Publisher's Synopsis
Why has a reclusive poet from the first-century Roman countryside exerted such compelling influence over two thousand years, over poets as diverse as Jonson, Keats, and Auden? Most widely known for his crisp enjoinder carpe diem - generally translated as "seize the day"- Horace was no mere hedonist. His lyric celebration of the simple joys of life, such as erotic pursuit, friendship, and good wine, are grounded in an almost zen-like mindfulness. His Epicureanism finds its balance in a recognition of the transitory nature of the world and its suffering, and a rather cool detachment.
