Modern poetry from the Renaissance to the 20th century knows several hypostases of Pindar: from a model for politically motivated celebratory odes and an inexhaustible source of gnomic wisdom for school use to a model of ‘natural genius’ freed from the constraints of rationality and form. At the same time, a duality in the perception of Pin-dar’s ‘high style’ can be observed throughout all periods: in some places, this is expressed in extroverted pathos that invites parody, in others in the power of imagery hidden in the microstructure of the text. If we look at the ancient sources and origins of this diverse and contradictory reception, three authors in particular stand out: Callimachus, Horace, and Pseudo-Longinus (‘On the Sublime’) – sometimes as an interesting parallel, often as a direct starting point for examination.
|
