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This thesis defines ‘classical lyricism’ as any mode of appropriation of Greek and Latin monodic lyric whereby a poet may develop a wider discourse on poetry. Assuming classical lyricism as an internal category of enquiry, my thesis investigates the presence of Sappho and Catullus as lyric archetypes in Italian and North American poetry of the 20th century. The analysis concentrates on translations and appropriations of Sappho and Catullus in four case studies: Giovanni Pascoli (1855-1912) and Salvatore Quasimodo (1901-1968) in Italy; Ezra Pound (1885-1972) and Anne Carson (b. 1950) in North America. I first trace the poetic reception of Sappho and Catullus in the oeuvres of the four authors separately. I define and evaluate the role of the respective appropriations within each author’s work and poetics. I then contextualise the four case studies within the Italian and North American literary histories. Finally, through the new outlook afforded by the comparative angle of this thesis, I uncover some of the hidden threads connecting the different types of classical lyricism transnationally. The thesis shows that the course of classical lyricism takes two opposite aesthetic directions in Italy and in North America. Moreover, despite the two aesthetic trajectories diverging, I demonstrate that the four poets’ appropriations of Sappho and Catullus share certain topical characteristics. Three out of four types of classical lyricism are defined by a preference for Sappho’s and Catullus’ lyrics which deal with marriage rituals and defloration, patterns of death and rebirth, and solar myths. They stand out as the epiphenomena of the poets’ interest in the anthropological foundations of the lyric, which is grounded in a philosophical function associated with poetry as a quest for knowledge. I therefore ultimately propose that ‘classical lyricism’ may be considered as an independent historical and interpretative category of the classical legacy.

L'objectif de ce travail est d'étudier l'évolution des vers lyriques à Rome du premier siècle avant J.-C. au premier siècle après J.-C., à travers l'usage qu'en font trois poètes : Catulle (œuvres complètes), Horace (Odes, Chant Séculaire et Épodes) et Sénèque (chœurs non anapestiques de ses tragédies). Ce corpus polymétrique permet d'étudier l'adéquation d'un mètre à un genre ou à une tonalité donnés. À partir d'une étude statistique portant sur les variations du schéma métrique, la fréquence des élisions, l'emploi des coupes, le volume verbal recherché et le rapport entre l'ictus et l'accent, il s'agit de montrer comment s'opère le processus de régularisation du vers entre Catulle et Horace, puis entre Horace et Sénèque, en proposant également des interprétations stylistiques de passages où apparaissent les phénomènes les plus marquants. Le travail est organisé en trois parties, consacrées respectivement aux vers éoliens, aux vers dactyliques et aux vers iambiques. Les résultats obtenus montrent que la régularisation du vers s'opère à travers la réduction du nombre d'élisions, la diminution des mots au schéma atypique ou la raréfaction des coupes originales. Ils mettent également en évidence l'importance des hellénismes dans les particularités stylistiques observées et la possibilité pour Catulle et Horace d'employer un mètre lyrique de façon parodique dans un poème satirique. Enfin, l'utilisation que fait Sénèque des mètres horatiens et la richesse de sa lyrique chorale témoignent du caractère théâtral de ses tragédies, qui ne sont pas de simples illustrations d'idées stoïciennes, mais des œuvres véritablement dramatiques. / The aim of this work is to study the evolution of lyric verse in Rome, from the first century B.C. to the first A.D., through the writings of three poets : Catullus (complete works), Horace (Odes, Carmen Saeculare and Epodes) and Seneca (non anapaestic choruses in his tragedies). This polymetric corpus gives us the opportunity to study how a metre adapts to a specific genre or tonality. We conducted statistical studies on the variations of the metrical scheme, the frequency of elisions, the use of caesurae, the word length and the link between ictus and accent, so as to show how the verse is more and more regular from the poems of Catullus to Horace, and from Horace to Seneca. We also propose stylistic interpretations of passages in which striking phenomena appear. The work is divided into three parts, dealing respectively with aeolic, dactylic and iambic verse. The results reveal that regularization of the verse is obtained by the decreasing use of elisions, words with an atypical scheme or original caesurae. They also highlight the importance of hellenisms in the stylistic particularities observed and the possibility for Catullus and Horace to use a lyrical metre through parody to compose a satirical poem. Finally, the way Seneca uses Horatian metres to create rich choral poetry demonstrates his tragedies are not mere illustrations of stoician ideas but are undoubtedly devised for the stage.