Aurelius Prudentius Clemens () was a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lett ...

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι� ...

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral or w ...

, born in the

province of Tarraconensis (now Northern

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

) in 348.H. J. Rose, ''A Handbook of Classical Literature'' (1967) p. 508 He probably died in the Iberian Peninsula some time after 405, possibly around 413. The place of his birth is uncertain, but it may have been Caesaraugusta (

Saragossa Zaragoza, also known in English as Saragossa,''Encyclopædia Britannica'"Zaragoza (conventional Saragossa)" is the capital city of the Zaragoza Province and of the autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. It lies by the Ebro river and its tributar ...

), Tarraco (

Tarragona Tarragona (, ; Phoenician: ''Tarqon''; la, Tarraco) is a port city located in northeast Spain on the Costa Daurada by the Mediterranean Sea. Founded before the fifth century BC, it is the capital of the Province of Tarragona, and part of Tarr ...

), or Calagurris ( Calahorra).

Life

Prudentius practiced law with some success, and was twice provincial governor, perhaps in his native country, before the emperor

Theodosius I Theodosius I ( grc-gre, Θεοδόσιος ; 11 January 347 – 17 January 395), also called Theodosius the Great, was Roman emperor from 379 to 395. During his reign, he succeeded in a crucial war against the Goths, as well as in two ...

summoned him to court. Towards the end of his life (possibly around 392) Prudentius retired from public life to become an ascetic, fasting until evening and abstaining entirely from animal food; and writing poems, hymns, and controversial works in defence of Christianity. Prudentius later collected the Christian poems written during this period and added a preface, which he himself dated 405.

Poetry

The poetry of Prudentius is influenced by early Christian authors, such as

Tertullian Tertullian (; la, Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus; 155 AD – 220 AD) was a prolific early Christian author from Carthage in the Roman province of Africa. He was the first Christian author to produce an extensive corpus of L ...

and St. Ambrose, as well as the

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus ...

and the acts of the

martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...

s. His

hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn ...

''Da, puer, plectrum'' (including "Corde natus ex parentis": "

Of the Father's Love Begotten "Of the Father's heart begotten" alternatively known as "Of the Father's love begotten" is a doctrinal hymn based on the Latin poem "Corde natus" by the Roman poet Aurelius Prudentius, from his ''Liber Cathemerinon'' (hymn no. IX) beginning "Da ...

") and the hymn for Epiphany ''O sola magnarum urbium'' (" Earth Has Many A Noble City"), both from the ''Cathemerinon'', are still in use today. The allegorical ''

Psychomachia The ''Psychomachia'' (''Battle of Spirits'' or ''Soul War'') is a poem by the Late Antique Latin poet Prudentius, from the early fifth century AD. It has been considered to be the first and most influential "pure" medieval allegory, the first ...

'', however, is his most influential work, incorporating as it did elements of both Hellenic epic and inner psychological conflict. It became the inspiration and wellspring of medieval allegorical literature, its influence (according to

C. S. Lewis Clive Staples Lewis (29 November 1898 – 22 November 1963) was a British writer and Anglican lay theologian. He held academic positions in English literature at both Oxford University (Magdalen College, 1925–1954) and Cambridge Univer ...

) exceeding its intrinsic artistic merit. In the battle between virtue and vice, full weight is given to the power of Luxuria, “Flowershod and swaying from the wine cup, Every step a fragrance”. With her attendants Beauty and Pleasure, and her weapons of rose-petals and violets, she succeeds in swaying the army of Virtue “in surrender to love”, before succumbing to ultimate defeat.

Influence

With his merger of Christianity with classical culture, Prudentius was one of the most popular medieval authors, being aligned as late as the 13th century alongside such figures as

Horace Quintus Horatius Flaccus (; 8 December 65 – 27 November 8 BC), known in the English-speaking world as Horace (), was the leading Roman lyric poet during the time of Augustus (also known as Octavian). The rhetorician Quintilian regarded his ' ...

and

Statius Publius Papinius Statius ( Greek: Πόπλιος Παπίνιος Στάτιος; ; ) was a Greco-Roman poet of the 1st century CE. His surviving Latin poetry includes an epic in twelve books, the ''Thebaid''; a collection of occasional poetry, ...

in Henri d'Andeli's ''Battle of the Seven Arts'' between Grammar (poetry) and Logic.Helen Waddell, ''The Wandering Scholars'' (1968) p. 141-2

Works

The list of Prudentius's works given in the preface to his autobiography mentions the hymns, poems against the Priscillianists and against Symmachus and Peristephanon. The Diptychon is not mentioned. The twelve hymns of the Cathemerinon liber ("Daily Round") consist of six for daily use, five for festivals, and one intended for every hour of the day. The specific works include: * ''Liber Cathemerinon'' -- ("Book in Accordance with the Hours") comprises 12 lyric poems on various times of the day and on church festivals. * '' Liber Peristephanon'' -- ("Crowns of Martyrdom") contains 14 lyric poems on Spanish and Roman martyrs. Some were suggested to Prudentius by sacred images in churches or by the inscriptions of

Pope Damasus I Pope Damasus I (; c. 305 – 11 December 384) was the bishop of Rome from October 366 to his death. He presided over the Council of Rome of 382 that determined the canon or official list of sacred scripture. He spoke out against major heresies (i ...

. * ''Apotheosis'' -- ("Deification") attacks disclaimers of the

Trinity The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God th ...

and the

divinity Divinity or the divine are things that are either related to, devoted to, or proceeding from a deity.divine< ...

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and relig ...

. * ''Hamartigenia'' -- ("The Origin of Sin") attacks the

Gnostic Gnosticism (from grc, γνωστικός, gnōstikós, , 'having knowledge') is a collection of religious ideas and systems which coalesced in the late 1st century AD among Jewish and early Christian sects. These various groups emphasized p ...

dualism of

Marcion Marcion of Sinope (; grc, Μαρκίων ; ) was an early Christian theologian in early Christianity. Marcion preached that God had sent Jesus Christ who was an entirely new, alien god, distinct from the vengeful God of Israel who had created ...

and his followers. In this and the ''Apotheosis'', Tertullian is the source of inspiration. * ''

'' -- ("Battle of Souls") describes the struggle of

faith Faith, derived from Latin ''fides'' and Old French ''feid'', is confidence or trust in a person, thing, or In the context of religion, one can define faith as "belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion". Religious people ofte ...

, supported by the

cardinal virtues The cardinal virtues are four virtues of mind and character in both classical philosophy and Christian theology. They are prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance. They form a virtue theory of ethics. The term ''cardinal'' comes from the ...

, against

idolatry Idolatry is the worship of a cult image or "idol" as though it were God. In Abrahamic religions (namely Judaism, Samaritanism, Christianity, the Baháʼí Faith, and Islam) idolatry connotes the worship of something or someone other than the ...

and the corresponding

vice A vice is a practice, behaviour, or habit generally considered immoral, sinful, criminal, rude, taboo, depraved, degrading, deviant or perverted in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character t ...

s. * ''Libri contra Symmachum'' -- ("Books Against Symmachus") oppose the

pagan Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. I ...

senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

Symmachus's requests that the altar of

Victory The term victory (from Latin ''victoria'') originally applied to warfare, and denotes success achieved in personal combat, after military operations in general or, by extension, in any competition. Success in a military campaign constitutes ...

, which had been removed by

Gratian Gratian (; la, Gratianus; 18 April 359 – 25 August 383) was emperor of the Western Roman Empire from 367 to 383. The eldest son of Valentinian I, Gratian accompanied his father on several campaigns along the Rhine and Danube frontiers and w ...

, be restored to the Senate house. * ''Dittochæon'' -- ("The Double Testament") contains 49

quatrain A quatrain is a type of stanza, or a complete poem, consisting of four lines. Existing in a variety of forms, the quatrain appears in poems from the poetic traditions of various ancient civilizations including Persia, Ancient India, Ancient Gree ...

s intended as captions for the

mural A mural is any piece of graphic artwork that is painted or applied directly to a wall, ceiling or other permanent substrate. Mural techniques include fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage. Word mural in art The word ''mural'' is a Spanis ...

s of a

basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building gave its nam ...

in Rome.

Editions

* Bergman, J. (ed.). ''Aurelii Prudenti Clementis carmina''. Vienna: Hölder-Pichler-Tempsky, 1926. (Corpus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinorum, 61). * Cunningham, M.P. (ed.). ''Aurelii Prudentii Clementis Carmina''. Turnhout: Brepols, 1966 (Corpus Christianorum. Series Latina, 126). * Thomson, H.J. (ed. and trans.). ''Prudentius''. 2 vols. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 1949-53 (Loeb Classical Library). * Tränkle, H. (ed.). Prudentius, ''Contra Symmachum - Gegen Symmachus''. Turnhout: Brepols, 2008. 284 p. (Fontes Christiani, 85).

References

* Albrecht, M. von. 1997. "Prudentius." In ''A History of Roman Literature: From Livius Andronicus to Boethius with Special Regard to its Influence on World Literature.'' Vol. 2. By M. von Albrecht. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. * Cameron, A. 2011. ''The last Pagans of Rome.'' New York: Oxford Univ. Press. * Conybeare, C. 2007. "Sanctum, Lector, Percense Volumen: Snakes, Readers, and the Whole Text in Prudentius’s Hamartigenia." In ''The Early Christian Book.'' Edited by W. E. Klingshirn and L. Safran, 225–240. Washington, DC: Catholic Univ. of America Press. * Deferrari, Roy J., and James Marshall Campbell. 1932. ''A Concordance of Prudentius.'' Cambridge, Mass.: The Mediaeval Academy of America. * Dykes, A. 2011. ''Reading Sin in the World: The Hamartigenia of Prudentius and the Vocation of the Responsible Reader.'' Cambridge, UK: Cambridge Univ. Press. * Fux, P.-Y. 2003. ''Les sept passions de Prudence (Peristephanon 2.5.9. 11–14): Introduction générale et commentaire.'' Fribourg, Switzerland: Éditions Univ. Fribourg Suisse. * Fux, Pierre-Yves. 2013. ''Prudence et les martyrs: hymnes et tragédie (Peristephanon 1.3-4.6-8.10). Commentaire'' , Paradosis 55, Fribourg. *Gnilka, Christian 2000: ''Prudentiana I. Critica.'' K. G. Saur, München. *Gnilka, Christian 2001: ''Prudentiana II. Exegetica.'' K. G. Saur, München. *Gnilka, Christian 2003: ''Prudentiana III. Supplementum''. K. G. Saur, München. *Gnilka, Christian 2017: ''Contra orationem Symmachi, Eine kritische Revue.'' Aschendorff, Münster. *Gnilka, Christian 1963: ''Studien zur Psychomachie des Prudentius'' (= ''Klassisch-Philologische Studien'' 27), Harrassowitz, Wiesbaden. * Krollpfeifer, Lydia 2017. ''Rom bei Prudentius. Dichtung und Weltanschauung in »Contra orationem Symmachi«'' (=''Vertumnus. Berliner Beiträge zur Klassischen Philologie und zu ihren Nachbargebieten.'' Vol. 12). Goettingen: Edition Ruprecht. * Lease, Emory B. 1895. ''A Syntactic, Stylistic and Metrical Study of Prudentius.'' Baltimore: The Friedenwald Company. * Malamud, M. 1989. ''A Poetics of Transformation: Prudentius and Classical Mythology.'' Ithaca, NY, and London: Cornell Univ. Press. * Malamud, M. A. 1990. "Making a Virtue of Perversity: The Poetry of Prudentius." In ''The Imperial Muse: Ramus Essays on Roman Literature of the Empire.'' Edited by A. J. Boyle, 64–88. Bendigo, Australia: Aureal. * Mastrangelo, M. 2008. ''The Roman Self in Late Antiquity: Prudentius and the Poetics of the Soul.'' Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Univ. Press * O’Daly, G. 2011. "Choosing to be a Christian poet: Prudentius, Praefatio and Cathemerinon 2.37–56." In N''octes Sinenses: Festschrift für Fritz-Heiner Mutschler zum 65. Geburtstag.'' Edited by A. Heil, M. Korn, and J. Sauer, 373–378. Heidelberg, Germany: Winter. * Palmer, A.M. 1989. ''Prudentius on the Martyrs.'' Oxford: Clarendon. * Pucci, J. 1991. "Prudentius’ Readings of Horace in the Cathemerinon." ''Latomus'' 50:677–690. * Roberts, M. 1993. ''Poetry and the Cult of the Martyrs: The Liber Peristephanon of Prudentius.'' Ann Arbor: Univ. of Michigan Press. * Roberts, M. 2001. "Rome Personified, Rome Epitomized: Representations of Rome in the Poetry of the Early Fifth Century." ''American Journal of Philology'' 122:533–565. * Witke, C. 1968. "Prudentius and the Tradition of Latin Poetry." ''Transactions of the American Philological Association'' 99:509–525.

External links

Works by Prudentius at Perseus Digital Library
* *
Prudentius, Loeb Classical Library, Volume I
- Latin and English, H. J. Thomson, 1949
Prudentius, Loeb Classical Library, Volume II
- Latin and English, H. J. Thomson, 1953
Liber peristephanon
- Latin text.

* ttp://www.documentacatholicaomnia.eu/30_10_0348-0413-_Aurelius_Prudentius.html ''Opera Omnia'' by Migne's ''Patrologia Latina'' with analytical indexes {{DEFAULTSORT:Prudentius Romans from Hispania Christian writers Christian poets 4th-century Romans 5th-century Romans 4th-century Christians 5th-century Christians 4th-century Latin writers 5th-century Latin writers 4th-century Roman poets 5th-century Roman poets 5th-century deaths Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown Aurelii