Virgil's great lyrics, rendered by the acclaimed translator of The Odes of Horace and GilgameshThe Eclogues of Virgil gave definitive form to the pastoral mode, and these magically beautiful poems, which were influential in so much subsequent literature, perhaps best exemplify what pastoral can do. "Song replying to song replying to song," touchingly comic, poignantly sad, sublimely joyful, the various music that these shepherds make echoes in scenes of repose and harmony, and of hardship and trouble in work and love. A bilingual edition, The Eclogues of Virgil includes concise, informative notes and an Introduction that describes the fundamental role of this deeply original book in the pastoral tradition.
