Band V: Buch 6 und 7
Books 6 und 7 of the ›Poetics‹ conclude the edition of the text and the translation. The subject of the 6th book (Hypercriticus) is – much like the fifth – Latin poetry, and its goal is to give the budding poet examples which are worthy of imitation. There is a division into five eras: from the beginnings and Roman classicism to the decline during the Empire and late antiquity and then the revival after Petrarch. The normative, judgmental aspect predominates, which means that a historical approach as it is taken today was not yet possible. Of great significance is the 4th chapter, which contains an overview of modern Latin poetry. The short 7th book provides a number of addenda to the preceding books, as the title ›Epinomis‹ (appendix) indicates.