Discuss Aeneid 1.1-33 as an epic opening

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Another subtle yet interesting epic characteristic of this opening lies in its numerology as discussed by Richard H. Lansing[21]. He explains that, due to the nature of the Iliad and the Odyssey being split into twenty-four books, all multiples and factors of this number establish a link to Homer and “announce [the author’s] intention of becoming a Homer of his own age”[22]. Whilst the link with the twelve books which make up the Aeneid seems obvious, the link with the first sentence, containing forty-eight words, is less so. Lansing argues that, considering the Aeneid is a tale of two halves, an Iliadic and an Odyssean, each word can be thought to represent one book of both these epics, paying homage to the Father of the genre and establishing Virgil as part of this canon of works.[23] Whilst this might seem far-fetched, Apollonius’ Argonautica, the most important Greek epic after Homer’s, starts with a sentence made-up of twenty-four words and so it is not unlikely that epic authors sought to connect their works with Homer in this way.[24]

However, although many allusions to Homer and examples of traditional epic characteristics are clearly evident in this opening, it is also important to consider how Virgil deviates from the standard practice and makes the genre his own. In this lines, Virgil introduces the idea of Aeneas not purely as a traditional war hero, much like Achilles in the Iliad, but as one with social responsibilities and this is made evident by the description “insignem pietate virum”[25]. Aeneas’ “pietas” is his key attribute throughout the epic, giving him his epithet “pius” and it is significant that Virgil choses to introduce this quality so early on, marking this intrinsic difference from the outset. Furthermore, unlike Homer’s Odysseus, Aeneas’ mission and travels are not for personal reasons but due to a bigger mission decreed by fate, to found a city which would eventually become Rome and its civilisation. This non-Odyssean element is hinted at throughout the opening lines as Aeneas is described as “fato profugus”[26] and the nature of the Roman mission is introduced in the temporal purpose clause “dum conderet urbem”[27].[28] In this way, Virgil brings the epic genre out of the Homeric age and into the Roman one, mirrored in the long relative clause which begins with “Troiae”[29] and ends with “Romae”[30].

Another way in which Virgil makes the genre his own is through the invocation of one of the Muses. This procedure was customary at the beginning of a long poem and was a pattern set forth by Homer in both the Iliad and the Odyssey.[31] Virgil complies with this tradition to a certain extent and mimics his predecessor, addressing the Muse in the vocative case (“Musa”)[32] in the eighth line of Book I. However, whilst this technique seems to fit the epic genre, Virgil has already rebelled against it by earlier involving the voice of the narrator through the use of a first person singular verb: “cano”[33]. Therefore, these first four lines of personal introduction directly go against epic tradition as, whilst Homer uses the singular infinitive to immediately invoke the Muse to tell the story, Virgil declares that it is he himself who shall tell it[34]. Therefore, Virgil can be seen to be taking certain preexisting aspects of an epic opening but also changing them slightly to put his own mark in the genre to establish himself as an original author rather than purely a Homeric mimic.

In conclusion, generally this opening seems to stylistically correspond to the tradition aspects of an epic proem as set forth by Homer and Ennius however, the issues which it raises and that will be dealt with in the following twelve books differentiate this narrative from those which have gone before. These include the social responsibilities of the hero, his character and mission, put upon him by fate and ultimately the destiny of Rome.[35] These opening lines are full of references to the city which Aeneas will found and Rome’s history, such as references to Carthage and so Virgil updates the genre by linking myth with living history.[36] The themes dealt with are therefore not of Homeric and Greek tradition but, instead, are typically Roman, bringing the genre into contemporary times and establishing Virgil as an innovator rather than a mimic.

Word Count: 1951 (including title)

Bibliography

Primary Sources

Ganiban, R., (ed.), Vergil. Aeneid Book 1, Focus Publishing (Newburyport, 2009).

Murray, A.T. (tr.), Homer. Odyssey, Loeb Classical Library 104. Translation obtained here: https://www.loebclassics.com/view/homer-odyssey/1919/pb_LCL104.13.xml (accessed 19.11.17)

Race, H.W. (tr.), Apollonius Rhodius. Argonautica. Loeb Classical Library 1. Translation obtained here: https://www.loebclassics.com/view/apollonius_rhodes-argonautica/2009/pb_LCL001.3.xml (accessed 19.11.17)

Wyatt, W.F. (tr.), Homer. Iliad, Love Classical Library 170. Translation obtained here: https://www.loebclassics.com/view/homer-iliad/1924/pb_LCL170.285.xml (accessed 19.11.17)

Secondary Literature

Austin, R.G., P.Vergili Maronis: Aeneidos Liber Primus (Oxford, 1971).

Gould, H.E., Whiteley, J.L. (ed.), Virgil. Aeneid Book 1 (Bristol, 1984).

Hornblower, S., Spawfort, A., The Oxford Classical Dictionary (Oxford, 2012).

Feeney, D.C., The Gods in Epic:Poets and Critics of the Classical Tradition (Oxford, 1991).

Lansing, R.H., “Vergil’s Homage to Homer in “Aeneid” 1.1-7” in Vergilius 54 (2008), 3-8.

Nuttall, A.D., “Openings: A Narrative Beginnings from the Epic to the Novel (Oxford, 1992).

Perkell, C., Reading Vergil’s Aeneid: An Interpretive Guide (Norman, 1999).

Pollio, D.M., “Reconcilable Differences: Greeks and Trojans in the Aeneid”, Vergilius 52 (2006), 96-107.

Yoshida, A., Encyclopaedia Britanica (2014). Obtained here: https://www.britannica.com/art/epic (accessed 19.11.17)

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