Aeneid Book 2 506-525

what is the rhythm of this epic

Dactylic Hexameter

what is Dactyll

Dum Dee Dee

What is a spondes

Dum Dum

what does every line always end with

Dactyll -> Spondes

Forsitan et Priami fuerint quae fata requiras.

Perhaps you also ask what the fate of Priam was.

Why is direct address used (2)

marks the climax, speaking to Dido and the reader

urbis uti captae casum convulsaque vidit

limina tectorem et medium in pentralibus hostem

When he saw the fall of the captured city, the doors

of the dwellings torn off and in the midst the enemy in the innermost parts

what does the alliteration of c do

shows the anger towards the fall

what effect does the tricolon have

getting closer

what is elision

vowel is knocked off when followed by vowel

what does elision show (2)

stresses the dislocation and collapse of Troy, and reflects the violence

Arma diu senior desueta trementibus aevo cicumdat nequiquam umeris

the old man trembling with age vainly put his long disused arms around his shoulders

what 2 words are juxtaposed and what does this emphasise

senior and desueta - emphasises old and disused

why is senior used

comparative but used as a noun

why is this mimetic

the arms are literally around the old man

why are lots of words about old age used

it reinforces hopelessness

et inutile ferrum cingitur

and girded himself with his useless sword

why is nequiquam and inutile in the same line

repeated idea

what is special about inutile

it is a transferred adjective - person using it is useless

ac densos fertur moriturus in hostis.

and carried himself into the densely-packed enemy to die

what do the words circumdat, cingitur and densos emphasise

how pointless everything is

how does densos convey hopelessness

because there are lots of enemies

how is moriturus mimetic

it is in the middle of the enemy

aedibus in mediis nudoque sub aetheris axe

ingens ara fuit iuxtaque ueterrima laurus

in the middle of his house, and beneath the open vault of the sky, there was a huge altar, and near it a very ancient laurel

what does veterrima show

it is superlative - shows how ancient troy is and shows that an end of an age is taking place

why is ingens used so often

shows scale and vergil needs this as he is writing an epic

incumbens arae atque umbra complexa penates

leaning over the altar and embracing the household gods with shade

what is it called when the narrative stops for description and why does Vergil do this

Ecphrasis, Priam is later dragged in front of this religious object

What is personified in this line

Tree- Protects the altar

what is this line rhythmically

spondaic - shows grandeur and gives a sense of settled nature.

Hic Hecuba et natae nequiquam altaria circum,

here Hecuba and her daughters vainly around the altar

why is nequiquam used again

conveys that whatever anyone does it is pointless

praecipites atra ceu tempestate columbae,

like doves driven headlong by storm

what is this

a simile

how is praecipites and atra emphasised

ceu should be at the start

what does doves show

innocence and weakness - Hecuba

what does tempestate show

dark storm, nature - Greeks

condensae et divum amplexae simulacra sedebant.

were sitting huddled together and embracing the images of the gods

what does the con- show

that they're together

what are Hecuba and her daughters doing, what is it similar to

embracing the images of the household gods, like the tree

ipsum autem sumptis Priamum iuvenalibus armis ut vidit

however when she saw Priam himself after he had taken up the arms of his youth

what does ipsum emphasise

how shocked Hecuba is

what does iuvenalibus reinforce

weapons are not for him

'quae mens tam dira, misserrime coniunx, impulit his cingi telis? aut quo ruis?' inquit

she said: 'what so terrible a purpose, most wretched husband, has driven you to gird yourself in these weapons? Or where are you rushing to?'

what does tam do

add emphasis

what sort of adjective is miserrime

superlative

what are these lines full of

rhetorical questions which convey Hecuba's ahock

non tali auxilio nec defensoribus istis tempus eget

The moment does not need such help, nor defenders such as you

What technique is used here

chiasmas A-such, B-Noun

what is personified here

time

non, si ipse meus nunc adforet Hector.

no, not even if my Hector himself were now here

what does ipse emphasise

even with the best fighter it isn't possible

what does meus emphasise

affection and pride for her son

huc tandem concede

please, withdraw here

what tone does tandem give

pleading/encouraging tone

haec ara tuebitur omnes

this altar will protect all of us

aut moriere simul

or you will die together with us

what does tuebitur and moriere have in common and what does that do

future - confident

what does omnes and simul show

the sense that they are a family and that Hecuba wants to be with her whole family before they die

sic ora effata recepit ad sese et sacra longaevum in sede locavit

after speaking out in this way she received him to herself and installed the ancient man in the sacred seat

what is longaevum

compound word

what does the sibilance do

quietens the scene down

forsitan

perhaps

fuerint

was

fatum

fate

requiro

ask

uti

when

casus

fall

convulsque

(and) torn off

limen

door

tectorum

of the dwellings

penetrale

innermost parts

diu

long

senior

the old man

desuetus

disused

tremeo

tremble

aevo

with age

circumdat

put around

nequiquam

in vain

umerus

shoulder

inutilis

useless

ferrum

iron, sword

cingor

gird on

densus

densley-packed

feror

carried himself

aedes

house

nudus

bare

aether

sky

axis

vault of heaven

ara

altar

iuxta

nearby

vetus

old

laurus

laurel

incumbo

lean over

umbra

shadow

complector

embrace

penates

household gods

nata

daughter

altaria

altar

praeceps

headlong