The Aeneid: Topics and Themes
| 1. a promise from a deity to the founder of a people/nation |
| 2. a homeland won from others through war |
| Abraham the ancestor of a multitude of nations |
| lasting peace, a 'Golden Age' |
| a priestly kingdom and a holy nation |
Evander's words as paradigm of Western views of indigenous, native peoples |
| 1. They are identified with the landscape they inhabit |
| 2. They are totally uncivilized |
| 3. They live by hunting and gathering |
| 4. Therefore, they need to be civilized for their own good! |
Founding fathers and culture-bearers |
| but Golden age gradually disintegrates into war |
| defeats Cacus, half-human bestial son of Vulcan (VIII.248-365) |
| thus, like Saturn, he is a civilizing force |
| yet he is an ambiguous figure; once sacked Troy |
| Evander (an Arcadian Greek!) |
| founds first settlement on the Palatine hill |
| . . . King Evander, founder unaware |
| of Rome's great citadel . . . (VIII.413-14) |
| continually at war with Latins (VIII.73) |
| must struggle and fight to found Lavinium |
| founds Rome and builds walls |
| will end a century of civil strife by winning a civil war |
| will establish a new golden age |
| Why does the nature of civilization require that it be founded again and again? |
Is the Aeneid merely a form of sophisticated propaganda, or it it something more? |
| Overt glorification of Rome and Augustus |
| Jupiter's promise in Bk. I |
| Aeneas' view of future Romans in Bk. VI |
| Scene's from Rome's "future" history on Aeneas' shield in Bk. VIII |
| Entire poem is dedicated to the founding of Rome |
| Many themes are relevant to any culture or society |
| the importance of community |
| individual sacrifice for the good of others |
| intrinsic value of civilization |
| the difficulty of establishing, maintaining and spreading civilization |
| Aeneas and the Trojans vs. |
| Ambiguous (complex?) presentation of war in the poem |
| Rome's success was based on war |
| brutal, destructive aspect of war presented in Bk. II |
| senseless quality of war seen in Bk. VII-XII |
| yet individual deeds praised |
| war as a result of irrational promptings |
| Who is the "Achilles" of this story? |
| Turnus explicitly identified with him several times |
| prophecy of the Sibyl (VI.135-36) |
| also, his rampaging attacks are like those of Achilles |
| yet it is Aeneas who, like Achilles, slays a foe to avenge the death of a friend |
| after pursuing him as he flees |
| scene greatly emphasized by postion at end of poem |
| Aeneas a mixture of both Hector and Achilles |
| The first Virgilian simile |
| the typical simile in Homer |
| gives color and vigor to human actions through comparison with natural scenes |
| She found Odysseus in the thick of slaughtered corpses, |
| splattered with bloody filth like a lion that's devoured |
| some ox of the field and lopes home, covered with blood, |
| his chest streaked, both jaws glistening, dripping red-- |
| a sight to strike terror. (Od. 22.426-30) |
| the first simile in the Aeneid |
| compares Neptune's calming of the tempest to a man who calms a riot |
| When rioting breaks out in a great city |
| And the rampaging rabble goes so far |
| That stones fly, and incendiary brands-- |
| For anger can supply that kind of weapon-- |
| If it so happens they look around and see |
| Some dedicated public man, a veteran |
| Whose record gives him weight, they quiet down |
| Willing to stop and listen. |
| Then he prevails in speech over their fury |
| By his authority, and placates them. |
| Just so, the whole uproar of the great sea |
| Fell silent, . . . (Aeneid. I.201-212) |
Return to Lecture Topics