It says that an ideal epic begins not "from the egg" but rather "in the middle of things" or in medias res.
This work compares mediocrity to a supper where poppy seeds are served in bitter Sardinian honey, since the meal would be just fine without them. This work says "he who saves a man against his will, does the same as he who kills him" when discussing Empedocles leaping into Mount Etna, which it says was motivated by cold blood rather than feeling chilly. This work shares its name with a poem that suggests its central figure "couples the Precise with Imprecision" and commands "Take vain Eloquence and wring its neck!"; that poem is by Paul Verlaine. This work, which opens by describing the (*) absurdity of a painter attaching a human head to a horse's neck, states that gods should not interfere unless necessary and plays should only be five acts long. It says that an ideal epic begins not "from the egg" but rather "in the middle of things" or in medias res. For 10 points, name this "Letter to the Pisos" about how to write, a work by Horace.
This work compares mediocrity to a supper where poppy seeds are served in bitter Sardinian honey, since the meal would be just fine without them.
Ars Poetica [or The Art of Poetry; accept "Ars Poetique"]