The Soul of Mirrors

This essay thinks through Lucretius’ linguistic mirroring in De Rerum Natura, not only in his use of elementa (letters) as a simulacrum for elementa (first elements), but also as a phenomenon of the inquiry itself. In Lucretius’ account (ratio), the sense (ratio) of his seeking requires poetry even as he distances himself from the fantastical gods that the poets create. The relationship between touch and sight is critical, for touch is invoked by “holy powers,” and atoms are as “blind” in their swerving as we are in our longing to trace their footsteps. The composition of things materializes literally and figuratively through Lucretius’ words. That is not to say that he invents things from thin air, but rather, that he comes upon them as he comes up with them. This sensitive reading of insensate elements brings new meaning to Lucretius’ so-called materialism.