Apollonius of Rhodes summary

Learn about Apollonius of Rhodes and his epic poem Argonautica

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Apollonius of Rhodes, (born c. 295 bc), Greek poet and grammarian. He served as librarian of the famous Library of Alexandria. His Argonautica, a romantic epic in four books about the Argonauts, is derived from Homer and is noted for its suggestive similes, vivid descriptions of nature, and fresh handling of old episodes.

Library of Alexandria Summary

Library of Alexandria, the most famous library of Classical antiquity. It formed part of the research institute at Alexandria in Egypt that is known as the Alexandrian Museum (Mouseion, “shrine of the Muses”). Libraries and archives were known to many ancient civilizations in Egypt, Mesopotamia,

poetry Summary

Poetry, literature that evokes a concentrated imaginative awareness of experience or a specific emotional response through language chosen and arranged for its meaning, sound, and rhythm. (Read Britannica’s biography of this author, Howard Nemerov.) Poetry is a vast subject, as old as history and

epic Summary

Epic, long narrative poem recounting heroic deeds, although the term has also been loosely used to describe novels, such as Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace, and motion pictures, such as Sergey Eisenstein’s Ivan the Terrible. In literary usage, the term encompasses both oral and written compositions.

library Summary

Library, traditionally, collection of books used for reading or study, or the building or room in which such a collection is kept. The word derives from the Latin liber, “book,” whereas a Latinized Greek word, bibliotheca, is the origin of the word for library in German, Russian, and the Romance