Livius Andronicus

The poet Lucius Livius Andronicus († no earlier than 207 BC) was considered the founder of Roman literature in antiquity . He came from the Greek city of Taranto , so he wasn't a native Latin speaker. The most important work of Livius Andronicus is the Odusia , a translation of the Greek Odyssey .

Life

Livius Andronicus grew up in the Greek city of Taranto, where he probably worked as an actor. In Rome he was first as a slave, then as a freelance tutor to the Livian family . For school use he wrote the Odusia , a translation of Homer's Odyssey written in Saturnians , which became the basis for teaching Greek in Rome.

In 240 BC On the occasion of the 'Roman Games' (Latin ludi Romani ) , Livius Andronicus performed the first Latin drama he wrote himself. In ancient times, this performance was considered to be the hour of birth of Latin and Roman literature.

In the following years, Livy Andronicus wrote numerous tragedies and comedies that were performed at religious festivals. 207 BC He was commissioned to write a processional song in honor of the goddess Iuno Regina for a virgin choir. This work was apparently so successful that the writers and actors in Rome were allowed to use the Temple of Minerva on the Aventine, which represented a considerable improvement in their social status.

Since for the years after 207 BC There are no more reliable reports about Livius Andronicus in the BC, it can be assumed that he died soon after the processional song was performed. However, the exact year of death is not known.

Works

None of the works by Livius Andronicus have been completely preserved. Sufficient fragments are only available from Odusia to assess the linguistic and literary character of the work. In addition, some drama verses and the titles of a few tragedies and comedies have survived.

Lyric work

The only known lyric text of Livius Andronicus is the processional song in honor of Juno Regina from 207 BC. BC, of ​​which, however, no fragments have survived. It is not known whether the poet wrote other lyrical works.

Dramas

The dramas of Livius Andronicus were probably adaptations of Greek models that he had adapted to the tastes of the Roman audience. Apart from a few verses, only the titles of a few tragedies and comedies have survived.

The following are documented as tragedies:

• from the Trojan sagas: Achilles , Aegisthus , Aiax mastigophorus ("the flagellated Aiax "), Equos Troianus ("the Trojan horse "), Hermiona and a tragedy with an uncertain title (possibly Teucer );
• from the Perseus saga Andromeda and Danae ;
• from the Tereus saga Tereus .

The only known comedy title is Gladiolus (possibly with a similar content as Miles gloriosus des Plautus ), another comedy could have been called Ludius . Presumably, Livius Andronicus wrote other dramas whose names have not been passed down.

Odusia

The Odusia is a Latin translation of Homer's Greek Odyssey . It was probably written for school use to facilitate the learning of the Greek language, which was usually done through reading Homer.

The language of the work written in Saturnians , of which a number of verses have survived, is much more solemn than in the fragments of the drama. Livius Andronicus drew here especially from the formula treasure trove of religious ceremonies in order to reinforce the pathos of the text and to recreate the sublime style of the original in Latin. He did not limit himself to a mere imitation of the Odyssey in Latin, but also allowed himself occasional artistic freedom. In addition, he transferred elements of Greek mythology into the Roman imagination, for example in the first verse of the work instead of a muse he invoked a camena , an Italian deity.

Literary historical significance and aftermath

Livius Andronicus was already considered the creator and founder of Roman literature in antiquity, as he not only wrote the first Latin works, but also laid the stylistic foundations of the Latin poetic language. Through his adaptation of Greek dramas and his translation of the Odyssey , he simultaneously set standards for the art of literary translation in ancient Latin, which did not aim at literal translation, but also aimed to adapt the content to the ideas of Roman culture.

His works themselves, however, soon no longer corresponded to the taste of the time, as they were soon felt to be primitive and unattractive because of their primitive and unpolished language. Therefore, in the course of time, the comedies were supplanted by the works of Naevius , Plautus and finally Terence , the tragedies by those of Ennius , Accius and Pacuvius . The choice of Saturnian as the epic meter was adopted by Naevius, but Ennius already chose the hexameter adopted from Greek poetry instead . Nevertheless, the Odusia was still used until the 1st century BC. Used as an aid in Greek lessons, but was soon forgotten.

Text editions and translations

• Rainer Klimek-Winter (Ed.): Andromedatragödien. Sophocles, Euripides, Livius Andronikos, Ennius, Accius. Text, introduction and comment . Stuttgart 1993.
• Marcus Schauer (Ed.): Livius Andronicus, Naevius, tragici minores, fragmenta adespota . Göttingen 2012.
• Eric H. Warmington (Ed. And transl.): Remains of old Latin, Vol. 2: Livius Andronicus, Naevius, Pacuvius and Accius . Cambridge (Mass.) 1936 (several reprints, most recently 2001)

literature

Overview representations

• Michael von Albrecht : History of Roman literature from Andronicus to Boethius and its continued effect . Volume 1. 3rd, improved and expanded edition. De Gruyter, Berlin 2012, ISBN 978-3-11-026525-5 , pp. 96-102
• Werner Suerbaum : L. Livius Andronicus. In: Werner Suerbaum (Ed.): The archaic literature. From the beginnings to Sulla's death (= Handbook of Ancient Latin Literature , Volume 1). CH Beck, Munich 2002, ISBN 3-406-48134-5 , pp. 93-104

comment

• Ivy Livingston: A linguistic commentary on Livius Andronicus . New York 2004.

Investigations

• Klaus Lennartz: Non verba sed vim. Critical-exegetical studies on the fragments of archaic Roman tragedians . Stuttgart 1994.
• Werner Suerbaum: Investigations into the self-portrayal of older Roman poets. Livius Andronicus, Naevius, Ennius . Hildesheim 1968.

Web links

Wikisource: Lucius Livius Andronicus  - Sources and full texts (Latin)