On the Nature of the Universe (Penguin Classics)

**A seminal text of Epicurean science and philosophy** With a new introduction and commentary and a revised translation, this edition acknowledges advances in textual research and also provides more background information for the reader. Epicurians discarded both the idea of immortality and the superstitious worship of wilful gods for a life of serene contentment in the available pleasures of nature. Lucretius (c100-c55BC), in elucidating this belief, steers the reader through an extraordinary breadth of subject matter, ranging from the indestructibility of atoms and the discovery of fire to the folly of romantic love and the phenomena of clouds and rainstorms. For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators. This is regarded as a seminal text of Epicurean science and philosophy. Epicurians discarded both the idea of immortality and the superstitious worship of wilful gods for a life of serene contentment in the available pleasures of nature. Lucretius (c100-c55BC), in elucidating this belief, steers the reader through an extraordinary breadth of subject matter, ranging from the indestructibility of atoms and the discovery of fire to the folly of romantic love and the phenomena of clouds and rainstorms. Reviser's Preface; Introduction; Bibliography. ON THE NATURE OF THE UNIVERSE: Synopsis; BOOK ONE: Matter and Space; BOOK TWO: Movements and Shapes of Atoms; BOOK THREE: Life and Mind; BOOK FOUR: Sensation and Sex; BOOK FIVE: Cosmology and Sociology; BOOK SIX: Meteorology and Geology; Notes. Appendix A: The Prelude to the Poem; Appendix B: Memmius; Appendix C: Smallest Parts; Appendix D: The Text; Appendix E: The Ending of the Poem. Matter And Space -- Movements And Shapes Of Atoms -- Life And Mind -- Sensation And Sex -- Cosmology And Sociology -- Meteorology And Geology. Lucretius ; Translated By R.e. Latham ; Revised With An Introduction And Notes By John Godwin. Notes: P. 200-[243]. Appendices: P. 244-[272]. Includes Bibliographical References (p. Xxxiii-xlv) And Index. This is regarded as a seminal text of Epicurean science and philosophy. With a new introduction and commentary and a revised translation, this edition acknowledges advances in textual research and also provides more background information for the reader. Mother of Aeneas and his race, delight of men and gods, life-giving Venus, it is your doing that under the wheeling constellations of the sky all nature teems with life, both the sea that buoys up our ships and the earth that yields our food.