Virgil, Aeneid, 4.1–299
Virgil, Aeneid, 4.1–299: Latin Text, Study Questions, Commentary and Interpretative Essays
Ingo Gildenhard
Series: Classics Textbooks
Volume: 2
Copyright Date: 2012
Published by: Open Book Publishers
Pages: 319
https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt5vjsn7
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Book Info
Virgil, Aeneid, 4.1–299
Book Description:

Love and tragedy dominate book four of Virgil’s most powerful work, building on the violent emotions invoked by the storms, battles, warring gods, and monster-plagued wanderings of the epic’s opening. Destined to be the founder of Roman culture, Aeneas, nudged by the gods, decides to leave his beloved Dido, causing her suicide in pursuit of his historical destiny. A dark plot, in which erotic passion culminates in sex, and sex leads to tragedy and death in the human realm, unfolds within the larger horizon of a supernatural sphere, dominated by power-conscious divinities. Dido is Aeneas’ most significant other, and in their encounter Virgil explores timeless themes of love and loyalty, fate and fortune, the justice of the gods, imperial ambition and its victims, and ethnic differences. This course book offers a portion of the original Latin text, study questions, a commentary, and interpretative essays. Designed to stretch and stimulate readers, Ingo Gildenhard’s incisive commentary will be of particular interest to students of Latin at both A2 and undergraduate level. It extends beyond detailed linguistic analysis to encourage critical engagement with Virgil’s poetry and discussion of the most recent scholarly thought.

eISBN: 978-1-909254-17-6
Subjects: History, Language & Literature
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  1. Front Matter
    Front Matter (pp. i-vi)
  2. Table of Contents
    Table of Contents (pp. vii-viii)
  3. Acknowledgements
    Acknowledgements (pp. ix-x)
  4. 1. Preface
    1. Preface (pp. 1-6)
  5. 2. Latin Text
    2. Latin Text (pp. 7-16)
  6. 3. Study Questions
    3. Study Questions (pp. 17-38)

    1. Would you start reading a novel with Chapter 4? To what extent, do you think, will your understanding and appreciation of the set text be compromised if you do not read the first three books (in English) first? (As Henderson puts it: ‘Everyone should ask how come they’re starting with Chapter 4 of a book, who’s doing what to them this way…’)⁷

    2. How does 4.1–299 fit into the epic as a whole? Explore, in particular, connections between Books 1 and 4. But you may also wish to consider how the ‘internal narrative’ inAeneid2 and 3, in which...

  7. 4. Commentary
    4. Commentary (pp. 39-228)

    For the most part,Aeneid1–4, a third part of the epic overall, is set in Carthage. In the larger scheme of things, this detour via Africa appears to be an accident. After the extended proem (1.1–33), Virgil begins his narrative propermedias in reswith Aeneas and his crew on their way from Sicily to the Italian mainland. Yet the sight of the Trojan refugees about to reach their final destination stirs the hero’s divine arch-enemy Juno, who already figured prominently in the extended proem, into action. The violent storm she unleashes with the help of the...

  8. 5. Interpretative Essays
    5. Interpretative Essays (pp. 229-298)

    Virgil’s genius manifests itself not least (some would argue: above all) in his supreme mastery of his chosen metre and, especially, in how he uses metre and formal aspects of his poetry more generally to enhance his thematic concerns. Much of Virgil’s sophistication in interrelating content and form eludes the casual reader, and even scholars in their commentaries frequently do little more than scratch the surface of what can be discovered. This is curious: unlike other aspects of Virgil’s poetry, the appreciation of formal artistry requires comparatively little prior knowledge; it is more a matter of sensibility and imagination. All...

  9. Bibliography
    Bibliography (pp. 299-308)
  10. Back Matter
    Back Matter (pp. 309-311)