LucanâS Poetic Geographies: Center and Periphery in Civil War Epic
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The geographical descriptions in Lucanâs epic present a vision of the Roman world and of the civil war between Caesar and Pompey, which obsesses over boundaries and boundary violations. This paper analyzes in detail two instances of boundary violation in Book 1 (67â104 and 183â257), which present themes that resonate throughout the epic. I argue that Lucan dismantles traditional Roman notions of center and periphery, creating a volatile new concept of Roman space that is defined by the transgressions and violence of Caesar.