The structure of Vergil's Aeneid
The structure of Vergil's Aeneid
Structural enquiry is the explanation,not the description, .of the surface-appearance. The resent line-counting and labelling approaches to the structure of the Aeneid do not represent adequately the dynamic nature of. the poem's narrative. Vergil aims in the poem to convey the insights into the ape sial nature of Roman history that he himself perceived as he reflected upon the battle of Aetium. Aetium gave shape to what had happened before; and to have lived through the turmoil of his earlier years had been the necessary condition for Vergil to have perceived this pattern. In the• Aeneid he represents his eharaoters,divine and human,undergoing an analogous-procese. Asaeas stumbles gropingly into the narrative of Aeneid2'; but, as he narrates,the events of the narrative gradually take shape as he comes to perceive a dialectical pattern in his experiences from his dream of Hector to the departure from Troy. Likewise Aeneid 4 begins with Dido expressing a dilemma; and she lives through the stages of her mania depression after her desertion to arrive ultimate ly,at the moment of her death,at the perception of a pattorn in her whole life-experience.With Juno's second outburst Vergil broadens the structure, representing the statesman's characteristic experience as keneas,at each step forward that he takes,is confrontedwith newer and larger difficulties totally., beyond what hehad anticipated. But with the maior ordo rerun that begins with Aeneas' arrival in Latium the structure becomes nodal, thereby keeping faith with the nodal nature of, the individual's perception of history. Vergil selects: critical. moments in the experiences of his characters,and through then enables the reader to feel the progress towards the constructive reconciliation that is ultimately to supervene.
University of Southampton
Wilson, Christopher Hotham
1976
Wilson, Christopher Hotham
Wilson, Christopher Hotham
(1976)
The structure of Vergil's Aeneid.
University of Southampton, Doctoral Thesis.
Record type:
Thesis
(Doctoral)
Abstract
Structural enquiry is the explanation,not the description, .of the surface-appearance. The resent line-counting and labelling approaches to the structure of the Aeneid do not represent adequately the dynamic nature of. the poem's narrative. Vergil aims in the poem to convey the insights into the ape sial nature of Roman history that he himself perceived as he reflected upon the battle of Aetium. Aetium gave shape to what had happened before; and to have lived through the turmoil of his earlier years had been the necessary condition for Vergil to have perceived this pattern. In the• Aeneid he represents his eharaoters,divine and human,undergoing an analogous-procese. Asaeas stumbles gropingly into the narrative of Aeneid2'; but, as he narrates,the events of the narrative gradually take shape as he comes to perceive a dialectical pattern in his experiences from his dream of Hector to the departure from Troy. Likewise Aeneid 4 begins with Dido expressing a dilemma; and she lives through the stages of her mania depression after her desertion to arrive ultimate ly,at the moment of her death,at the perception of a pattorn in her whole life-experience.With Juno's second outburst Vergil broadens the structure, representing the statesman's characteristic experience as keneas,at each step forward that he takes,is confrontedwith newer and larger difficulties totally., beyond what hehad anticipated. But with the maior ordo rerun that begins with Aeneas' arrival in Latium the structure becomes nodal, thereby keeping faith with the nodal nature of, the individual's perception of history. Vergil selects: critical. moments in the experiences of his characters,and through then enables the reader to feel the progress towards the constructive reconciliation that is ultimately to supervene.
This record has no associated files available for download.
More information
Published date: 1976
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 462481
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/462481
PURE UUID: 7befe38f-1bf1-4fb1-b009-f4b97a8006e1
Catalogue record
Date deposited: 04 Jul 2022 19:09
Last modified: 04 Jul 2022 19:09
Export record
Contributors
Author:
Christopher Hotham Wilson
Download statistics
Downloads from ePrints over the past year. Other digital versions may also be available to download e.g. from the publisher's website.
View more statistics