§10.1.54Panyasin ex utroque mixtum putant in eloquendo neutriusque aequare virtutes, alterum tamen ab eo materia alterum disponendi ratione superari.
They think that Panyasis, though a mixture of both in style, equals the virtues of neither; yet one of them is surpassed by him in matter, the other in the method of arrangement.
Apollonius in ordinem a grammaticis datum non venit, quia Aristarchus atque Aristophanes, poetarum iudices, neminem sui temporis in numerum redegerunt; non tamen contemnendum reddidit opus aequali quadam mediocritate. §10.1.55arati materia motu caret, ut in qua nulla varietas, nullus adfectus, nulla persona, nulla cuiusquam sit oratio; sufficit tamen operi, cui se parent credidit.
Apollonius does not come into the list given by the grammarians, because Aristarchus and Aristophanes, the judges of poets, admitted no one of their own time into the number; yet he did not produce a work to be despised, owing to a certain even mediocrity. The material of Aratus lacks movement, as being that in which there is no variety, no passion, no character, no speech of anyone; yet he is sufficient for the work for which he believed himself to be fit.
admirabilis in suo genere Theocritus, sed musa illa rustica et pastoralis non forum modo, verum ipsam etiam urbem reformidat. §10.1.56audire videor undique congerentes nomina plurimorum poetarum.
Theocritus is admirable in his own genre, but that rustic and pastoral Muse dreads not only the forum, but even the city itself. I seem to hear people from all sides gathering the names of many poets.
quid? Herculis acta non bene Pisandros? Nicandrum frustra secuti Macer atque Vergilius? quid? Euphorionem transibimus? quem nisi probasset Vergilius, idem nunquam certe conditorum Chalcidico versu carminum fecisset in Bucolicis mentionem.
What? Did not Pisander sing the deeds of Hercules well? Did Macer and Virgil follow Nicander in vain? What? Shall we pass over Euphorion? If Virgil had not approved of him, he would certainly never have made mention in the Bucolics of poems composed in Chalcidic verse.
quid? Horatius frustra Tyrtaeum Homero subiungit? §10.1.57nec sane quisquam est tam procul a cognitione eorum remotus, ut non indicem certe ex bibliotheca sumptum transferre in libros suos possit.
What? Does Horace in vain place Tyrtaeus immediately after Homer? Nor indeed is anyone so far removed from knowledge of them as not to be able at least to transfer a catalogue taken from a library into his own books.
nec ignoro igitur quos transeo nec utique damno, ut qui dixerim esse in omnibus utilitatis aliquid. §10.1.58sed ad illos iam perfectis constitutisque viribus revertemur; quod in cenis grandibus saepe facimus ut, cum optimis satiati sumus, varietas tamen nobis ex vilioribus grata sit.
Therefore, I am neither ignorant of those whom I pass over, nor do I by any means condemn them, since I have said that there is some utility in all of them. But we shall return to them when our strength is already perfected and established; as we often do at grand dinners, so that, when we are satiated with the best things, variety from cheaper ones is nevertheless pleasing to us.
tunc et elegiam vacabit in manus sumere, cuius princeps habetur Callimachus, secundas confessione plurimorum Philetas occupavit. §10.1.59sed dum adsequamur illam firmam, ut dixi, facilitatem, optimis adsuescendum est et multa magis quam multorum lectione formanda mens et ducendus color.
Then there will also be leisure to take into hand elegy, of which Callimachus is held to be the chief, while Philetas occupied the second place by the confession of most. But until we attain that firm facility, as I said, we must accustom ourselves to the best, and our mind must be formed and its color drawn from much reading rather than from the reading of many authors.
itaque ex tribus receptis Aristarchi iudicio scriptoribus iamborum ad ἕξιν maxime pertinebit unus Archilochus. §10.1.60summa in hoc vis elocutionis, cum validae tum breves vibrantesque sententiae, plurimum sanguinis atque nervorum, adeo ut videatur quibusdam, quod quoquam minor est, materiae esse non ingenii vitium. §10.1.61novem vero Lyricorum longe Pindarus princeps spiritus magnificentia, sententiis, figuris, beatissima rerum verborumque copia et velut quodam eloquentiae flumine; propter quae Horatius eum merito credidit nemini imitabilem. §10.1.62Stesichorus quam sit ingenio validus, materiae quoque ostendunt, maxima bella et clarissimos canentem duces et epici carminis onera lyra sustinentem.
Therefore, of the three writers of iambics accepted by the judgment of Aristarchus, Archilochus alone will contribute most to our habit of speech (hexis). In him is the greatest force of expression, with thoughts both powerful, concise, and vibrating, and a great deal of blood and muscle, so that it seems to some that, in whatever way he is inferior to anyone, it is a defect of his subject matter, not of his genius. Of the nine lyric poets, however, Pindar is by far the chief in the magnificence of his spirit, in thoughts, figures, a most happy abundance of things and words, and as it were a certain river of eloquence; on account of which Horace rightly believed him inimitable by anyone. How powerful Stesichorus is in genius is shown also by his subjects, singing of the greatest wars and the most famous leaders, and sustaining the burdens of epic poetry with the lyre.
reddit enim personis in agendo simul loquendoque debitam dignitatem, ac si tenuisset modum, videtur aemulari proximus Homerum potuisse; sed redundat atque effunditur, quod ut est reprehendendum, ita copiae vitium est. §10.1.63Alcaeus in parte operis aureo plectro merito donatur, qua tyrannos insectatus multum etiam moribus confert in eloquendo quoque brevis et magnificus et dicendi vi plerumque oratori similis; sed et lusit et in amores descendit, maioribus tamen aptior. §10.1.64Simonides, tenuis alioqui, sermone proprio et iucunditate quadam commendari potest; praecipua tamen eius in commovenda miseratione virtus, ut quidam in hac eum parte omnibus eius operis auctoribus praeferant. §10.1.65antiqua comoedia cum sinceram illam sermonis Attici gratiam prope sola retinet, tum facundissimae libertatis est et in insectandis vitiis praecipua, plurimum tamen virium etiam in ceteris partibus habet.
For he renders to his characters a due dignity in both action and speech, and if he had kept within bounds, he would seem to have been able to compete closest with Homer; but he is redundant and overflows, which, though to be censured, is yet a defect of abundance. Alcaeus is deservedly presented with a golden plectrum in a part of his work, where, having assailed tyrants, he contributes much also to morals, being also concise and magnificent in expression, and for the most part similar to an orator in his force of speaking; but he also trifled and descended into love poetry, though better suited for greater things. Simonides, otherwise simple, can be recommended for his proper choice of words and a certain sweetness; yet his chief virtue lies in exciting pity, so that some in this part prefer him to all authors of that kind of work. Old Comedy not only retains almost alone that pure grace of the Attic dialect, but is also of a most eloquent liberty and chief in chastising vices, yet it has a very great deal of force in other parts as well.
nam et grandis et elegans et venusta, et nescio an ulla, post Homerum tamen, quem ut Achillem semper excipi par est, aut similior sit oratoribus aut ad oratores faciendos aptior.
For it is both grand, elegant, and charming, and I do not know whether any poetry, after Homer of course, whom it is always right to except like Achilles, is either more similar to orators or more suitable for making orators.