[53]
On the other hand, Antimachus1
deserves praise for the vigour, dignity and elevation of his language. But although practically all
teachers of literature rank him second among epic
poets, he is deficient in emotional power, charm, and
arrangement of matter, and totally devoid of real
art. No better example can be found to show what
a vast difference there is to being near another
writer and being second to him.
1 Antimachus of Colophon (flor. circ. 405 B.C.), author of a Thebaid.
Quintilian. With An English Translation. Harold Edgeworth Butler. Cambridge. Cambridge, Mass., Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann, Ltd. 1922.
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