Die antieke Griekse lofgedig

Abstract

Ancient Greek praise poems
Arguing from both the surviving texts themselves and from ancient theorists, the present article deals with early Greek lyric poems in praise of human beings. This type of lyric falls under the more “secular types” of ancient Greek lyric, in the sense that they were addressed, not to a divine being, but to a human being. The context or space of such “secular” lyric performance includes, not only the public gathering of officials and the populace, but also the private and intimate circle of individuals with shared interests. Both choral odes and solo-lyrics are therefore involved. The lyric types discussed are the praise poem, the war poem, the political poem and the dirge.