Latin Medieval Midterm

Dream of Scipio

Cicero, ~100 BC,

Scipio meets his grandfather in the afterlife (divinity of the soul), discuss:

• immortality of the soul

• importance of virtue and moral excellence, led to happiness and the favor of the gods

• cosmic order of the world, divine reason, insignificance of earthly affairs in grandscheme

• greatness of Rome and the Roman legacy

City of God (bks 6,7)

Augustine, 400s

discussion of whether the gds should be worshipped for the rewards of the afterlife

• each god has a very specific domain and you must ask the right one for the right thing

• Varro’s divine is created by humans

• mythical theology (poetic), physical theology (philosophers), civic theology (masses) but gods of each type are not different

• can’t obtain immortality through only one theology

• false dieties cannot provide gifts to humans, the gods may be imposters

• inconsistency of god’s domain, minor gods have more important domains? demotion is just obscurity

• soul of the world is the true god

Consolation of Philosophy

Boethius, 500s

• Philosophy, acting almost in the role of a mother, wisdom has always been persecuted

• truth is the cure for misery

• wheel of chance, controled by Fortune is random and misfortune is not personal

• wealth, prosperity, fame are not happiness - loyal friends and family, life of esteem, a good son all remain

• real happiness is within and Boethius hasn’t experienced real struggle; Fortune is irrelevant to happiness

• the pursuit of material does not give happiness, but it is found in God and the good of the world

• if God is so great? why evil - evil is weakness, strength is good but humans make mistakes

• evil is the sum of errors, evil people are lesser

  • people see Fate temporally; god is external

Life of Charlemagne (Ein)

Einhard, 830

• focused on conquest and character

• many descriptions of battle, including against the Basques, where he loses

• personal and political moral values - repairs of temples and sacred objects

Life of Charlemagne (Not)

Notkar, late 800s

• focus on the spiritual greatness of Charles

• not as specific and intimate but looks at a larger picture

• didn’t kill christians instead removed them from office

Aeneid

Virgil, 20 BC

Book 1: Juno sends storm onto Aeneas and his men who are shipwrecked. Go to Carthage and meet Dido who grants them refuge

Book 4: Dido and Aeneas become ‘married’ and Jupiter sends Mercury to remind Aeneas of his destiny; Aeneas goes to leave without telling her but Dido confronts, Aeneas leaves anyway; Dido kills herself

Book 6: Arrive in the underworld, sees Dido who hates him, sees war heroes, find Achates in the Blessed Groves and he tells about the fate of the dead and importance of good souls as well as the founding of Rome and Caesar

Book 12: Turnus v Aeneas, siege first than duel - throw spears first than swords - about to let Turnus live than sees belt of Pallas and kills him

Psychomachia

Prudentius, 5th century

Battles of vices and virtues, first allegory of war of the soul

On the Wolf

On the Lombard and the Snail

pseudo ovid - knight fights massive snail in a garden

On the Stomach

Waltharius

Ekkehard, 9th century

Ordo Virtutum

1150, Hildegard

The virtues describe themselves. Anima wants to live in heaven, but must go to earth first where she is corrupted by the devil. Anima returns and the virtues bind the Devil

Anticlaudianus

Alan of Lille, 1100s

The virtues gather to create a new type of man, led by Prudence. Prudence and the virtues create a special chariot to travel through the realms of space to god. God meets with Prudence who sends out the new man with all the virtues. He must fight all the vices.

Alexandreis

Walter of Chatillon, 1100s

Follows the story of Alexander the Great, starting with his youth as a student of Aristotle and then becoming ruler of Corinth. Alexander then conquers Thebes and subdues Greece. He goes to Persia to attack Darius and makes a sacrifice at the tomb of Achilles. He has a dream that predicts his conquering except Jerusalem. Battles Darious again before advancing where they met in again and in the final battle both give speechs and prepare for battle.

The Conversion of Gallicanus

Hrotsvit of Gandersheim

The Passion of the Holy Virgins Faith, Hope, and Chastity

Hrotsvit of Gandersheim

The Raising from the Dead of Drusiana and Callimachus

Hrotsvit of Gandersheim

The Conversion of Thais

Hrotsvit of Gandersheim

The Deeds of Otto

Hrotsvit of Gandersheim

The Origins of the Gandersheim Convent

Hrotsvit of Gandersheim