Recurring Lexis and Reader-Reception in Horace’s Odes: The Formation of a Lyric Opus
Authors:   , Anderson Colin 
Published: November 2021

<p>This study investigates perceived patterns of lexical recurrence in consecutive or closely proximate poems in Books 1-3 of the Odes of the Roman poet Horace and considers the significance these may have for the structure and organization of this work and its interpretive reception by readers. An initial discussion and demonstration of the types of lexical recurrence observed and their frequency prompts the question of the extent to which these recurrent lexical usages are intentional on the part of the author and hence whether they were factors in determining the order in which the poems of each book are arranged. This question is investigated firstly through statistical analysis, which shows that there is no statistically significant greater clustering effect apparent in the lexical patterns observed than had the odes been arranged in random order. Nevertheless, given than certain recurrences between closely adjacent poems do stand out because of the identity or close similarity of their grammatical or morphological forms and/or metrical location, and that this phenomenon has been perceived by other commentators, the significance that might be attributed to these as poetic effects falls within the domain of reader-reception theory. A summary review of the principal tenets of this theory as developed especially by Ingarden, Gadamer, Jauss and Iser is undertaken in order to derive a sound theoretical method by which the recurrence patterns may be analysed and coherent meaning may be constructed from them. This method is then applied to analysis of a prominent cluster of lexical recurrences over the final five poems of Odes 1 (1.34-1.38). The question of how far such meaning may have corresponded to the intentions of the author Horace is then addressed. A distinction is made, following Bakhtin, between the “primary”, historical author who composed the work and the “secondary” authorial consciousness who engages the reader through the text. While intentions of the former are ultimately unknowable, the secondary author “Horace” does declare intentions for his work through his texts which the reader may then reconstruct. The thesis posits that the poetic ambition of Horace within this textual horizon was first to acquire an erudite and discerning audience capable of accepting him and appreciating his artistry, and then to develop a distinctive generic vehicle by which to engage this audience in dialogue about matters of importance in the Roman social, political and cultural worlds. The development of an audience is a major theme of his Satires Book 1, while the book of Epodes is the framework for his attempt to adapt the iambic metre of Archilochus to his dialogic purpose. The analysis shows that this latter project proved unfruitful because of the indelible association of iambic with invective. The concluding chapter shows that it was the adoption of archaic Greek lyric metres other than iambic that finally provided Horace with the poetic vehicle he sought to write verse that both adhered to the Callimachean aesthetic of brevity and technical perfection and allowed engagement with serious as well as frivolous themes. It examines the manner by which the three Books of Odes, read sequentially as a single opus, firstly familiarize their readers with these archaic metres and the range of lyric themes they can encompass before leading them to an acceptance that lyric can also address important public issues, notably in the “Roman Odes” of Book 3. The perception of the patterns of lexical recurrence throughout the three books is a significant factor in promoting this dialogic engagement of the reader with the text.</p>