223:, even when they were recited in Hellenistic times. Many of the characteristic types of literary epigram look back to inscriptional contexts, particularly funerary epigram, which in the Hellenistic era becomes a literary exercise. Many "sympotic" epigrams combine sympotic and funerary elements – they tell their readers (or listeners) to drink and live for today because life is short. Generally, any theme found in classical elegies could be and were adapted for later literary epigrams.
655:
36:
116:
219:, the clear distinction between them was that epigrams were inscribed and meant to be read, while elegies were recited and meant to be heard. Some elegies could be quite short, but only public epigrams were longer than ten lines. All the same, the origin of epigram in inscription exerted a residual pressure to keep things
426:, however, is considered to be the master of the Latin epigram. His technique relies heavily on the satirical poem with a joke in the last line, thus drawing him closer to the modern idea of epigram as a genre. Here he defines his genre against a (probably fictional) critic (in the latter half of 2.77):
235:, the first comprehensive anthologists, preferred the short and witty epigram. Since their collections helped form knowledge of the genre in Rome and then later throughout Europe, Epigram came to be associated with 'point', especially because the European epigram tradition takes the Latin poet
581:, which is a collection of over 300 epigrams, many of which do not conform to the two-line rule or trend. While the collection was written between 1618 and 1628 in what is now Harbour Grace, Newfoundland, it was published shortly after his return to Britain.
320:
Roman epigrams owe much to their Greek predecessors and contemporaries. Roman epigrams, however, were often more satirical than Greek ones, and at times used obscene language for effect. Latin epigrams could be composed as inscriptions or
600:
in which each of the eleven sequenced sonnet ends with a couplet. In her sonnets, the preceding lead-in-line, to the couplet ending of each, could be thought of as a title for the couplet, as is shown in Sonnet VIII of the sequence.
226:
Hellenistic epigrams are also thought of as having a "point" – that is, the poem ends in a punchline or satirical twist. By no means do all Greek epigrams behave this way; many are simply descriptive, but
362:
However, in the literary world, epigrams were most often gifts to patrons or entertaining verse to be published, not inscriptions. Many Roman writers seem to have composed epigrams, including
180:
tradition of epigrams began as poems inscribed on votive offerings at sanctuaries – including statues of athletes – and on funerary monuments, for example
329:, which exists in several versions and seems from its inexact meter to have been composed by a less educated person. Its content makes it clear how popular such poems were:
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247:) selectively and in the process redefined the genre, aligning it with the indigenous Roman tradition of "satura", hexameter
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Edited by Peter Bing and Jon Bruss, 459–476. Brill’s
Companions in Classical Studies. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill.
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1280:
Petrain, David. 2012. "The
Archaeology of the Epigrams from the Tabulae Iliacae: Adaptation, Allusion, Alteration."
145:
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codified the couplet form into a two-line rhymed verse of ten syllables per line with her image couplet poem
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also included couplets throughout her writings. Her best example is in her sequenced sonnet poem entitled
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as its principal model; he copied and adapted Greek models (particularly the contemporary poets
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era – a thousand years of short elegiac texts on every topic under the sun. The
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epigram was not always as short as later examples, and the divide between "epigram" and "
184:. These original epigrams did the same job as a short prose text might have done, but in
390:, who wrote both invectives and love epigrams – his poem 85 is one of the latter.
268:, a compilation from the 10th century AD based on older collections, including those of
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592:. Her poem No. 1534 is a typical example of her eleven poetic epigrams. The novelist
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was also a noted writer of epigrams (a medium suited to a "short-breathed" person).
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Edited by James J. Clauss and
Martine Cuypers, 117–135. Chichester, UK: Blackwell.
1145:
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Day, Joseph. 1989. "Rituals in Stone: Early Greek Grave
Epigrams and Monuments."
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604:
During the early 20th century, the rhymed epigram couplet form developed into a
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Rosen, Ralph. 2007. "The
Hellenistic Epigrams on Archilochus and Hipponax." In
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Two successive lines of verse that rhyme with each other are known as a
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Learn what you don't know: one work of (Domitius) Marsus or learned Pedo
1128:
The Poems of J.V.Cunningham (ed
Tomothy Steele) Faber&Faber London
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518:. Since 1600, the couplet has been featured as a part of the longer
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Quodlibets, Lately Come Over from New
Britaniola, Old Newfoundland
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Quodlibets, Lately Come Over from New
Britaniola, Old Newfoundland
504:
204:
99:
34:
588:
the epigram couplet was often used by the prolific
American poet
479:
Poets known for their epigrams whose work has been lost include
292:
includes one book of
Christian epigrams as well as one book of
1327:
1268:
Greek Epigram in the Roman Empire: Martial’s Forgotten Rivals.
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109:
87:
301:
199:
Though modern epigrams are usually thought of as very short,
74:
62:
355:
I'm astonished, wall, that you haven't collapsed into ruins,
54:
is a brief, interesting, memorable, sometimes surprising or
418:
I don't know, but I feel it happening, and I am tormented.
357:
since you're holding up the weary verse of so many poets.
1296:
Brill’s Companion to Hellenistic Epigram: Down to Philip.
472:
A work isn't long if you can't take anything out of it,
255:. Greek epigram was actually much more diverse, as the
207:" is sometimes indistinct (they share a characteristic
1301:
Sullivan, John P. 1990. "Martial and English Poetry."
608:
image form, with an integral title as the third line.
975:
How to Read a Latin Poem: If You Can't Read Latin Yet
416:
I hate and I love. Maybe you'd like to know why I do?
272:
and Philippus. It contains epigrams ranging from the
1188:. London: Time-Life. p. 6 – via Worldcat.
1002:
Graffiti and the Literary Landscape in Roman Pompeii
623:
verse form became widely known in the poetry of the
1289:
Martial’s Rome: Empire and the Ideology of Epigram.
474:but you, Cosconius, write even a couplet too long.
450:
Non sunt longa quibus nihil est quod demere possis,
1115:Verse / Adelaide Crapsey [electronic text]
771:: many poets commented on Milton, including Dryden
251:, as practised by (among others) his contemporary
1059:. Newfoundland: Problematic Press. pp. 5–6.
1053:Hayman, Robert; Reynolds, David (February 2013).
819:I'm tired of Love: I'm still more tired of Rhyme.
262:A major source for Greek literary epigram is the
1310:The Art of variation in the Hellenistic Epigram.
844:To define the beautiful is to misunderstand it.
734:Now she's at rest – and so am I.
569:The first work of English literature penned in
465:
428:
413:
392:
370:(now lost) was named after the poisonous plant
352:
331:
102:, which typically do not show those qualities.
833:I hope for nothing. I fear nothing. I am free.
398:Odi et amo. Quare id faciam fortasse requiris.
94:tends to distinguish non-poetic epigrams from
1252:The Greek Anthology: Sources and Ascriptions.
530:is an example. The two-line poetic form as a
499:poem was dominated by the poetic epigram and
8:
1343:Sterling epigrams from literature and poetry
1338:(11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
859:Grew so broad-minded he was scatter-brained.
751:The First in loftiness of thought surpassed;
470:often stretches out over a doublesided page.
456:
448:
440:
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396:
343:
335:
144:. Unsourced material may be challenged and
83:has been practiced for over two millennia.
767:("Epigram on Milton", 1688 (Epigram about
760:To make a third she joined the former two.
434:Disce quod ignoras: Marsi doctique Pedonis
337:Admiror, O paries, te non cecidisse ruinis
182:"Go tell it to the Spartans, passersby..."
1088:"RPO -- George Eliot: Brother and Sister"
822:But Money gives me pleasure all the time.
703:There's this to say for blood and breath;
386:. Authors whose epigrams survive include
164:Learn how and when to remove this message
1146:"John Dryden "Epigram on Milton" (1688)"
856:This Humanist whom no belief constrained
757:The force of Nature could no farther go:
745:Three Poets, in three distant Ages born,
503:, especially in the translations of the
1160:"When Guns Speak Death Settles Dispute"
1032:. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. p. 25.
972:William Fitzgerald (21 February 2013).
946:
890:When Guns Speak, Death Settles Disputes
406:Nescio, sed fieri sentio, et excrucior.
1238:A Companion to Hellenistic Literature.
754:The Next in Majesty; in both the Last.
458:sed tu, Cosconi, disticha longa facis.
442:saepe duplex unum pagina tractat opus.
1291:Cambridge, UK: Cambridge Univ. Press.
1254:Cambridge, UK: Cambridge Univ. Press.
896:'s epigrammatic title for a clash by
808:Pray tell me, sir, whose dog are you?
748:Greece, Italy, and England did adorn.
682:What is an Epigram? a dwarfish whole,
58:statement. The word derives from the
46:devotes much of its text to epigrams.
7:
1112:Crapsey, Adelaide (1 January 1997).
731:Here lies my wife: here let her lie!
345:qui tot scriptorum taedia sustineas.
142:adding citations to reliable sources
79:, "to write on, to inscribe"). This
685:Its body brevity, and wit its soul.
1029:The Epigrams of Sir John Harington
790:John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester
706:They give a man a taste for death.
700:But I could never learn the trick.
14:
1257:Henriksén, Christer (ed.). 2019.
1236:Bruss, Jon. 2010. "Epigram." In
653:
114:
1312:Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill.
1275:Martial and the Modern Epigram.
1260:A Companion to Ancient Epigram
782:He never said a foolish thing,
614:On Seeing Weather-Beaten Trees
1:
697:Some can gaze and not be sick
1227:Resources in other libraries
779:Whose word no man relies on.
776:We have a pretty witty king,
619:By the 1930s, the five-line
308:
69:
1270:Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press.
1263:. Hoboken: Wiley Blackwell.
1245:Journal of Hellenic Studies
1026:Sir John Harington (2009).
959:Online Etymology Dictionary
672:using the Transwiki process
616:, first published in 1915.
380:, more famous for his epic
1389:
1005:. OUP Oxford. p. 64.
978:. OUP Oxford. p. 81.
873:Love and mankind is grass.
801:I am His Highness' dog at
302:
75:
63:
18:
1308:Tarán, Sonya Lida. 1979.
1222:Resources in your library
785:And never did a wise one.
233:Philippus of Thessalonica
16:Brief memorable statement
1287:Rimell, Victoria. 2008.
1277:New York: Cooper Square.
999:Kristina Milnor (2014).
376:for its biting wit, and
325:, such as this one from
284:into the compiler's own
27:Not to be confused with
22:Epigram (disambiguation)
1335:Encyclopædia Britannica
915:Admetus (epigrammatist)
847:— Charles Robert Anon (
690:Samuel Taylor Coleridge
1266:Nisbet, Gideon. 2003.
1186:The gunfighters (2004)
894:Charles Marion Russell
556:in his fables, and by
522:form, most notably in
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312:, "The Boyish Muse").
73:, "inscription", from
47:
1368:History of literature
930:Epigraph (literature)
925:Epigraph (archeology)
794:Charles II of England
540:Auguries of Innocence
38:
1250:Gow, A. S. F. 1958.
300:epigrams called the
138:improve this section
20:For other uses, see
1303:Classical Antiquity
1273:Nixon, Paul. 1963.
664:is a candidate for
524:William Shakespeare
366:, whose collection
188:. Epigram became a
598:Brother and Sister
507:and the Greek and
493:English literature
274:Hellenistic period
229:Meleager of Gadara
194:Hellenistic period
48:
1203:Library resources
1134:978-0-571-24193-4
1039:978-0-7546-6002-6
1012:978-0-19-968461-8
985:978-0-19-163204-4
838:Nikos Kazantzakis
725:Benjamin Franklin
692:("Epigram", 1809)
679:
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534:was also used by
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1363:Genres of poetry
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1284:65.4–5: 597–635.
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849:Fernando Pessoa
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590:Emily Dickinson
586:Victorian times
563:An Essay on Man
542:", and also by
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606:fixed verse
509:Roman poets
1352:Categories
1305:9:149–174.
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1098:2006-11-13
941:References
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481:Cornificia
298:homosexual
215:). In the
76:ἐπιγράφειν
44:Quodlibets
1282:Mnemosyne
954:"epigram"
670:Wikiquote
528:Sonnet 76
491:In early
383:Pharsalia
290:Anthology
286:Byzantine
245:Nicarchus
241:Lucillius
154:June 2022
125:does not
96:aphorisms
70:epígramma
64:ἐπίγραμμα
56:satirical
1170:June 25,
920:Aphorism
909:See also
902:Old West
668:over to
625:Scottish
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554:John Gay
549:Don Juan
388:Catullus
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29:Epigraph
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560:in his
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52:epigram
1373:Poetry
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520:sonnet
373:Cicuta
368:Cicuta
294:erotic
249:satire
100:adages
627:poet
552:, by
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505:Bible
378:Lucan
209:metre
205:elegy
186:verse
178:Greek
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1172:2022
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