Archilochus

Archilochus OF PAROS flourished about 714-676 B.C., and is regarded as the first of the Greek lyric poets, although the origin of the elegy is claimed for Callinus. Glimpses of his life, especially of the calamities which befell him, were frequently given in his writings. His father's name was Telesicles, his mother was a slave called Enipo. At an early age, becoming entangled in political contests, he abandoned his native place, and led a colony of the citizens to Thasos. While here, as he informs us in some extant verses, he lost his shield in a battle against the Thracians. Subsequently he was banished from Sparta, to which he had gone, either for his personal cowardice or because of the licentiousness of his verses. Having returned to Paros, he took part in the war which broke out betwixt it and Naxos, in the course of which he lost his life. The Delphian oracle pronounced a curse upon his slayer. He was distinguished for the rich variety and vigour of his lyrics. But the most noted characteristic was his satirical bitterness, insomuch that 'Archilochian bitterness' and 'Parian verse' became proverbial. He scoured his enemies in the most merciless fashion. It is said that Lycambes, who had promised his daughter Neobule in marriage to Archilochus, having failed to fulfil the promise, was so severely satirised by the poet, that to escape ridicule both father and daughter hanged themselves. Among the ancients, Archilochus was ranked with Homer, Pindar, and Sophocles. Even Plato calls him 'the very wise.' Horace, who largely imitated him in his metres, says that 'rage armed Archilochus with his own iambus'—thus emphasising the fact that to Archilochus we owe the application of iambic verse to satire. One of the forms he often used was called after him Archilochian verse. He also used trochaic verse, and many of his poems were hymns, elegies, and epodes. The best editions of his fragments are those of Schneidewin and Bergk.