum Natura Abstract This essay concerns the role of the female gender in Lucretius’ epic poem, the De Rerum Natura. Mourners, the elderly, Nature and Memmius raise their voices to debate the issue of mortality. [3], In the third book, the general concepts proposed thus far are applied to demonstrate that the vital and intellectual principles, the Anima and Animus, are as much a part of us as are our limbs and members, but like those limbs and members have no distinct and independent existence, and that hence soul and body live and perish together; the book concludes by arguing that the fear of death is a folly, as death merely extinguishes all feeling—both the good and the bad. The poem consists of six untitled books, in dactylic hexameter. fuit philosophus Graecus, naturae rerum investigator apud doctrinam atomi Democriti et praeceptor voluptatis humanae.. Plus quam 300 opera scripsit, quorum tamen sola nobis exstant fragmenta. [1][38] According to Lucretius, this unpredictable swerve occurs at no fixed place or time: When atoms move straight down through the void by their own weight, they deflect a bit in space at a quite uncertain time and in uncertain places, just enough that you could say that their motion has changed. Volume 144, December 2016, Issue 4, pp 439-461 Original language: English Aufsatz About this journal "[46] However, Kleve contends that four of the six books are represented in the fragments, which he argues is reason to assume that the entire poem was at one time kept in the library. [43] In c. AD 380, St. Jerome would contend in his Chronicon that Cicero amended and edited De rerum natura,[44] although most scholars argue that this is an erroneous claim;[45] the classicist David Butterfield argues that this mistake was likely made by Jerome (or his sources) because the earliest reference to Lucretius is in the aforementioned letter from Cicero. St. Jerome, writing more than four hundred years after Lucretius’ death, makes the sensational statement that the … On the Nature of Things (De Rerum Natura) by Titus Lucretius Carus (c. 99 - c. 55 BCE) Excerpts from Books I and II. stammendes Lehrgedicht des römischen Dichters, Philosophen und Epikureers Titus Lucretius Carus, genannt Lukrez. Iff. Lucretius, in full Titus Lucretius Carus, (flourished 1st century bce), Latin poet and philosopher known for his single, long poem, De rerum natura (On the Nature of Things).The poem is the fullest extant statement of the physical theory of the Greek philosopher Epicurus.It also alludes to his ethical and logical doctrines.. Life. Drawing upon this materialist philosophy, Lucretius cites the fear of death as the cause of man's ills, and shows the way to freedom from that fear. )[69], Additionally, Lucretius's work is discussed by the Augustan poet Ovid, who in his Amores writes "the verses of the sublime Lucretius will perish only when a day will bring the end of the world" (Carmina sublimis tunc sunt peritura Lucreti / exitio terras cum dabit una dies),[70] and the Silver Age poet Statius, who in his Silvae praises Lucretius as being highly "learned". GAUGE ( 10 x 10 cm or 4 inches of st st) 19 sts x 26 rows, with 4 mm needles 18 sts x 25 rows, with 4,5 mm needles the truth of other things — such as the nature of the soul and the “origin” of the universe — about which our information is limited. Lucretius attempts to allow for free will in his physicalistic universe by postulating an indeterministic tendency for atoms to veer randomly (Latin: clinamen, literally "the turning aside of a thing", but often translated as "the swerve"). Ball of 100 g * = approx . W. E. Leonard and Smith Lucretius (University of Wisconsin Press 1942); Richard Minadeo, The Lyre of Science: Form and Meaning in Lucretius' de rerum natura (Detroit: Wayne State University Press 1969). According to Lucretius's frequent statements in his poem, the main purpose of the work was to free Gaius Memmius's mind of the supernatural and the fear of death—and to induct him into a state of ataraxia by expounding the philosophical system of Epicurus, whom Lucretius glorifies as the hero of his epic poem. But if they were not in the habit of swerving, they would all fall straight down through the depths of the void, like drops of rain, and no collision would occur, nor would any blow be produced among the atoms. Since that nothingness (which he likens to a deep, peaceful sleep) caused us no pain or discomfort, we should not fear the same nothingness that will follow our own demise:[5], According to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Lucretius sees those who fear death as embracing the fallacious assumption that they will be present in some sense "to regret and bewail [their] own non-existence. (De Rerum Natura) Summary by Michael McGoodwin, prepared 1997. These phenomena are the result of regular, but purposeless motions and interactions of tiny atoms in empty space. [52][53] Scholars consider manuscripts O, Q, and S to all be descendants of the original archetype, which they dub Ω. 10 C.f.Lucretius.3. quo magis aeternum da dictis, diva, leporem. This method of evaluating reality was the Epicurean key to avoiding the errors of religion and of the false philosophers. Once Poggio delivered De rerum natura from its monastery prison, the beauty of the poem and the power of its ideas did their work. Lucretius, De Rerum Natura 3.1-15: Epicurus, I’m Your Biggest Fan. Most of his writings have perished, particularly On Nature. Because the manuscript has survived to the present day almost completely extant, it is one of the most valuable references we have of Epicureanism. Certainly to eliminate fear of the divine throughphysical understanding is one component of this task, but not the onlyone. . [54] However, while O is a direct descendant of the archetype,[54] Q and S are believed to have both been derived from a manuscript (Ψ) that in turn had been derived from a damaged and modified version of the archetype (ΩI). [66] This has led scholars like Katharina Volk to argue that "Manilius is a veritable anti-Lucretius". The oldest manuscripts of the poem that survive are held in the library of Universiteit Leiden: Voss. Drawing upon this materialist philosophy, Lucretius cites the fear of death as the cause of man's ills, and shows the way to freedom from that fear. The De rerum natura is, as its title confirms, a work ofphysics, written in the venerable tradition of Greek treatises Onnature. He argues against fear of such deities by demonstrating, through observations and arguments, that the operations of the world can be accounted for in terms of natural phenomena. Acknowledgement: ... Epicurus was born in Samos 341 BC, after Athens had been defeated by Philip II of Macedon. This wrath was supposed to be displayed by the misfortunes inflicted in this life and by the everlasting tortures that were the lot of the guilty in a future state (or, where these feelings were not strongly developed, from a vague dread of gloom and misery after death). Zumindest deutet sein … An exposition of Epicurus atomic theory and the ethical tenets based upon it. De Rerum Natura, Leerdicht over de Natuur Over de in de eerste eeuw v. Chr. Already two centuries before Epicurus this was criticized by Xenophanes (570-480 BC), founder of … Historians of science, however, have been critical of the limitations of his Epicurean approach to science, especially as it pertained to astronomical topics, which he relegated to the class of "unclear" objects. [89] Lactantius also disparages the science of De rerum natura (as well as of Epicureanism in general), calls Lucretius "the most worthless of the poets" (poeta inanissimus), notes that he is unable to read more than a few lines of De rerum natura without laughing, and sarcastically asks, "Who would think that [Lucretius] had a brain when he said these things? [23] Regardless, due to the ideas espoused in the poem, much of Lucretius's work was seen by many as direct a challenge to theistic, Christian belief. TITVS LVCRETIVS CARVS (c. 94 – c. 49 B.C.) This sumptuous account of a secular cosmos argues that the soul is mortal, that pleasure is the object of life, and that humanity has free will, among other ideas. Molière produced a verse translation which does not survive; John Evelyn translated the first book. Quae quoniam rerum naturam sola gubernas nec sine te quicquam dias in luminis oras exoritur neque fit laetum neque amabile quicquam, te sociam studeo scribendis versibus esse, quos ego de rerum natura pangere conor Memmiadae nostro, quem tu, dea, tempore in omni omnibus ornatum voluisti excellere rebus. September 27, 2015 September 27, 2015 ~ sententiaeantiquae “I follow you who first could raise so clear a light to illuminate in so great a darkness the best parts of life, the glory of the Greek people; and I place my feet Drawing upon this materialist philosophy, Lucretius cites the fear of death as the cause of man's ills, and shows the way to freedom from that fear. [31][32], Thus, he began his discussion by claiming that he would, explain by what forces nature steers the courses of the Sun and the journeyings of the Moon, so that we shall not suppose that they run their yearly races between heaven and earth of their own free will [i.e., are gods themselves] or that they are rolled round in furtherance of some divine plan....[33], However, when he set out to put this plan into practice, he limited himself to showing how one, or several different, naturalistic accounts could explain certain natural phenomena. Lucretius thus argues that death is simply annihilation, and that there is no afterlife. The two traditional axioms from which Lucretius takes his start (principium): nihil e nihilo gigni and nihil ad nihilum redire (vv. It is fair to question capitalism, and to address issues of economics. [3], The fifth book is described by Ramsay as the most finished and impressive,[3] while Stahl argues that its "puerile conceptions" is proof that Lucretius should be judged as a poet, not as a scientist. Readers have always acknowledged the comparatively clear macrostructure of De rerum natura 3. [66] However, Manilius's poem, espouses a Stoic, deterministic understanding of the universe,[67] and by its very nature attacks the very philosophical underpinnings of Lucretius's worldview. Ryan, Kelly Erin. quo magis aeternum da dictis, diva, leporem. He argued that the deities (whose existence he did not deny) lived forevermore in the enjoyment of absolute peace—strangers to all the passions, desires, and fears, which affect humans—and totally indifferent to the world and its inhabitants, unmoved alike by their virtues and their crimes. [68] (Coincidentally, De rerum natura and the Astronomica were both rediscovered by Poggio Bracciolini in the early 15th century. Nothing … According to the Epicurean canon, the fear of death must also becountered, and the rational management of pleasures … A typical opinion is Wolfgang Schmidt's, in his review of the book Lucrezio by Onorato Toscari: "Dar-aus, dass Epikur den iisthetisch-geistigen And as a simple ceasing-to-be, death can be neither good nor bad for this being, since a dead person—being completely devoid of sensation and thought—cannot miss being alive. LibriVox recording of De Rerum Natura, by Titus Lucretius Carus. [98][99][100] The book was well-received, and later earned the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction and the 2011 National Book Award for Nonfiction. )[92], Montaigne owned a Latin edition published in Paris, in 1563, by Denis Lambin which he heavily annotated. On the Nature of Things, long poem written in Latin as De rerum natura by Lucretius that sets forth the physical theory of the Greek philosopher Epicurus. On the Nature of Things (De Rerum Natura) by Titus Lucretius Carus (c. 99 - c. 55 BCE) This abridged presentation of Lucretius ' famous six-book poem on nature focuses mostly on those passages essential to Epicureanism based on translations by Sisson and Rouse. Determinism appears to conflict with the concept of free will. (Summary by bropops4) From Epicurus Wiki. 270 y. Some writings by Epicurus have survived. [59][60] This proves that the work was known in select circles long before the official rediscovery by Poggio. However, Memmius' name is central to several critical verses in the poem, and this theory has therefore been largely discredited. To prove that neither the mind nor spirit can survive independent of the body, Lucretius uses a simple analogy: when a vessel shatters, its contents spill everywhere; likewise, when the body dies, the mind and spirit dissipate. In the poem/book, Lucretius takes on the task of persuading people that they should not fear death. 5) In Bailey'searlier book, The GreekAtomists and Epicurus (Oxford 1928) 278 H., )[18], The state of the poem as it currently exists suggests that it was released in an unfinished state. [5][64][65] According to David Sedley of the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, "With these admiring words, Virgil neatly encapsulates four dominant themes of the poem—universal causal explanation, leading to elimination of the threats the world seems to pose, a vindication of free will, and disproof of the soul's survival after death. [1] Namely, Lucretius explores the principles of atomism; the nature of the mind and soul; explanations of sensation and thought; the development of the world and its phenomena; and explains a variety of celestial and terrestrial phenomena. Vertaling: Marguerite Prakke. He does not talk about himself in the way that his contemporary Catullus does, and information from other sources is meager and unreliable. [46], Copies of the poem were preserved in a number of medieval libraries, with the earliest extant manuscripts dating to the ninth century. "De Rerum Natura" (On the Nature of the Universe), Lucretius's only work, written in six books, expounds the philosophy of Epicurus. Nevertheless, Lucretius writes as a complete Epicurean,offering his reader not just cosmological understanding but the fullrecipe for happiness. I have translated from my own text published in the Bibliotheca Oxoniensi. In that case, nature would never have produced anything. 270 y. De Rerum Natura is Lucretius's majestic elaboration of Greek Epicurean physics and psychology in an epic that unfolds over the course of six books. sion that the De Rerum Natura, even in iu most scientific discussions, is Itill poetry. 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