<p>In their eighth episode Emily and Tom look at a contemporary of Catullus, Lucretius, and the only poem we have from him, <em>De rerum natura</em> (<em>The Nature of Things</em>), which sets out ideas about how to live one’s life based on the Epicurean philosophical tradition, embracing friends, gardens, materialism and moderation.</p><p>Non-subscribers can only hear extracts from most of the episodes in this series. To listen in full, and to all our other Close Readings series, subscribe:</p><p>Directly in Apple Podcasts: <a href="https://lrb.me/ataapple" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://apple.co/3pJoFPq</a></p><p>In other podcast apps: <a href="https://lrb.me/atasignuppod" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">lrb.me/closereadings</a></p><p>Further reading in the <em>LRB</em>:</p><p>Richard Jenkyns: Coaxing and Seducing</p><p><a href="https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v20/n17/richard-jenkyns/coaxing-and-seducing" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">http...