L'atomo di Lucrezio

Abstract

Lucretius never uses the word atomus. There are no serious prosodic obstacles in inserting it into the hexameter; but, except for a senarius of Lucilius, atomus is testified only in seven late evidences of the whole Latin poetry. Perhaps Lucretius considers the mechanical character of indivisibility not a priority: atoms are indivisible because of their ‘continuous solidity’ (their ontological simplicitas/soliditas), and not vice versa.

English title: Lucretius' atom