Alcman 58 and Simonides 542
Abstract
There are no serious textual variants; Bentley’s παῖς looks a certain supplement. The context in which the fragment is quoted (Hephaestion 13.6, p. 42 Consbr.) is a discussion of the cretic; the lines are cited as a metrical example, without reference to their meaning. Meineke’s comment on the passage was sensus non plane liquet , but it is tempting to go further, because this is the earliest extant reference to Eros at play, an idea that was to be interestingly influential in later poetry.
Fields of Study & Subjects
Classical Antiquity Studies
Classical Studies and Philology
Classical Philosophy and Thought
Publication details
- Journal / source
- Cambridge University Press eBooks
- Pages
- 47–55
- Publication date
- 27 February 2026
- Language
- EN
- Document type
- Book chapter