The last of the personal lyric writers on whom it will be necessary to dwell is Theognis.
On the general theory that the book of Theognis is a collection of poems by a number of writers of various dates, scholars have agreed to agree; on the details of the theory, they seem to have agreed to differ. For the present purpose, however, these details are unimportant, and it will be sufficient to assume that, while some of the poems are doubtless earlier, and others again later, the great bulk of the first book of the “Theognis” poetry belongs to the first half of the fifth century, while the second book is considerably later.[49]
It is equally indifferent for us how this heterogeneous collection arose; whether it was a chrestomathy “for the use of schools,” or whether, as has been argued with great force, it is in reality a volume of songs to be sung at social gatherings, and the forerunner of the later collections of epigrams.[50]
What is of importance for us is that, in any case, whatever theory as to its origin may be adopted, this book may be taken as presenting on the whole[51] a collection of those opinions and views of life which were generally held and generally accepted during the fifth century or thereabouts; for neither the schoolroom nor the dinner table is exactly the place where new and startling theories are welcomed.
Looking at this volume, then, as containing a collection of the ordinary and more or less commonplace views of the time, it is interesting, though, of course, not really surprising, to find that, while boy-love is universally acknowledged and forms the subject of not a few of the poems, women’s love is well-nigh entirely ignored;[52] and where the latter is mentioned, its sensual side merely is touched upon.[53]
Indeed, all the allusions of any importance to women can be very briefly dismissed.
In l. 183 seqq. marriage is compared to cattle-breeding, the folly of marrying for money being deprecated as spoiling the breed.
Ll. 257 seqq. are possibly the complaint of a woman with an unsuitable husband, though what is the nature of the objection to him, and indeed the whole allusion, is not clear.
Ll. 261 seqq. appear to deal with the behaviour of a man towards a woman on some occasion; but, what with the doubtfulness of the reading and the uncertainty as to whether the lines belong to one poem or two, the exact sense has never yet been ascertained.[54]
In l. 457 seqq. the infidelity of a young wife to an old man is tacitly assumed. “Girls will have boys.”