The Style of Epigrams - Poetic Devices Review

Before we begin reading his epigrams, we need to review a few poetic devices commonly used by Martial. These devices in particular make the epigrams more potent, as Martial uses them to great effect to create the biting wit famous in his poetry.

Ellipsis
Word Order
Antithesis

Ellipsis is the omission of a word or words needed to make the sentence grammatically correct. It is used for compactness, brevity, and force – all elements of poetry.

Examples:

centurio gladium, miles hastam gerebat
- the centurion (was wearing) a sword, the soldier was wearing a spear.
- The verb (gerebat) is used for both centurio and miles.
nos in urbe ambulamus, vos in silva.
- We walk in the city, you (walk) in the forest.
- The verb ambulatis is understood from the verb ambulamus.
puer togam voluit, puella pallam.
- The boy wanted a toga, the girl (wanted) a palla.
- The verb voluit is understood in the second half of the sentence.

Because Latin is an inflected language, Latin poetry has much greater flexibility with word order. Nouns and adjectives do not have to be next to each other in order for us to know that the adjective modifies the noun. We understand that from the endings. Although the typical Latin sentence follows the order of subject, direct object, verb, it is not required and poetry often breaks from this standard format. We recognize the subject and object by their endings, not by their placement in the sentence. Sometimes Latin poetry will use word order to give a visual picture of what is being described. Sometimes words will be placed in an unusual place for emphasis. Sometimes word order can be used to suggest ideas not explicitly stated. Sometimes, though, a different word order is used merely to comply with the meter of the line.

One common technique used in Latin poetry is to separate an adjective from the noun it modifies. Let's look at some examples.

clamores simul horrendos ad sidera tollit. (Vergil)
- He lifts up horrifying shouts to the stars.
- horrendos is an adjective modifying the noun clamores.
atque iterum ad Troiam magnus mittetur Achilles. (Vergil)
- And great Achilles will be sent again to Troy.
- magnus is an adjective modifying the noun Achilles.
agna lupos audit circum stabula alta frementes. (Ovid)
- The lamb hears the wolves howling around the tall sheepfolds.
- frementes is a present active participle modifying the noun lupos. Notice the bracketing employed in this example: lupos and frementes enclose stabula alta - just as the howling of the wolves is around the sheepfolds. Thus, the word order reinforces the meaning of the sentence.
impiaque aeternam timuerunt saecula noctem. (Vergil)
- The evil generations were in fear of endless night.
- In this line from Vergil we have two noun adjective pairs. impia is an adjective modifying the noun saecula and aeternam is an adjective modifying noctem. Notice the synchysis (interlocking word order). First we have the adjectives impia and aeternam. They are followed by the noun (saecula) that impia modifies and then the noun (noctem) that aeternam modifies. This is a very typical line structure in Latin poetry.

Antithesis is the contrasting of words or ideas with the contrasting words in the same corresponding position. Antithesis is used to convey a vivid image-to convey emotion and mood through its use of contrasting words and ideas. Here are some English examples.

One small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind. (Neil Armstrong, Landing on the Moon)
Not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more. (William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar)
Integrity without knowledge is useless, and knowledge without integrity is dangerous and dreadful. (Samuel Johnson, The History of Rasselas)
To err is human, to forgive divine (Alexander Pope, An Essay on Man)
The brave men, living and dead (Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg Address)
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way. (Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities)

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