INTRODUCTION They are: the richness or multivalence of poetic language, the interanimation of the parts and the sources of tension within poems, and the fact that " in the best poetry metaphor is not merely a prettification but rather a primary element in the structure, a basic constituent in form, These facts of poetic language and structure have not been totally unrecognized or unexplored in the field of Greek poetry. Writing sometime tbout A D. IOO, Longinus "was touching on these principles, or at least the second of them, when he praised Sappho's poem for its exact and intense unification of conflicting images nd also in the sections verbal structure. And in the last few years W.B. Stanfords excellent studies have done much to clarify the role of meta- phor, The presence of intensifying ambiguities, and the use of recurrent imagery in Greek poetry. Another eminent name may be added from the classical field. Writing in I942 Eduard Frankel exhorted students of greek tragedy to a method of approach which would center upon critical words cr word clusters and exploit contextual interrelationships of meaning. He wrote, "We may begin with observing words, their meaning, their structure, and their order, and end with observing characteristic habits of the poet's mind in shaping dramatic characters, bringing about a tragic tension, and revealing his religious convictions. So although this method is relatively new and is not yet completely developed for Greek poetry (which presents the special problems of a "dead language), precedent is good and the obj worth attaining In any case, and certainly in any extended view of western literature, only momentary surprise should be occasioned by the applicability for so ancient a work as the Antigone of methods of criticism whose development as effective methods of poetic analysis has largely occurred within the twentieth century. The "modernity"of classical antiquity has often been demonstrated. In literature particularly, the Greco- Roman has been such a strong and many-sided influence upon the English tradition that there is little cause to wonder at 6 This content downloaded from 128... 148 on Thu, 23 Mar 201709: 44: 03 UTC Allusesubjecttohttpaboutjstor.org/termsINTRODUCTION They are: the richness or multivalence of poetic language, the interanimation of the parts and the sources of tension within poems, and the fact that "in the best poetry metaphor is not merely a prettification but rather a primary element in the structure, a basic constituent in form."3 These facts of poetic language and structure have not been totally unrecognized or unexplored in the field of Greek poetry. Writing sometime about A.D. ioo, "Longinus" was touching on these principles, or at least the second of them, when he praised Sappho's poem for its exact and intense unification of conflicting images and also in the sections where he treats "composition" or verbal structure.4 And in the last few years W. B. Stanford's excellent studies have done much to clarify the role of meta￾phor, the presence of intensifying ambiguities, and the use of recurrent imagery in Greek poetry.5 Another eminent name may be added from the classical field. Writing in 1942 Eduard Frankel exhorted students of Greek tragedy to a method of approach which would center upon critical words cr word clusters and exploit contextual interrelationships of meaning. He wrote, "We may begin with observing words, their meaning, their structure, and their order, and end with observing characteristic habits of the poet's mind in shaping dramatic characters, bringing about a tragic tension, and revealing his religious convictions."6 So although this method is relatively new and is not yet completely developed for Greek poetry (which presents the special problems of a "dead" language), precedent is good and the objective eminently worth attaining. In any case, and certainly in any extended view of western literature, only momentary surprise should be occasioned by the applicability for so ancient a work as the Antigone of methods of criticism whose development as effective methods of poetic analysis has largely occurred within the twentieth century. The "modernity" of classical antiquity has often been demonstrated. In literature particularly, the Greco￾Roman has been such a strong and many-sided influence upon the English tradition that there is little cause to wonder at This content downloaded from 128.122.230.148 on Thu, 23 Mar 2017 09:44:03 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms