Aratus Of Soli

As can be seen, Hesiod’s Theogony and Works and Days, and Aratus of Soli’s Phaenomena share several themes central to Greek cosmology. Both authors relate divine legends and discuss the movement of celestial bodies. Phaenomena seems to pick up on the almanac-like qualities of Works and Days and the cataloguing of names in Theogony. However, while Aratus’ text is a catalogue of constellations and stellar movements, Theogony is a sort of divine inventory which details the genealogy of the gods. In this way, Phaenomena picks up on several themes present within the texts of Hesiod, but at the same time shifts the focus of Greek cosmology from a theological to a more astronomical center. This change in concentration seems to be representative of a progression in thought in Ancient Greece. Instead of placing divinities in the human, earthly realm and relying on their interaction with mankind, the gods remain in the heavens, separate from human affairs, save the occasional celestial omen.

Aratus of Soli’s edition of Phaenomena begins with a short introduction in which he first praises Zeus, and then promptly invokes the Muses as he begins his celestial dissertation . This is reminiscent of Hesiod’s introductions to both Theogony and Works and Days. First Hesiod calls upon the inspiration of the “Muses of Helicon”, and continues on to exalt Zeus as the father of all gods . In Ancient Greece, the Muses were goddesses which inspired poets to accurately sing of the immortals; they aided the memorization and recollection of ancient stories . With these invocations, the authors attempt to imbue their works with a higher degree of authenticity; rather than simply take their word for the veracity of their stories, readers can look to the accuracy of divine recollection to back up these legends.

The themes within Hesiod’s Theogony and Works and Days are significantly divergent between themselves. Theogony is largely a genealogical catalogue of Greek gods (some 300 names in all) with some random and somewhat limited stories relating the origins of personalities and relationships among the immortals. The text of Works and Days is more reminiscent of an old farmer’s almanac. It describes the celestial bodies, advises the reader on the best times to sail and sow the fields, and provides moral guidance. Aratus’ Phaenomena is a sort of combination of Hesiod’s two works. In it, Aratus recognizes a number of gods through their places in the constellations, verbosely describes the motions of the stars and planets, relates theological stories, and explains weather patterns and celestial occurrences as divine signs and ominous warnings. In short, Phaenomena is an amalgamation of parts of the two major works by Hesiod.

esiod and Aratus of Soli, and examine how Aratus’ Phaenomena digresses from and surpasses the

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