TO PYRRHA (ODES, I, 5)

by: Horace (Quintus Horatius Flaccus) (65-8 B.C.)

      HAT slender youth, bedew'd with liquid odors,
      Courts thee on roses in some pleasant cave,
      Pyrrha? For whom bind'st thou
      In wreaths thy golden hair,
      Plain in thy neatness? O how oft shall he
      Of faith and changed gods complain, and seas
      Rough with black winds, and storms
      Unwonted shall admire!
      Who now enjoys thee credulous, all gold,
      Who, always vacant, always amiable
      Hopes thee, of flattering gales
      Unmindful. Hapless they
      To whom thou untried seem'st fair. Me, in my vow'd
      Picture, the sacred wall declares to have hung,
      My dank and dropping weeds
      To the stern god of sea.

This English translation of "To Pyrrha" was composed by John Milton (1608-1674).

MORE POEMS BY HORACE

RELATED WEBSITES

  • Horace - A biography of the Roman philosopher and dramatic critic Quintus Horatius Flaccus.
  • Horace: Bibliography - A bibliography of the works of Quintus Horatius Flaccus; includes a list of critical and biographical resources.
  • Latin Dramatic Criticism - An overview of dramatic criticism as it developed during the Roman Empire.
  • The Maxims of Horace - An overview of the Roman critic's rules for dramatic construction.
  • Purchase books by Horace

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