Lucan

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Lucan

Lucan (Marcus Annaeus Lucanus) , AD 39-AD 65, Latin poet, b. Córdoba, Spain, nephew of the philosopher Seneca. At first in Nero's favor, he was later forced to kill himself when his part in a plot against the emperor was discovered. Ten books of his epic Bellum Civile (on the civil war between Caesar and Pompey), erroneously called Pharsalia, survive. Though the poem is written in a severe style and is often digressive and extravagant, it has a kind of vigorous beauty and grandeur, which gave Lucan a high place in the esteem of later writers.

Bibliography: See study by F. M. Ahl (1976); translations by J. D. Duff (1977), P. F. Widdows (1988), and S. H. Brand (1992).

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"Lucan." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 15 Nov. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

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Lucan, Arthur

The Concise Oxford Companion to the Theatre | 1996 | | Â© The Concise Oxford Companion to the Theatre 1996, originally published by Oxford University Press 1996. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

Lucan, Arthur, see FEMALE IMPERSONATION.

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PHYLLIS HARTNOLL and PETER FOUND. "Lucan, Arthur." The Concise Oxford Companion to the Theatre. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 15 Nov. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

PHYLLIS HARTNOLL and PETER FOUND. "Lucan, Arthur." The Concise Oxford Companion to the Theatre. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (November 15, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O79-LucanArthur.html

PHYLLIS HARTNOLL and PETER FOUND. "Lucan, Arthur." The Concise Oxford Companion to the Theatre. 1996. Retrieved November 15, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O79-LucanArthur.html

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Lucan

The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature | 2003 | | Â© The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature 2003, originally published by Oxford University Press 2003. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

Lucan ( Marcus Annaeus Lucanus) (ad 39–65), a Roman poet of Spanish origin, the brother of Seneca. His only surviving work, Pharsalia or the Bellum Civile, is a historical epic in ten books about the civil wars, which shows a remarkable skill in the depiction of character and a mastery of epigram; but he set no limits on his unruly imagination and liking for bombast. He was widely read in the Middle Ages, and his influence can be felt in the poetry and drama of the English Renaissance, particularly on Senecan tragedy. There are important translations by A. Gorges, T. May, and N. Rowe.

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MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "Lucan." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. 15 Nov. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "Lucan." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. (November 15, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O54-Lucan.html

MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "Lucan." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Retrieved November 15, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O54-Lucan.html

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