Thunder and Lament

Lucan''s epic poem Pharsalia tells the story of the cataclysmic "end of Rome" through the victory of Julius Caesar and Caesarism in the civil wars of 49-48 BCE. In Thunder and Lament, Timothy Joseph examines how Lucan''s poetic agenda moves in lockstep with his narrative arc, as the poet fashions the Pharsalia to mark the momentous end of the epic genre. To accomplish the closure of the genre, Luc...