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Traditionally ascribed to the early third-century BCE tragedian Lykophron, the Alexandra is a powerful Greek poem by an unknown author, probably written c. 190, when Rome had defeated Hannibal and the Carthaginians and was poised to humble the Seleukid king Antiochos III. The poem is an ingeniously constructed masterpiece, a generic mix with elements of tragedy, epic, and history.
Priam's beautiful daughter, the prophetic Kassandra, foresees her rape in Athena's temple by the hateful Greek warrior Ajax after Troy's fall, and warns of disastrous returns (nostoi) for all the Greek 'heroes'. But Troy will rise again as Rome, founded by Trojan refugees. Alexandra (another name for Kassandra), narrates these Mediterranean foundation myths, adopting a bitterly disillusioned female perspective, but culminating in prophecies of Roman rule over land and sea.
List of contents
- Preface and Acknowledgments
- Note on the text and translation
- Select Bibliography
- Timeline
- Synopsis of the Poem
- Introduction
- THE ALEXANDRA OF LYKOPHRON
- Explanatory notes
- Index
About the author
Simon Hornblower held teaching and research posts at Oxford and UCL until retirement in 2016. He is a Fellow of the British Academy. His books include a large-scale scholarly edition, with commentary, of Lykophron's Alexandra (2015), and a monograph, Lykophron's Alexandra, Rome, and the Hellenistic World (2018); both Oxford University Press. His most recent book is a co-authored edition of and commentary on Livy Book 22.
Summary
The Alexandra, attributed to Lykophron is a minor poetic masterpiece. At 1474 lines, it is one of the most important and notoriously difficult Greek poems dating from the Hellenistic period.
Additional text
Hornblower's trim volume, locating Lycophron alongside Theocritus and Apollonius as 'Oxford World Classics', marks a new phase in the modern reception of the poem. It is to be wholeheartedly commended.
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Simon Hornblower's translation offers an excellent introduction to, and guide through, Lycophron's "dark" poem ...This wonderful translation will bring Lycophron's poem to the wider audience it deserves. Matthew Ward, Times Literary Supplement
