LUCRETIUS

flourished 1st century BC in full Titus Lucretius Carus Latin poet and philosopher known for his single, long poem, De rerum natura (On the Nature of Things). The poem is the fullest extant statement of the physical theory of the Greek philosopher Epicurus; it also alludes to his ethical and logical doctrines. Additional reading Introductions are James H. Nichols, Jr., Epicurean Political Philosophy: The De Rerum Natura of Lucretius (1976); and Diskin Clay, Lucretius and Epicurus (1983). D.R. Dudley (ed.), Lucretius (1965), is a collection of essays by eminent scholars on various aspects of the poem. Analyses of form, imagery, and philosophy include Richard Minadeo, The Lyre of Science: Form and Meaning in Lucretius' De Rerum Natura (1969); David West, The Imagery and Poetry of Lucretius (1969); and Charles Segal, Lucretius on Death and Anxiety: Poetry and Philosophy in De Rerum Natura (1990).