The Thebaid of Publius Papinas Statius, an epic poem in twelve books completed in about A.D. 90, has been thought by many to stand second only to Virgil's Aeneid among Latin narrative poems. It tells of the war between Eteocles and Polynices, sons of Oedipus, for the throne of Thebes. Rich in incident and always dramatic in tone, it unfolds a panorama of human ambition and violence, triumph and catastrophe. Though remaining within the Homeric and Virgilian tradition, it achieves its own power and vitality in thought, language, and description. This new translation captures all power of the Latin original, demonstrating that the Thebaid is not only a masterpiece of poetry but a compelling story, at times horrifying, noble, and pathetic, of humankind bound by the power of Fate.

Thebaid (The World's Classics) (The ^AWorld's Classics)

Literature & Fiction

Statius

Melville, A. D.

History & Criticism

Oxford University Press

This edition, including the Latin text with full apparatus criticus and a prose translation, contains the first commentary on Statius' Silvae IV since Vollmer's 1898 edition. Of interest as a social document from the early Roman Empire and because it was published despite criticism of the preceding three volumes, Silvae IV contains a preface and nine poems.

Silvae IV

The epic poem Thebaid was composed by Statius around 80-92 A.D. in twelve books and concerns the expedition of the Seven against Thebes in support of the attempt by Oedipus's son Polyneices to recover the throne from his brother Eteocles. Book IX is set in the midst of the fighting before the eventual death of the two brothers. This new edition includes apparatus criticus, a translation, commentary, and an extensive introduction--which contains sections of Statius's life and works; a summary of the epic, themes, characters, and poetry; and an explanation of the poem's great popularity in the Middle Ages.

Statius: Thebaid IX (Oxford Classical Monographs)

Poetry

Clarendon Press

The Silvae of Statius have been preserved in a fifteenth-century manuscript that has long been considered corrupt. In this careful, readable text, Courtney takes the view, held by Klotz alone among editors but strongly supported by recent discoveries of new material, that this manuscript was identical to that seen by Politician. The difficulties are compounded by the author's mannerist style, which most modern editors have often misinterpreted as a defense for corrupt readings. For this text Courtney has surveyed the scholarly literature on the Silvae in its entirety, and has often returned to the judgments of the great seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Latinists in an effort to produce a readable text that does not ignore any difficulties.

Silvae (Oxford Classical Texts)

The Thebaid of Publius Papinas Statius, an epic poem in twelve books completed in about A.D. 90, has been thought by many to stand second only to Virgil's work among Latin narrative poems. It is the account of the war between Eteocles and Polynices, sons of Oedipus, for the throne of Thebes--rich in incident and always dramatic in tone, it unfolds a panorama of human ambition and violence, triumph and catastrophe. Though remaining within the Homeric and Virgilian tradition, it achieves its own power and vitality in thought, language, and description. This new translation captures all power of the Latin original, demonstrating that the Thebaid is not only a masterpiece of poetry but a compelling story, at times horrifying, noble, and pathetic, of humankind bound by the power of Fate.

Thebaid (The World's Classics)

Statius: Silvae Book II (Cambridge Greek and Latin Classics)

With the exception of a poem on the unscripted death of a lion in the Colosseum, Book II of Statius' Silvae is largely domestic in theme. It reflects the more private side of Roman culture, its pleasures, houses, gardens, friendships, and personal losses; it concludes with a provocative tribute to the poet Lucan. Despite its variety, the book is carefully constructed as a unit, and this edition, which is suitable for use with advanced students, puts the book into its context in the history of Greek and Roman poetry. The commentary takes into account the important work done on the text of the Silvae in the past two decades as well as the new perspectives brought to bear on Flavian culture by historians and archaeologists. It explores Statius' use of the short poem as a playful engagement with literary tradition that also reflects changing ideas of Roman cultural identity.

Cambridge University Press

Statius: Thebaid Book XII (Cambridge Greek and Latin Classics)

History

Ancient Civilizations

With the exception of a poem on the unscripted death of a lion in the Colosseum, Book II of Statius' Silvae is largely domestic in theme. It reflects the more private side of Roman culture, its pleasures, houses, gardens, friendships, and personal losses; it concludes with a provocative tribute to the poet Lucan. Despite its variety, the book is carefully constructed as a unit, and this edition, which is suitable for use with advanced students, puts the book into its context in the history of Greek and Roman poetry. The commentary takes into account the important work done on the text of the Silvae in the past two decades as well as the new perspectives brought to bear on Flavian culture by historians and archaeologists. It explores Statius' use of the short poem as a playful engagement with literary tradition that also reflects changing ideas of Roman cultural identity.

Statius published his Thebaid in the last decade of the first century. This epic recounting the struggle between the two sons of Oedipus for the kingship of Thebes is his masterpiece, a stirring exploration of the passions of civil war. The extant portion of his unfinished Achilleid is strikingly different in tone: this second epic begins as a charming account of Achilles' life. 
Statius was raised in the Greek cultural milieu of the Bay of Naples, and his Greek literary education is reflected in his poetry. The political realities of Rome in the first century are also evident in the Thebaid, in representations of authoritarian power and the drive for domination. This two-volume edition of the epics, a freshly edited Latin text facing a graceful translation, completes D. R. Shackleton Bailey's new Loeb Classical Library edition of Statius. Kathleen M. Coleman contributed an essay on recent scholarship on the two epics.

Thebaid, Volume I: Books 1–7 (Loeb Classical Library) (English and Latin Edition)

United States

Harvard University Press

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Books by Statius

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Thebaid (The World's Classics) (The ^AWorld's Classics)

Silvae IV

Statius: Thebaid IX (Oxford Classical Monographs)

Silvae (Oxford Classical Texts)

Thebaid (The World's Classics)

Statius: Silvae Book II (Cambridge Greek and Latin Classics)

Statius: Thebaid Book XII (Cambridge Greek and Latin Classics)

Statius: Thebaid Book XII (Cambridge Greek and Latin Classics)

Statius: Silvae Book II (Cambridge Greek and Latin Classics)

Thebaid, Volume I: Books 1–7 (Loeb Classical Library) (English and Latin Edition)