Theocritus
the-ok'ri-tus, a Greek bucolic poet of the third century B. C. He was born either at Syracuse or at Cos. Thirty-one pastoral and idyllic poems are ascribed to Theocritus, although the authorship of several is doubtful. Many of these idyls are dramatic in form and consist of conversations between herdsmen and shepherds. Virgil imitated Theocritus in his Eclogues. A bit of translation from his Thalysia and a word from Clarence Stedman will serve to give an idea of this poet:
The shady boughs were chirping; from afar
The tree-frog in the briars chanted shrill;
The crest-larks and the thistle-finches sang,
The turtledove was plaining; tawny bees
Were hovering round the fountain. All things near
Smelt of the ripened summer, all things smelt
Of fruit-time. Pears were rolling at our feet,
And apples for the taking; to the ground
The plum-tree staggered, burdened with its fruit;
And we, meanwhile, brushed from a wine-jar's mouth
The pitch four years unbroken.
Theocritus created his own school, with no models except those obtainable from the popular mimes and catches of his own region; just as Burns, availing himself of the simple Scottish ballads, lifted the poetry of Scotland to an eminent and winsome individuality.
See Syracuse; Eclogue; Idyl; Pastoral
Theodoric the Great (454-526), king of the Ostrogoths. He received his education at Constantinople while held as a hostage by the Emperor Leo. After succeeding his father as a king of the Ostrogoths he made war on Odoacer, ruler of Italy, and, having subdued him, established the seat of his power at Ravenna. He quartered his soldiers in Italy, giving them one-third of the agricultural land. He was a ruler of ability. He maintained peace throughout a vast domain and governed the Italians in accordance with their own, that is to say, Roman law. Much to his credit, he gave strict orders that the monuments of art at Rome be protected. He even set aside certain revenues to be devoted to their restoration. He was himself a Christian, holding to the Arian faith, but he lived on terms of amity with his Roman Catholic neighbors. He deserves mention in history, not only as a just and powerful ruler, but as the greatest name among the Goths. It was his boast that "the only regret of the Italian people should be that the Goths had not come at an earlier period." His palace and tomb are still standing at Ravenna. There is a tradition that Theodoric was so illiterate that, instead of using a pen to sign documents, he had a gold plate through which letters were cut. This being placed on a piece of paper, the king traced his signature with a quill. See Goths; Ravenna