ALCAICS, in Ancient Poetry, a denomination given to several kinds of verse, from Alceus, their inventor. The first kind consists of five feet, viz. a spondee, or iambic; an iambic; a long syllable; a dactyle; another dactyle: such is the following verse of Horace:
Omnes | eodem cogimur, | omnium
Versa | tur ur | na | serius | ocyus |
Sors exitura.
The second kind consists of two dactyles and two trochees: as,
Exiliū | imposi | tura | cymbæ.
Besides these two, which are called dactylic Alcaics, there is another simply styled Alcaic; consisting of an epitrile; a choriambus; another choriambus; and a bacchius: the following is of this species,
Cur timet fla | vum Tiberim tan | gere, cur | olivum?