The Epicureanism of Horace Odes 1,24 Revisited: Mourning and Friendship

Odes 1,24 is Horace’s consolation to Vergil for the death of their friend Quintilius. In it, beyond the usual tropes of consolatory literature, Horace deploys a variety of Epicurean references that would have special point for Vergil, who had studied Epicureanism with Quintilius. Ph. Thibodeau, in a 2003 article, identified several of these. I identify several more in light of recent research on friendship and mourning in Epicurean philosophy, especially in Philodemus’ On the Gods. Most importantly, Epicurean attitudes towards grief were gentler than commonly assumed, and friendship with dead people could continue to provide pleasure. Even though the poem works as a consolation without taking the Epicurean elements into account, they provide additional meaning and point for an Epicurean dedicatee. In good Epicurean fashion, Vergil’s memories of Quintilian provide pleasure which drives out the pain of his loss.