Archive for August, 2010
Aeneid V Pt. 1
The fifth book of the Aeneid, on the surface at least, seems an unnecessary interlude between the Carthaginian love-idyll, with its disastrous consequences, and the Trojans’ arrival in Italy. Ordinary readers would probably not notice, but a careful scrutiny reveals that it could not have been part of the original plan: Characters are introduced in the later, Italian or Iliad part of the poem, as if they had not been mentioned when in fact they play a part in this book.
View PostAeneid IV, pt. 2
Book IV really belongs to Dido. Â It is her mad passion for Aeneas, the consummation of their love, and her response to his decision to leave that drive the narrative. What sort of a woman is Dido? Â We know she is of Phoenician royal blood, very beautiful, and while a mature woman, since she was [...]
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Aeneid IV
Aeneid IV is deservedly the most famous part of the poem. Structurally, it is placed in a strategic position, because now, at last, the narrative is ready to move forward, and the story is propelled by erotic passion. Dido is a beautiful and passionate woman, whose love for her late husband is so deep that she has sworn never to love another man or to remarry.
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