first edition
1664 · Oxford
by [Scudamore, James]
Oxford: Printed by H.H. for Ric. Davis, 1664. First printing. Very good plus.. Scarce first edition of this English burlesque of Homer, an irreverent retelling of the first two books of THE ILIAD for the entertainment of Oxfordians. For a mock poem, HOMER A LA MODE is notably faithful to the action of THE ILIAD, while always reveling in its satire: it ends just before the Catalogue of Ships with the remark that the "remnant of this Second Rhapsody, being only a head-roll of hard Names, was purposely left out. THE END."
Strictly speaking, the work belongs to a parodic subgenre distinct from mock-epics like the ancient BATRACHOMYMACHIA or Pope's DUNCIAD, which derive their comic effects from applying epic style and diction to low or modern subjects. Scudamore does the reverse, paying tribute to Butler's HUDIBRAS in his epigraph but following Scarron's VIRGILE TRAVESTI in introducing modern colloquialisms into his classical source material. HOMER A LA MODE incorporates references to places and figures as contemporary as Hugh Peter, executed after the Restoration and forced here to rhyme with Jupiter. Most gratifyingly, Scudamore plays enthusiastically to that evergreen contempt for Achilles which flourishes as healthily among today's students of the classics as it did with 17th-century schoolboys. A handsome copy. 5.25'' x 3.25''. Contemporary full sheep with later gilt-lettered morocco spine label. [viii], 120 pages. Errata leaf follows address To the Reader (A4). Pencil notations to endpapers. Front and rear hinges cracked but firm, rubbing and slight chipping to boards. (Inventory #: 53234)
Strictly speaking, the work belongs to a parodic subgenre distinct from mock-epics like the ancient BATRACHOMYMACHIA or Pope's DUNCIAD, which derive their comic effects from applying epic style and diction to low or modern subjects. Scudamore does the reverse, paying tribute to Butler's HUDIBRAS in his epigraph but following Scarron's VIRGILE TRAVESTI in introducing modern colloquialisms into his classical source material. HOMER A LA MODE incorporates references to places and figures as contemporary as Hugh Peter, executed after the Restoration and forced here to rhyme with Jupiter. Most gratifyingly, Scudamore plays enthusiastically to that evergreen contempt for Achilles which flourishes as healthily among today's students of the classics as it did with 17th-century schoolboys. A handsome copy. 5.25'' x 3.25''. Contemporary full sheep with later gilt-lettered morocco spine label. [viii], 120 pages. Errata leaf follows address To the Reader (A4). Pencil notations to endpapers. Front and rear hinges cracked but firm, rubbing and slight chipping to boards. (Inventory #: 53234)
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