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The Greek and Roman Critics
A reprint of the University of Toronto edition of 1965.
- GenresCriticism
384 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1963
About the author
G.M.A. Grube
20 books10 followersGeorge Maximilian Antony Grube (3 August 1899 – 13 December 1982) was a classicist and translator of Plato, Aristotle, Demetrius of Phaleron, Longinus and Marcus Aurelius, as well as a Canadian democratic socialist political activist.
He was born in Antwerp, Belgium, on 3 August 1899, and was educated in the United Kingdom. He served as a translator for the Belgium Army, attached to the British Expeditionary Force during the First World War. He attended Cambridge University's Emmanuel College, where he received his Master's degree in 1925.
He moved to Canada in 1928, to begin his career as a professor of classics at the University of Trinity College in the University of Toronto (UofT). He became the head of the classics department in 1931. Grube was a socialist, and serving in WWI turned him into a passionate pacifist. During his tenure at the UofT, he was involved in the Toronto branch of the League for Social Reconstruction (LSR), serving as president from 1934-1935. When the LSR took control of the nearly bankrupt magazine, Canadian Forum, Grube became its editor from 1937 to 1941. It was during his tenure at the magazine that it became the main media outlet for the LSR's publications.
From 1944 to 1946, Grube was the President of the Ontario Co-operative Commonwealth Federation's (CCF) executive, often acting as the public spokesperson for the party after its leader, Ted Jolliffe, lost his seat in the Ontario general election on 4 June 1945. He also ran unsuccessfully several times for the House of Commons seat in what was then known as the Broadview electoral district during the 1940s.
In August 1961, he was one of the co-chairs presiding over the New Democratic Party's founding convention in Ottawa. In 1968, he won the Award of Merit from the American Philological Association (APA) for his 1965 book The Greek and Roman Critics. The APA gave him the award for "outstanding contribution to classical scholarship." Two-years later, while still the head of the classics department, he retired from UofT in 1970.
He continued writing new translations of Plato's works until his death. In his later years, he had health issues, and he finally succumbed to them in Toronto on 13 December 1982.
He was born in Antwerp, Belgium, on 3 August 1899, and was educated in the United Kingdom. He served as a translator for the Belgium Army, attached to the British Expeditionary Force during the First World War. He attended Cambridge University's Emmanuel College, where he received his Master's degree in 1925.
He moved to Canada in 1928, to begin his career as a professor of classics at the University of Trinity College in the University of Toronto (UofT). He became the head of the classics department in 1931. Grube was a socialist, and serving in WWI turned him into a passionate pacifist. During his tenure at the UofT, he was involved in the Toronto branch of the League for Social Reconstruction (LSR), serving as president from 1934-1935. When the LSR took control of the nearly bankrupt magazine, Canadian Forum, Grube became its editor from 1937 to 1941. It was during his tenure at the magazine that it became the main media outlet for the LSR's publications.
From 1944 to 1946, Grube was the President of the Ontario Co-operative Commonwealth Federation's (CCF) executive, often acting as the public spokesperson for the party after its leader, Ted Jolliffe, lost his seat in the Ontario general election on 4 June 1945. He also ran unsuccessfully several times for the House of Commons seat in what was then known as the Broadview electoral district during the 1940s.
In August 1961, he was one of the co-chairs presiding over the New Democratic Party's founding convention in Ottawa. In 1968, he won the Award of Merit from the American Philological Association (APA) for his 1965 book The Greek and Roman Critics. The APA gave him the award for "outstanding contribution to classical scholarship." Two-years later, while still the head of the classics department, he retired from UofT in 1970.
He continued writing new translations of Plato's works until his death. In his later years, he had health issues, and he finally succumbed to them in Toronto on 13 December 1982.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
May 2, 2022
We're going to ignore how far behind I am on my reading challenge because I have been painfully busy and fully intend to make up for it the second that my Latin exam is finished on Thursday. Shut up.
This book was given to me by Phil at Bouquiniste in St Andrews, after I told him that I have an exam on Roman literary criticism, and let me tell you, Phil is some kind of psychic, because this is precisely what I needed. It delves into Horace's Ars Poetica, Terence's prologues, Quintilian's Institutio Oratoria, and Tacitus' Dialogus, and, while it misses out the other works I'm studying (Velleius Paterculus' literary digressions in his Historiae Romanae, Donatus' Epistula ad Munatium / Praefatio Eclogues, and Servius' Praefatio Aeneid and Commentarius Librum Quartum Aeneidos), it is absolutely fantastic. Genuinely. Love Phil.
It was bought alongside some of Petrarch's love poetry to Laura, a book on sexuality and sex in the ancient world and how it differs from now, an extra copy of Kazantzaki's Zorba the Greek (because I saw it and got ridiculously excited that someone else in this town or at least in Fife had read Kazantzakis), diaries from a British Abbey vaguely mentioned in Alan Bennett's The History Boys, and a hardback original English translation of Marguerite Yourcenar's The Memoirs of Hadrian which I found in the Barnardo's bookshop and unintentionally interrupted a conversation to buy. So, as you can imagine, my weeks before I sally off to Crete on research leave will be filled with those books, alongside postcolonial theory for editor / reviewer rewrites on 'Demonstering'.
Those twelve books will be made up in no time. :)
This book was given to me by Phil at Bouquiniste in St Andrews, after I told him that I have an exam on Roman literary criticism, and let me tell you, Phil is some kind of psychic, because this is precisely what I needed. It delves into Horace's Ars Poetica, Terence's prologues, Quintilian's Institutio Oratoria, and Tacitus' Dialogus, and, while it misses out the other works I'm studying (Velleius Paterculus' literary digressions in his Historiae Romanae, Donatus' Epistula ad Munatium / Praefatio Eclogues, and Servius' Praefatio Aeneid and Commentarius Librum Quartum Aeneidos), it is absolutely fantastic. Genuinely. Love Phil.
It was bought alongside some of Petrarch's love poetry to Laura, a book on sexuality and sex in the ancient world and how it differs from now, an extra copy of Kazantzaki's Zorba the Greek (because I saw it and got ridiculously excited that someone else in this town or at least in Fife had read Kazantzakis), diaries from a British Abbey vaguely mentioned in Alan Bennett's The History Boys, and a hardback original English translation of Marguerite Yourcenar's The Memoirs of Hadrian which I found in the Barnardo's bookshop and unintentionally interrupted a conversation to buy. So, as you can imagine, my weeks before I sally off to Crete on research leave will be filled with those books, alongside postcolonial theory for editor / reviewer rewrites on 'Demonstering'.
Those twelve books will be made up in no time. :)
January 9, 2023
This book was an excellent history of Greek and Roman literary/rhetorical criticism from its earliest sources to Longinus. It is lucid and provides a wealth of information without being overbearing.
I only have two criticisms that are more preferences than real blunders of the book. First, Grube includes sections on several authors who have little to no impact on the history of literary criticism. I wonder why he includes them other than that they are well known. Second, I would have enjoyed a greater synthesis or synopsis of ideas much like Russell does in his book, where he gives both a narrative history and synthesis of major topics. I suppose the index could provide a synthesis by directing you to certain pages, but some topics discussed are left out of the index (e.g., benefit vs pleasure as the goal of reading).
I only have two criticisms that are more preferences than real blunders of the book. First, Grube includes sections on several authors who have little to no impact on the history of literary criticism. I wonder why he includes them other than that they are well known. Second, I would have enjoyed a greater synthesis or synopsis of ideas much like Russell does in his book, where he gives both a narrative history and synthesis of major topics. I suppose the index could provide a synthesis by directing you to certain pages, but some topics discussed are left out of the index (e.g., benefit vs pleasure as the goal of reading).
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews