"Aspects of Virgil's reception in antiquity" by R. J. Tarrant
"Cernere Erat: The Shield of Aeneas," by D.A. West
"Aspects of Virgil's reception in antiquity" by R. J. Tarrant from Cambridge Companion to Virgil, pp. 56-72.
This essay focuses on the response to Virgil's poems both during his own lifetime and by later Roman poets. The author states that the poems were very popular during Virgil's life, and greatly influenced all poetry composed afterwards.
The author's first point, that Virgil was acclaimed during his own lifetime, is well supported. Before the Aeneid was even completed, it was praised as equal, if not better than, the Illiad. The Eclogues and Georgics were lectured on in schools, and eventually became standard school texts. However, it was the Aeneid that made Virgil truly popular, and extended his audience from "cultivated literary circles" to every Roman. Verses of his poem can be found in graffiti from all over the Roman world, and his celebration of Aeneas led to the hero's prominent place on the Ara Pacis. Romans were so interested in Virgil that several biographies of his life were composed, often drawing on pieces of his poems to fill out his life. There were, of course, detractors of his work, but even they never suggested that Virgil's place in Roman canon was undeserved.
The second point, that later poets reflected Virgil's work, is also well supported. Poets active after Virgil generally avoided the types of poems that Virgil composed, but his work still influenced them. While Horace and Propertius, who lived at the same time as Virgil, showed little direct influence, later poets, including Ovid, often echoed aspects of his work, if only to mock it. Ars Amatoria, for example, was written in imitation of the Georgics. Long after Augustus had gone, when the idea of empire and the emperors themselves began to lose their charm, Seneca, Lucan, and Tacitus echoed Virgil's words to emphasize how far the present had fallen. Even when Christianity became popular, Virgil was still revered, seen as a prophet for his Fourth Eclogue. The interpretation of his works did change over the years, but he was never hailed as anything less than a master of poetry.
Julia Ewing
Further Sources:
W. R. Barnes, pp. 257-92, in A Companion to the Study of Virgil, ed. N. M. Horsfall (Mnem. Suppl. 151, Leiden, 1995). On imitations and responses to Virgil.
Horsfall, 1995, pp. 1-25. On ancient biographies.
Robert Kaster, Guardians of Language: the Grammarian and Society in Late Antiquity, (Berkeley, 1988), pp. 169-96. On Virgil's commentators.
E. J. Kenney, 'The style of the Metamorphoses,' pp. 116-53, in Ovid, ed. J. W. Binns (London, 1973). A comparison between Ovid and Virgil.
Petronius, Sat. 118.5. On the late first century AD view that Virgil was at the fore of all poets.
"Cernere Erat: The Shield of Aeneas," by D.A. West, reprinted from Proceedings of the Virgil Society 15(1975-6)
The article I read was "Cernere Erat: The Shield of Aeneas," by D.A. West, reprinted from Proceedings of the Virgil Society 15(1975-6) pp 1-7 in Oxford Readings in Virgil's Aeneid, edited by S.J. Harrison. The focus of this essay is obviously the shield that Aeneas receives in book VIII, but more specifically the images on that shield. After opening with a brief interlude questioning why Aeneas received the shield in the first place, West moves on to the focus of the article and discusses some of the classic arguments about the criterion Virgil used to pick the images. He has decided to support D.E. Eicholz's supposition that "these scenes are selected to make sense as plastic art" (297). He supports this by illustrating how the images "bring vividly before our eyes illustrations" (297) that might be well depicted and possible on a shield.
The arguments he uses to support this are: the images are organized into an arrangement that is at least plausible, although not physically possible, on a shield; color and texture are frequently mentioned; the scenes are chosen from the body of images frequently portrayed in Roman art; and this is a much more vividly pictoral depiction of a prophecy than the vision of the future Aeneas sees while he is in the underworld. I found the argument based on colorful, movement based images from Roman art to be the strongest one in West's arsenal. He gave many examples; "in almost every line so far" (300) of the Latin he gave an instance of color, texture, or Roman art. The most powerful one, I think, was the picture of Mettus being torn in quarters by 4 horses with brambles sprinkled with a dew of blood. The weakest argument, but also the one with the least consideration, was the special arrangement on a theoretical shield. This was a weak argument with not much basis, but West states this himself and thus steers us away from this and on to much better points.
I found this article on the whole interesting, but also extremely focused onto a fairly small facet of the entire shield issue. And thus while broadly speaking I was fairly well convinced by the points West made, in the end I did not feel I was convinced about anything of grand importance. It was a nicely worked argument in support of thesis that on the surface at least did not delve deeply into any hard issues. It was, however, at least an interesting and fun read.
Daniel Miller
Additional Sources
J.G. Griffith, PVS 7 (1967-8), pp 54-65.
P.T. Eden, "A Commentary on Virgil Aeneid viii" (Leiden, 1975) p xix.
D.C. Drew, "The Allegory of the Aeneid" (Oxford, 1964) pp 26-30.
D.E. Eicholz, PVS 6 (1966-7) pp 45-49.
A Szantyr, Mus Hel 27 (1970) pp 28-40.
Lyne, R.O.A.M. "The Hero and His Son." Further Voices in Vergil's Aeneid. New York: Clarendon Press, 1987: 145-206.
Chapter Summary
This chapter focuses on Vergil's characterization of Aeneas, particularly in his relationships with other characters. Lyne observes that Vergil uses a "cut-off" technique to move the plot past Aeneas's responses to other characters: disruptive events or divine interference prevent Aeneas from responding to his family and friends while forcing him towards duty. Opportunities are available for personal interaction between Aeneas and Creusa, Ascanius, Pallas, and Dido, but he fails to respond to or initiate interpersonal contact. For example, Aeneas directly addresses his son once and touches him twice in the entire Aeneid. Lyne argues that this is intentional and Vergil uses Aeneas's lack of personal interaction as "negative invention" to characterize Aeneas.
Aeneas's social responsibility places him in a difficult position, in which his adherence to duty overwhelms compassion. As a result, Aeneas's attempts to express his affection occur "too late," namely after the death of Creusa, Dido, and Pallas. These belated attempts fail to soften the destruction of his earlier failure and produce a character that is ironic and pathetic. The destructive and lamentable effects of Aeneas's inability, Lyne argues, should make us wary of the Stoic resistance to passion. In the weakest part of the argument, the author reconciles Aeneas's submission to the passion for revenge against Turnus, against the demand of filial duty for clemency, as a "too late" expression of Aeneas's paternal-like feelings towards Pallas.
The chapter concludes by reanalyzing the "starkness" of the father-son relationship between Aeneas and Ascanius. Using the coincidence of Vergil's use of destructive hunting descriptions, the author tries somewhat successfully to parallel Ascanius with Aeneas. This comparison is provocative regarding the tendency of Aeneas and his offspring towards destruction, although the intervention of Apollo provides hope.
Dave Raczek
Other Sources
Anderson, W.S. "Pastor Aeneas: On Pastoral Themes in the Aeneid." TAPA 99 (1968) 1-17.
Bowra, C.M. "Aeneas and the Stoic Ideal." GR 3 (1933-4), 8-21.
Feeney, D.C. "The Taciturnity of Aeneas." CQ n.s. 33 (1983), 204-19.
Lyne, R.O.A.M. "Vergil and the Politics of War." CQ 33 (1983), 188-204.
Stahl, H.-P. "Aeneas&emdash;An 'Unheroic' Hero?" Arethusa 14 (1981) 157-75.
Bono, Barbara J. "The Dido Episode." Modern Critical Interpretations of the
Aeneid. New York; Chelsea House Publishers, 1987.
In Barbara J. Bono's "The Dido Episode," Bono explores the nature and significance of Aeneas and Dido's tragic love affair. Her emphasis is on the importance of seeing their roles in the context of all the events preceding their encounter, rather than looking at them as two isolated personalities. While many commentators and modern readers of the Aeneid see Aeneas as unfeeling and cold-hearted, she contends that after the devastation of the collapse of Troy, he must maintain a necessary sense of detachment, which Dido is unable to recognize. Thus, even though Book IV can be taken as a love story, it still very much is tainted by the misery of Book II. Also thrown into the equation is the fact that Dido's feelings of desire and attachment to Aeneas are being manipulated by goddesses, further confusing the motivating factors behind Dido's frenzied love for Aeneas. This brings into question whether Virgil wanted to convey any sense of free will in Dido's mind, or whether she was under complete control by other factors.
Bono's theory of connecting all that occurs in the first third of the book made for an effective and convincing analysis, for Book IV could be interpreted extremely differently were there no context for it. Explaining that Aeneas' personality is directly affected by the loss of his dear city and family makes his interactions with and departure from Dido seem more plausible and less heartless. However, her article does not explore the dualism o f male/female interaction, which may also be important. If Virgil had been playing with Roman society's understanding of men and women (indeed, the difference in animus and anima springs to mind, the feminine being more of a bodily, emotion word, the masculine expressing more in terms of intellect), Bono did not acknowledge this. Rather, both Dido and Aeneas are analyzed solely in terms of previous experience, ignoring their human elements and individual personalities. Book IV ties together many elements, su ch as the power of Fate, the strength of passion, or the impact of former heartbreak on renewed attachment. By avoiding the obvious trap of oversentimentalizing Dido or commenting on Aeneas as overly stoic, she explains the saga in a very logical manner.
Alma Mazer
Further Sources:
Clausen, Wendell. "An Interpretation of the Aeneid." Harvard Studies in Classical Philology 68 (1964): 139-47.
Commager, Steele, ed. Virgil: A Collection of critical Essays. Anglewood Cliifs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1966.
Lewis, R. W. B. "Homer and Virgil: The Double Themes." Furioso 5, no. 2 (1950): 47-59.
Moskalew, Walter. Formular language and Poetic Design in the Aeneid. Mnemosyne, suppl. vol. 73 (1982).
Williams, Gordon. Technique and Ideas in the Aeneid. New Haven: Yake University Press,
The Art of Vergil: Image and Symbol in the Aeneid. University of Michigan Press, 1962.
In Viktor Poschl's article entitled "Aeneas" the major argument is that Virgil created a complex and passionate character in Aeneas in order to express the importance of historical awareness and the concept of duty in Roman ideals and attitudes. As opposed to the Greek hero, such as Odysseus, who is grounded in the sense of existence in the present, Aeneas undertakes responsibility for the unity of past, present, and future through all of his emotions and actions. Aeneas's strength to endure the hardship of his quest is derived from a sorrowful and loving memory of Troy, which he displays constantly throughout the first half of the Aeneid. For instance, he compassionately recounts the death of Trojan war heroes, and he shows empathy towards his comrades when he conceals his personal grief in order to keep their spirits high.
Aeneas also represents the ideal of "humanitas," a developing Augustan ideal, because he suffers from his sorrow for others more than for his own misfortune. Despite Aeneas's great sensitivity and sense of "humanitas," he acts from his strong sense of Stoic duty towards his destiny, which causes most of his pain and suffering. One of the best examples of this is the Dido crisis, where Aeneas's compassion and love is very real, but he abandons her because of his sense of responsibility to his destiny and duty. However, in the article, the claim that Aeneas's sense of duty also fuels his rage to destroy the Latins in battle is not as convincing.
In general, the article is less well substantiated in dealing with the events of the second half of the Aeneid. The importance of Aeneas's trip to the underworld in Book Six, and the increased understanding that he develops for his mission while he is there is not explained as well. Overall, though, many of the points are well supported with specific passages from the Latin, and the author is successful in interpreting how the psychology of Aeneas relates to Virgil?s view of Roman life.
Katie Henoch
C. A. Faraone, "Clay Hardens and Wax Melts: Magical Role-Reversal in Vergil's Eighth Eclogue," Classical Philology 84 (1989): 294-300
Faraone's thesis relies on the ambiguity of lines 80-81 in Vergil's eighth Eclogue:
limus ut hic durescit et haec ut cera liquescit
uno eodemque igni, sic nostro Daphnis amore
("As by the kindling of the self-same fire harder this clay,
this wax the softer grows, so by my love may Daphnis.")
The speaker hopes to regain her lover, Daphnis, by uttering magical incantations; the lines above are an example of a simila similibus formula, which seeks to transfer a specific trait or action from one material to another. Faraone immediately notes that Vergil models the incantation above from lines 28-29 in Theocritus' second Idyll, and that with other parallels from Latin elegy commentators are correct to assume that the melting of the wax above corresponds to a softening of the hardhearted Daphnis. The ritual involving clay, however, has no parallel in either primary or literary sources, thereby allowing Faraone to offer his own interpretation in which the speaker wishes also to implement a magical role-reversal that eradicates her unrequited love and thus gains her the upper hand in her relationship with Daphnis. The ambiguity on which Faraone bases his argument is at once rooted in the fragmented nature of the eighth Eclogue's narrative: it does not set forth a detailed account of a ritual, but rather presents a disjointed series of incantations from which the continuity of a ceremony must be inferred. Faraone introduces a comparative aspect into his argument when he cites the contemporary practice of using of effigies and voodoo dolls in pairs in order to promote a desired future relationship, usually involving dominance on the part of the practioner over the party represented by the effigy. Faraone thus is able to infer that the hardening clay is a representation of the speaker's stiffening resolve in her future dominance over Daphnis. That the clay and the wax are to be interpreted as a male and female pair is also evidenced by Vergil's use in line 81 of the first person plural possessive pronoun, which appears nowhere else in the eighth Eclogue.
Shane Ewert