A recepção de Horácio em Ricardo Reis : temas poéticos, tópoi e epicurismo

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to investigate, using concrete examples of lyrical themes, topoi, and Epicureanism, how the work of the Latin poet Quintus Horatius Flaccus was received in Ricardo Reis (one of Fernando Pessoa’s heteronyms). The results indicate, according to comparative methods as employed in “reception studies”, that the Portuguese poet established a critical dialogue with his ancient model. In other words, the Classical elements were received creatively and criti-cally, rather than passively, in the work credited to Ricardo Reis.Finally, we finish the study by emphasizing the similarities between the aforementioned theory ’s essential assumptions and our findings in Pessoa’s Odes.