Latin Aeneid Outline Book I Page 1

Transcription

1 Latin Aeneid Outline Book I Page Invocation. 1-7 Statement of themes Muse is asked to explain how gods can act so harshly to man Divine Level: Background: the story begins Juno s love for Carthage Danger posed by Troy and its descendants Juno s reasons for hating the Trojans Divine Level: Juno and Aeolus unleash a storm to ruin the Trojans Quick glimpse of the Trojans at sea JUNO (to herself): Am I unable to destroy the Trojans? Minerva could kill Ajax I ve fought with the Trojans for years and now no one will honor me Description of Aeolus and his cave JUNO (to Aeolus): My compliments to you as king of the winds; My problem: the Trojans are sailing to Italy; My request: destroy them anyway you wish; My thanks: I ll give you a beautiful bride and children AEOLUS: Your wish is my command Human Level: The storm strikes Aeneas and his fleet Description of the winds release and the subsequent storm AENEAS: I wish I had died nobly back at Troy before my father, where Hector and the other heroes lie dead One ship is destroyed and the fleet is scattered Divine Level: Neptune calms the storm Neptune senses the storm, rises to surface, and summons the winds NEPTUNE: You winds and your king have trespassed in my domain; stop now Neptune and two minor gods calm the seas and free the ships on the sandbars Simile: Neptune is compared to a noble man stopping a riot Human Level: Landing near Carthage The Trojans land in an elaborately described harbor Aeneas searches in vain for his lost ships but does kill 7 deer for his ships Aeneas provides food and drink for a feast AENEAS: We ve been through worse things; we know where we re headed, so let s persevere The Trojans prepare and eat their feast, then lament for their lost comrades Divine Level: Venus laments, Jupiter consoles with a view of future Venus in tears approaches Jupiter VENUS: What about your promises to the Trojans? Antenor got his city But your own family doesn t get their just due JUPITER: Don t worry, Aeneas will found his city Aeneas will fulfill his destiny in Italy Ascanius will move the government to Alba Longa Romulus will found the city of Rome I have given them unlimited power, and even Juno will be reconciled Greece will be conquered at some time in the future You will receive Augustus, loaded with spoils, in heaven someday The gates of war will be closed and Furor will be in chains Mercury is sent to Carthage to assure that the Carthaginians are hospitable Human/Divine Level: Aeneas, while scouting, meets Venus Aeneas and Achates go scouting Venus in huntress disguise meets them VENUS: Have you seen one of my sisters wandering around here? AENEAS: You must be a goddess! Please help us and I ll sacrifice to you VENUS: You re in Dido s Carthage, and I ll tell her story Dido married Sychaeus, the richest man in Phoenicia; he was killed by her greedy brother, King Pygmalion, who concealed his crime; Sychaeus ghost appeared in a dream to Dido, who seized the buried treasure and sailed away to found a city in Africa.

2 Latin Aeneid Outline Book I Page AENEAS: We are Trojans heading to Italy, who have suffered grievously VENUS: Keep on the road to Carthage; I see an omen of the swans and that means your fleet is safe AENEAS (recognizing his fleeing mother): Why can t we talk normally? Venus encloses him in a cloud of invisibility and heads to Paphos Human Level: Aeneas enters Carthage Aeneas catches his first sight of the Carthaginians building their new city Simile of the workers compared to bees building a hive Aeneas wishes he were building his city Description of Juno s grove and temple in the middle of Carthage Aeneas experiences hope as he sees a mural depicting Troy s fall AENEAS: Achates, Troy s glorious fall will bring us some help A description (ecphrasis) of the mural, with Aeneas tearful reactions: Two panels of Greeks fleeing the Trojans and Achilles chasing the Trojans Rhesus and the loss of his horses The death of Troilus at Achilles hands The Trojan women weep as they worship Minerva in vain Hector ransoms the corpse of Hector from Achilles Aeneas recognizes himself amidst the fighting figures Penthesilea, the Amazon queen, charges to war, heading her army Human Level: Dido meets the men from Aeneas lost ships Dido enters with her attendants; a simile of Dido compared to Diana The leaders of the lost ships enter, but Aeneas and Achates remain in the cloud ILIONEUS: We Trojans aren t here to plunder your lands We headed for Italy but a storm drove us off course What kind of people are this barbaric and drive all strangers away? Our king was Aeneas and you will not regret helping us? We re heading to Sicily or Italy, depending on whether Aeneas still lives DIDO: Don t be upset, I have to guard my new kingdom Who hasn t heard of Troy? I ll help you go to either Sicily or Italy, or you can stay here with me, but I wish that Aeneas himself were here Human Level: Aeneas meets Dido and they exchange greetings ACHATES: Let s get out of cloud. It s just like your mother said it would be Aeneas emerges, drenched with beauty by Venus; a simile of his beauty to that of natural objects enhanced by the addition of silver or gold AENEAS: I am Trojan Aeneas We could never thank you properly for your great generosity. What great parents bore you. I ll always remember you, wherever I go Aeneas greets his lost friends DIDO: What brings you here? Are you the Aeneas? I heard about you from Teucer, who was your enemy but admired your people s bravery Because of my experiences, I ve learned to help those in need She escorts Aeneas into palace and sends food to the ships Description of the inner palace and the preparations for the feast Achates is sent by Aeneas to fetch Iulus Achates also has to bring back gifts from Troy: Helen s clothing, Ilione s scepter and jewels Divine Level: Venus plots with Cupid Venus is troubled in spirit because of possible further acts by Juno VENUS: Cupid, you have to help me because you know what troubles Aeneas has suffered at Juno s hands and now he is delayed by Dido I have a plan, and please listen Disguise yourself as the boy Iulus and at the banquet make Dido fall in love with Aeneas Cupid agrees, Venus takes Ascanius away to Idalia, and Cupid in disguise goes to Carthage with Achates and the gifts for Dido.

3 Latin Aeneid Outline Book I Page Human Level: The banquet at Dido s palace in honor of Aeneas Preparations for the feast and the entry of the various guests Reactions of the guests to the gifts, especially of Dido to the gifts and the boy Cupid attacks Dido and fills her with love for Aeneas As the food is removed, the lights are lit for the conversation to follow A ceremonial cup is passed around to start the drinking DIDO: May Jupiter, god of hospitality, make this day memorable for both Tyrians and Trojans, and may Juno and Bacchus celebrate this meeting Dido challenges Bitias to drink from the cup and he spills it on himself The bard Iopas sings of the world s natural phenomena, to great applause Dido, already in love, asks questions about the war and its warriors DIDO: Aeneas, tell me about your misfortunes and wanderings.

4 Latin Aeneid Outline Book II Page Introduction 1-9 AENEAS: It s painful to remember Troy s fall and its fate But if you wish, I will tell you The Greeks leave; Trojans find a wooden horse; Laocoon attacks the horse The Greeks build and fill a wooden horse with Minerva s help The Greeks leave and hide at Tenedos The Trojans come out and wander through the Greek camp Thymoetes urges the horse be brought inside Troy Capys et al. urge burning it; the crowd is unsure LAOCOON: Do you trust Greeks? This is some enemy trick Laocoon hurls a spear but none hear any noise in the horse because fate is against Troy Sinon episode Sinon is led in chains into the midst of the Trojans SINON: What hope is there for me? The Trojans check their urge to kill and bid him speak SINON: I ll tell the truth - I am a Greek The story of Palamedes death through Ulysses lies and Sinon s desire for revenge; Ulysses takes steps to stop this with the help of Calchas and But you Trojans don t care - go ahead, kill me as the Greeks want The Trojans are ensnared by his story as he hesitates SINON: The Greeks wanted to leave, especially after the horse was built The Greeks sent to the oracle, which said, Sacrifice a Greek. Everybody was afraid Ulysses gets Calchas to pick me after 10 days all the others are relieved Ready for sacrifice, I escape and hide until Greeks leave I have no hope of returning home and my family will be punished Have mercy on me PRIAM: Free his chains; tell me the purpose of this horse SINON: It is permitted to break faith with the Greeks and tell you the whole truth Ever since her statue was stolen, Minerva s been against the Greeks Calchas said the Greeks had to return home and reconcile the gods Calchas ordered that a horse be built to atone for the theft, but built so big it couldn t be taken into Troy to protect the Trojans Trojans believe Sinon and are really doomed from here on Laocoon Episode Laocoon is sacrificing as 2 horrible snakes arrive from Tenedos The Trojans flee; the snakes attack his children and then Laocoon; a simile of Laocoon to a bull The snakes flee to the temple of Minerva and hide under her statue s feet The Trojans are convinced and order the horse be led into Troy The Horse enters The walls are opened and the youths pull the horse into Troy Even though it stops 4 times, the work continues Cassandra warns against the horse, but is not believed Night falls on the exhausted Trojans The Greek fleet returns and signals for Sinon to let the men out of the horse The Greeks join forces and attack the sleeping Trojans Hector appears to Aeneas Hector appears in Aeneas dream as he was in death, foul with gore and dust AENEAS: How glad I am to see you! But what has happened? HECTOR: Troy has fallen and you can t save it - nor could I - escape now! Take the gods of Troy and found a new city Aeneas first experiences in the fall of Troy The noise of battle awakens Aeneas who climbs to the roof top Simile of Aeneas to a shepherd hearing approaching danger Aeneas sees the fires, hears the noise, and decides to join the fight and die AENEAS (to Panthus, arriving at his door): What s wrong? PANTHUS: Troy has fallen and the Greeks hold the city Aeneas is swept into war by these words and gathers a band of warriors AENEAS: The gods are against us, so let us die with honor and courage Simile of Trojan warriors to ravenous wolves defending their young The men make their way through a city full of destruction and carnage A Greek named ANDROGEOS meets them, asks: Where have you Greeks been?

5 Latin Aeneid Outline Book II Page He stops as he realizes his mistake; simile of a man stepping on a snake Androgeos and his men are killed by Aeneas and his Trojans The Trojan COROEBUS: Let s disguise ourselves with Greek weapons and armor The Trojans agree and proceed to rout small groups of Greeks Cassandra is being dragged in chains from the Temple of Minerva Coroebus, her fiancé, rushes to her rescue Aeneas band is attacked by Greeks and by mistake by Trojans on temple roof Simile of a battle to a clash of winds The Trojans drop, one by one Aeneas asserts he fought bravely enough to merit death, but survived At the center of the fight, the royal palace, Priam, the king of Troy, dies The intense battle rages most fiercely at Priam s palace Aeneas enters by a back door, climbs to the roof, and throws down pieces of roof on the ever-assaulting Greeks Pyrrhus appears in doorway; simile of Pyrrhus compared to a fresh snake The Greeks advance into the house with brute force The scene within: women wailing, walls and doors smashed, Greeks killing Simile of the Greeks to an advancing river flood Aeneas says he was an eyewitness to the fight in the inner palace Priam arms to defend himself and his home against the Greeks At an altar in the center of the palace Hecuba and Priam s daughters sit HECUBA: Are you crazy? Not even Hector could help. Sit here with me for protection Polites, pursued by Pyrrhus, pours out his lifeblood at his father s feet PRIAM (reproaching Pyrrhus): May the gods repay you for your cruelty. You re not the man your father Achilles was Priam hurls his useless weapon at Pyrrhus PYRRHUS: Go tell my dead father how bad I am! Now die! Pyrrhus kills Priam at the altar as the old man slips in his son s blood Priam s headless corpse lies in the shore, the sad end of a great king Aeneas sees Helen but Venus shows him the gods destroying Troy Aeneas thinks of home: wife, father and son; he realizes he s alone now He sees Helen, cowering at an altar in fear of both Greeks and Trojans AENEAS (to himself): Is she to go home while Troy is burned? No! Even though there s no honor in killing a woman, I ll kill her Venus appears as her goddess self to Aeneas VENUS: Why don t you think of your family, whom I ve protected thus far? Helen and Paris aren t destroying Troy - the gods are Look (with cleared vision) at Neptune, Juno, Minerva, & Jupiter breaking down the walls Save your family. I ll help you. She disappears and the gods continue Simile of Troy to a tree chopped down Aeneas heads home The scene at home At home Aeneas finds Anchises unwilling to go into exile ANCHISES: You healthy people flee! I ve survived one sack, that s enough; leave my corpse here - the enemy will take pity and kill me. My life has been useless ever since Jupiter blasted me Despite family pleas Anchises refuses to leave AENEAS: Did you think I d abandon you? If you want us all to die, Pyrrhus will soon be here Oh Venus, did you save me so I could see my family killed? Let me return to battle As Aeneas arms himself, CREUSA begs: Don t abandon your family! An omen appears: a tongue of fire burns around the head of Iulus ANCHISES: "Oh Jupiter, confirm this omen for us A shooting star crashes down on Mt. Ida ANCHISES: I give in, I will go as my son s companion into exile Aeneas give instructions to his household on where to meet outside Troy AENEAS: Let s meet at the deserted temple of Ceres outside the city Anchises. please carry the holy objects because I am ritually unclean.

6 Latin Aeneid Outline Book II Page They leave the house Creusa disappears They make their way through the dark city Everything frightens Aeneas; Anchises sees the enemy; they leave the main road Creusa gets lost somehow Aeneas is heart-broken and decides to return to the city He retraces his steps, even to Priam s palace, and sees Troy in ruins As he calls her name, Creusa s ghost appears CREUSA S GHOST: The gods are taking care of me - don t worry Go found Italy, get a new wife I will serve Cybele; love our son She flees his grasp three times as he weeps Aeneas returns to Mt. Ida, finds a crowd ready for exile, picks up his father, and heads for the mountains at dawn.