Aeneid 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

I'm reading the new Fagles translation of the Aeneid by Virgil and it's a joy to read. I highly recommend it. It's not as fast reading as the Lombardo Iliad was, but it's got a more classical tone to it. I actually like it a little better than all of the modern idioms. Still, I wonder what the Lombardo translation of the Aeneid would look like. Without further ado, my commentary on the Aeneid.

Aeneid 1
I'm only into the first chapter of the book, and already, Hera (or should I say Venus) is scheming against Jupiter (Zeus) and planning to meddle in the lives of men and women. Now, she is planning for Dido and Aeneus to be together so she can set a trap. What is the trap? I'm not sure... a war between Carthage and Rome? Once again, the motivation was a beauty contest.

This is an interesting continuation of the Iliad. Sometimes, I get the feeling that this is like someone trying to write a sequel to a book with a dead author, like if someone were to pick up Lord of the Rings right now, and other authors have done with Dune. Unfortunately, it just never quite feels the same, and this is especially true here, where two different cultures rest in a strange sort of amalgamation that just isn't the same as the original.

Aeneid 2
A bloody slaughter of Troy. It is certainly a different perspective from the one we are given in The Iliad. Here we see the merciless slaughter of Priam, and the Greek's unrelenting conquest of the city. Gone is Achilles mercy and patience, this is man and war. It was interesting to see how the gods were blamed by Aeneus' mother. Helen was not given a very sympathetic portrayal in this version either. Even the Trojans blame her for the war. Why? She was a traitor, and traitors were not looked well upon. Perhaps this has something to do with the nationalism of Rome?

Aeneid 3
This book had some interesting mythological references: the harpies, the gorgon, the cyclops... why were these all absent in The Iliad? Is this simply a Roman invention? The harpies are also able to prophecy... are they some kind of divine creature?

Aeneid 4
The tragic queen... she was driven mad with rage having fallen so in love Aeneus because of cupid. The gods seemed to engineer some kind of plot against fate, but fate would have none of it. Fate urges on Aeneus even when there may have been a chance to spare some of the tragedy. Why couldn't he have listened to Anna and stayed for a bit? I suppose the fates consider the founding of Rome to be more important than one individual's suffering. Perhaps this is a metaphor... the suffering of conquered kingdoms is inevitable. The suffering of individuals in the growth of Rome is simply a price to be paid for the glory of a kingdom decreed by the fates?

Aeneid 5
Sometimes the gods seem like they are scapegoats for irrational behavior. The women, tired of sailing from place to place, want to settle, and so they burn the ships down in an emotional outcry. Are they really doing this on behalf of the gods? Did Aeneus really leave his “lover” because the gods told him or did he just get wanderlust? The function of the gods really seems to be different from the Iliad in some ways in that they are more manipulative.

The wrestling match in the funeral games was perhaps a predictor of the rise of Rome. The old man who won the match seems like Troy, who in its youth, was powerful and strong, but will rise again even in its old age and win the day, just as the old man did.