CERCIDAS OF MEGALOPOLIS AND HIS INFLUENCE UPON THE POETRY OF HORACE

Cercidas of Megalopolis is among the most complex and original poets of the Hellenistic period and his Meliambs are a remarkable witness to the largely lost traditions of Hellenistic lyric and invective poetry. Despite the early twentieth-century discovery of the fragments of his Meliambs, numerous questions remain about his background, literary program, and influence. This thesis reexamines the contexts of Cercidas and argues for the influence of his poetry in the later Hellenistic period and especially in the poetry of Horace. I argue that questions of Cercidas’ background and influence are not definitive and that his identity is less secure than conventionally thought. I argue instead that Cercidas’ poetry itself is the safest avenue for answering questions about his background. In examining the reception of Cercidas’ poetry, I argue that his influence over Horace is significant and far larger than scholars previously assumed. My intertextual engagement revolves primarily around the first three fragments of Cercidas’ Meliambs and Horace’s Satires and Epodes.