On the Nature of Things.

Two thousand years ago a Roman poet undertook to explain the whole universe in verse, and to teach his readers how to live without fear.

What it's about

On the Nature of Things (De rerum natura) is Lucretius's grand poem expounding the philosophy of Epicurus. In soaring yet precise Latin verse, he argues that everything, matter, mind, the heavens, the soul, is composed of tiny indivisible particles moving through empty space. From this foundation he explains the workings of the world, the origins of life and society, the nature of sensation and thought, and the causes of natural phenomena that superstition had long ascribed to the gods.

Themes

At the poem's heart lies a therapeutic aim: to release human beings from two great fears, the fear of the gods and the fear of death. If the soul is material and dissolves with the body, Lucretius argues, then death is nothing to us, and the gods, remote and untroubled, take no interest in punishing mankind. Freed from dread, one may live serenely, guided by reason and modest pleasure.

Why it still matters

Rediscovered in the Renaissance, the poem startled Europe with ideas, atoms, a godless nature, a universe without design, that anticipated much of modern science and secular thought. It remains both a foundational text of materialist philosophy and a work of extraordinary poetic power, uniting rigorous argument with passages of great beauty and feeling.

Who it's for

Readers of philosophy and classical literature, those interested in the history of science and ideas, and anyone seeking an ancient guide to living calmly in a natural world.

Sources and references

Verified references for this edition: Open Library, WorldCat.