book 10- pallas and mezentius

what is the overall plot of book 10?

-aeneas returns with the etruscans as allies and pallas by his side

-pallas is killed by turnus, he takes off his belt and wears it

-aeneas rages over the battlefield, killing many including lausus and mezentius

how does book 10 begin?

with a council of the gods - similar to the roman republic, democratic voting within the senate (enforces traditional roman values and divinely oriented - against augustus' empire?)

-link to the oddessey, athene convincing zeus

what is discussed during the council of the gods?

-jupiter asks why the war has been permitted against his command, venus outlines the extent of trojan sufferring and begs jupiter for mercy, compromising to at least let ascanius live so he can carry forth aeneas' fate / legacy

-juno responds claiming that aeneas started the war / conflict with turnus out of his own free will

-jupiter concludes by allowing the war to take its own course, left to fate, to late to interfere -> states that now is a time for peace and there will later be a time for war against carthage (prophesises the punic wars where hannibal invaded rome)

what is the significance of the council of the gods?

-shows direct juno vs venus conflict, how the gods shape the narrative by assisting their loved mortals

-jupiters committment to fate

-venus ' acceptance to discard aeneas shows her trust in fate

-juno's arguement consisting of purely lies vs venus' clever bargaining strategies prove aeneas as a more rational being

-mirrors political meetings/ senates where politicians would argue / use any means possible in order to persuade the public to sway in their favour - virgil wants the audience to side and favour venus / aeneas

what is significant about juno's speech?

-described as emotion-driven, full of furor, "burst out, wild with rage"

-multitudes of rhetorical questions, try short sentences, exclamations, sentences that aren't embellished or thought-through, impulsive anger, fits the archetype of the frenzied, emotional virago-like woman.

-puts the blame on aenea's free will after being influenced by cassandra and her prophesies

what is significant about venus' speech?

-she uses imperatives to jupiter, asserts her authority against the king of the gods: "allow my grandson to live" - short, simple but powerful command

-very persuasive, praises jupiter, evokes pathos for the sufferrings of the trojans, advocates for a solution and a compromise, disproves juno's arguement

what simile is used to describe the council of the gods?

"like the murmuring of a storm when the first breeze is caught in a wood...warning sailors"

-foreboding, suggests the worst is yet to come, characterises the gods as nature-oriented, friction between the gods is going to develop deeper

-when jupiter speaks, the "heights of heaven were hushed" and the "gods fell silent", link to book 1 calming the storm, link to Augustus' control and calming force over the roman crowd / mob

what is significant about jupiter allowing fate and mortals to decide the outcome of the war without divine intervention?

-emphesises the tragedy of conflicts and loss, could have been prevented

-questions the power and authority of the gods in the grand scheme of fate, the importance of free will vs divine intervention

-emphesises aeneas' heroic nature, his power comes from within, isn't necessarily guarenteed to win

how is jupiter likened to Augustus in book 10?

-calms the frenzied "storm" of the other gods' disagreements

-offers a calm and collected outcome which promotes peace, states "the time will come for war... but now let it be"

-orginises a traditional roman debate with politicians making their arguement to the all-powerful leader

-allows the fates to decide the outcome (not as admirable)

how is ascanius described while waiting for his father's safe return?

the "boy ascanius" - emphesises youthful nature

"like a gem sparkling in its gold setting"

what is the significance of the catalogue of ships returning to fight under aeneas?

-aeneas is visited by the sea nymphs which were his previous ships, transformed by jupiter in book 9, reveals to him of ascanius is in danger and pushes his ship to go faster to help him get there quicker, shows role / importance of divine intervention into the destiny of fate

-exaggerates the scale of support aeneas has, systematically opposes the catalogue of turnus' men coming to fight in book, 30 ships sail under him, strong commander, gives audience hope for a trojan victory, sets apart aeneas and turnus

how is aeneas described leading his ships?

"standing high on the stern of the ship", his head "blazed a tongue of fire" (link to ascanius' prophecy), the "golden boss of his shield belched fire" and was like a "comet", or "sirius the dog-star" (constellation rises during hottest months)

-reminds us of augustus by linking his prowess to his sheild- similarly depicting augustus as aeneas through him saling in victory after the battle of actium who "stood on the poop of the ship", from his "radiant forehead" there "streamed a double flame and his father's star shone above his head"

-link of celestrial imagery, heroic / powerful gesturing and demeanor, exhibiting divine methods of intervention, guided by ancestors through stars

how does turnus respond to seeing aeneas arrive with his catalogue of ships?

courageously, shows pietas and stirs courage and motivation in his men, tells them to ambush the trojans at the shore to honour their ancestors: "remember the great deeds which brought glory to our fathers"

-makes a bold claim that "fortune favours the bold" - evokes sympathy towards turnus as fate seems impartial and unbiased, he is a victim of fate and all his efforts into being a good hero are ultimately wasted, undeserved victim of fate

-his courage makes him heroic, his furor was not natural, victim

-contrasts with his common depiction as being absorbed with furor and impulsivity

how is aeneas characterised in book 10?

-initially as a great leader, his pious usual self, role model for pallas, similar to achilles and patroclus relationship, great leader and warrior, after his death he turns to wrath and furor and abandons his pious personal, turning to raging over the battlefield as achilles did

what did aeneas do after returning to latium?

-cut down all warriors threatening him, expert prowess, relentless, motivated, driven by fear and dedication to his son, powerful, heroic: "nothing could help them now"

-venus interfered and stopped the spears thrown by sons of phorcus from hitting him: "his loving mother venus deflected so that they only grazed his body"- bounces off his shield, shows impenetrable fate, undermines aeneas' military prowess, fate is only secure to divine interevention, assisted by his mothers help, shows his helplessness and powerlessness

how are the trojan and latin conflict described in battle?

"like opposing winds... equal in spirit and equal in strength", shows power of fate and equality of battle, nature oriented, let nature take its course

what is the significance of divine intervention?

-Virgil may be inviting the reader to question the judgments of the gods and therefore the power of the gods themselves.

-Or, Virgil may imply that by permitting interference of the goddesses, the heroic nature of Aeneas is put to the test

what speech does pallas give?

-after seeing the arcadians fleeing from battle he seeks to "fire the valour of his men by appeals and bitter reproaches"

-full of pietas, modelled after aeneas' speech in book one, encouraging his men, necessary for all worthy heroes

significance of pallas' speech

-motivates his men to fight, necessary in heroic code, modelled after aeneas' and ascanius' speech

-pious, aims to honour his leaders and fathers by fighting, appeals to their pride / honour and bravery

pallas' speech quotes

"these are not gods... they are mortals pursuing mortals... like us they have one life to lose"

-addresses mortality, unavoidability of human action and behaviour, warns against cowardance, outlines the equality of the war, importance of numbers

"by the hopes rising in me to gain glory like my father's" (youthful naivety, link to nisus and euryalus' folly, foreshadowing)

"that is where your proud fatherland requires you"

-addresses fate, appeals to sense of duty, pietas, glory, ambition, honour, hope for the future

how is pallas described on the battlefield?

-admired the "valour of (his) men all come together in one" and likens his to a shepherd looking down "on the exulting blaze" "in triumph", proud sucessful

-armies are described as "equal in their leaders and in heir strength"

-virgil reveals a prophecy which foresees both pallas and lausus' death

how does turnus attack / antagonise pallas?

-taunts him while attacking pallas, saying he "wish his father were here to see it" (to which pallas bravely responds that he will be able to handle either outcome)

-shown to be arrogant, "proud", "insolent", taunts pallas and is savage, completely impious and disgraces the father-son bond they have (echoes phyruss killing priam's son before him)

how does turnus appear killing pallas?

-virgil describes him as a lion who has seen a "bull practising for combat" - shows the inequality of the battle, impiety, unfairness, youthful disadvantage of pallas- tragic

-savage, unforgiving - defiles the father-son bond, taunts his efforts at battle, says that through his dead body, his father will have the "pallas he deserves"- tragic, unnecessary, took pallas' sword belt as a symbol of his unnecessary extravagance and greed, "he gloried in the taking of it", virgil foreshadows this as being turnus' downfall

-sends a message that he will give pallas' body back, but evander's hospitality to aeneas has cost him and they will not find any comfort in burying him

how is pallas characterised when meeting turnus for battle?

-calculated, rational, doesn't succumb to turnus' level of frenzy: "do not waste your threats on me"- knows his place, disparages turnus' attitude

-holding hope in fate, mirrors turnus' reliance on fate being biased towards the deserving, allies them as tragic victims of fate's stubborn nature: "hoping that fortune would favour the weaker for his daring"

how is pallas characterised in his dying moments?

-pious- prays to hercules (incredibly powerful hero, famous for strength, resilience and heroic feats), shows devotion to the gods' will, has kinship ties to the gods "by my fathers' table and by the friendship he offered you", hercules knows he cannot challenge fate, cries "helpless tears"

-helpless, naive, brave, resilient, "hurled his spear with all his strength"... struck down by turnus with an unnecessary "shuddering blow", leaving pallas desperately trying to remove the spear and biting the soil of his enemies.

what does jupiter say to hercules (mourning as he wants to save pallas)

"each man has his allotted day. all life is brief and time once past can never be restored. but the task of the brave man is to enlarge his fame by his actions." - recalls nisus and euryalus, shows tragedy yet inevitability of dying young, pathos, 2nd half of the aeneid focuses on giving the brave their deserved praise and glory as fate is impartial and harsh, leaving an immortal legacy

what myth is depicted on pallas' sword belt and what is the significance?

story of the danaids- 50 daughters of danus who killed their husbands on their wedding night (connotes themes of dying young, undeserved fate, cut before their prime, cheated by fate/ death, tragedy, injustice)

-were punished to carry water in a sieve in the underworld (shows futility, sufferring, foreshadows turnus' fate)

what is evander's backstory

-greek from arcadia, has settled on the site where rome will one day be built (palantine hill/ pallentium- connect roman present with trojan past)

-symbol of roman cultural heritage (emphesises link between roman myth, history and identity)

how is evander characterised overall?

-has strong bonds with aeneas, his friendship with anchises means his role mirrors his father. eg. in book 8 evander tours aeneas around pallentium just as anchises guides him and shows him heroes in the underworld in book 6.

-precursor to romulus, figure of aeneas' great fate

-pious, leads a simple life, warns aeneas in book 8 against the dangers of greed, reflects augustus' morals and promotes images of modern roman moral traditions and values

-trusts aeneas with his son, views him as an equal, does not blame aeneas for his death and asks him to avenge his legacy

what is the significance of evandar and pallas in the aeneid?

-shows it is possible for the ties of friendship to be stronger than the alliances of war (evander is greek, aeneas and anchises are trojan)

-provides a motive for aeneas to fight with furor against turnus

-shows a leader and founder of a city with a modest and pious lifestyle like augustus

how is pallas characterised?

-naive, youthful (shown by his excitable and inquisitive nature)

-pious, good leader that mirrors his father figures, parallels ascanius, gives him men a powerful and encouraging speech

-tragic victim of fate and the injustice of war, his death deeply affects others and causes aeneas to kill turnus- propells the narrative with an emotional element, makes him a martyr and symbol of injustice which needs to be avenged, tragedy of dying young

-shows the limits of piety and bravery against fate

interpretations of aeneas characterisation after pallas' death?

"burning with rage"- overcome with emotion and furor in pursuit of vengence / retribution

-emotion-driven, blood-lust, irrational, impious?

-desperate to salvage the wreck of their father-son relationship, owes justice

-driven by anguish, unfair death of youth, parallels his own son, fighting on behalf of founding rome, for the greater good

how is aeneas characterised after pallas' death?

-impious, goes on a killing spree, frenzied

-sacrafices live captives on pallas' funeral pyre

-denies men mercy/ clementia after surrendering to him (goes against augustan morals) - denies magus who asks to spare his life, relating to their father-son bond and asking for mercy, aeneas states that "turnus put an end to such war-trading the moment he murdered pallas" - phyrrus-like cruelty shows extent of his anguish

-kills liger mid way through his begging, doesn't grace him with a reply, merciless, mocks him after he dies

-imitates turnus' savage merciless behaviour, motivated by injustice and love for his son and the legacy of rome, peace and hope they offered him

what is the impact of aeneas' impious, frenzied killing spree?

-shows the immeasurable impact pallas' death had on him, mirrors his love for ascanius

-depicts him as a bringer of justice, capable of rivalling turnus

-brings about questions around roman values and the heroic code

-his lack of mercy and impious behaviour rivals augustus' unrelenting offer of clementia, peace, and mercy to even the most undeserving -> positions augustus as a more worthy hero? or heightens aeneas' status as he is moved to never-seen before actions out of love for his family

what does jupiter reveal to juno after witnessing aeneas' killing spree?

"it is venus...who is maintaining the strength of the trojans, not the warlike vigour of their right arms, nor their fierce and danger-hardened spirit"

-shows the power of divine intervention in the lives of mortals, subtracts from aeneas' heroic standing?

what does juno ask for from jupiter?

-asks to remove turnus from battle so he can see his father before he dies and keep him safe from the dangers of battle, realises she cannot prevent fate, but can prolong it

-becomes motivated by genuine concern for turnus instead of hatred for the trojans

-jupiter agrees but warns that she will not be able to change the outcome of the war (juno is making him suffer more- prolonging his fate, giving false hope?)

-juno sends a phantom version of aeneas to antagonise turnus to chase him onto a boat and be driven from the warfield

how does turnus react to juno's act of divine intervention (driving him away from the battle)

-desperate, feels under attack from the gods, forcing him into punishment

-makes a frenzied speech, disconnected from himself and his purpose, feels detatched from his soldiers relying on him, envisions himself dying / committing suicide- juno has to hold him back

what is the impact of turnus' reaction to juno sending him away from the battlefield?

-his frenzied, pessimistic and extremist mindset shows an unfortunate warrior who is victim to divine manipulation and struggling to come to grasps with the reality of his fate, detatches from villainous, cowardly persona

-shows the dangers of divine intervention, juno comes from a place of love, but in action it hurts turnus more than death as she is prolonging his sufferring and making him question his worth and place in the world

-mirrors aeneas' pessimistic speech in book 1 but more extreme- shows that turnus may just be a victim of fate, develops sympathy and pathos towards him

how is mezentius described on the battlefield?

-evil tyrant, all troops sought him out, "united in their hatred"

-described "like a rock jutting out into the ocean wastes, exposed to the threats and fury... unmoved" - similar to king latinus in book 7

"like a wild boar"

"as a ravening lion" -> metamorphic descriptions, changeable demeanor mirrors the frenzy of war, recall turnus and aeneas' susceptibility to furor then pietas

what is the significance of orodes' final words (mezentius' victim)

tells him that "you will not enjoy your victory for long" and that "we shall soon be lying in the same fields"

-points out futility of war, role of fate, changes heroic code

how do the gods appear looking down on the battlefield?

grieving, mars was dealing death with "impartial hand, shows venus/juno divide: "venus looking on from one side and juno from the other"

-"the gods pitied the futile anger of the two armies and grieved that the men had so much sufferring" - shows the inhumanity of war, power of free will to cause suffering, futility and tragedy of war

how is mezentius described attacking aeneas?

-superlative, superhuman description, "tall as orion" (giant huntsman of extraordinary skill)- makes aeneas' conquering over him even more impressive

-takes over turnus' place on the battlefield, rival of similar significance

-confident, he "held his ground, unafraid"

-claims that he will kill aeneas and give his son the spoils of his armour to wear

-while aeneas' shield (symbol of future rome) deflects the spear and kills one of his comrades, mezentius' shield is penetrated by aeneas' spear through the "triple bronze"

how is lausus described stepping inbetween aeneas' sword and his father?

-ultimately pious, selfless and sacrificial(rivalling ascanius, parallels aeneas' risk of going to the underworld, nisus' selflessness etc.), virgil addresses lausus directly, immortalising him by saying "you are a warrior who does not deserve to be forgotten" - heroic, everlasting legacy of pietas, glory, dying young

-protects his father so he can leave the battlefield safely and get care

how is aeneas described killing lausus?

-frenzied, impious, tells lausus that the "love for your father is deceiving you" and he is foolish

-beared the weapons thrown at him by the army, "weathered the storm of war until the last roll of its thunder"

-unforgiving, excessive, buried it to the hilt, it went straight through his "light shield" - underserving, only wanted to save his father-

how are both aeneas and lausus described as frenzied?

-aeneas is emotionally driven by the death of pallas, making him irrational and impulsive, blind to others and solely focused on battle and revenge.

-lausus is blinded by devotion and pietas, wants to save him father, immoralise himself in a moment of bravery

how is lausus' death emotionally significant?

-his "light shield" reveals that his vulnerability, never stood a chance

-shows the model for sonly piety, status ascanius must live up to, blind devotion to his father despite his cruelty

-"the tunic his mother had woven for him" exaggerates his youth, tragedy of dying young, the women and families affected by war, emotive.

-his death affects aeneas so much he snaps out of his frenzy as he is reminded of the love his father has for him and the strength of the father-son bond, aeneas promises to return his body, doesn't take any spoils from his body- shows humility and clear-minded nature, pursues human connection over materialism, restraint, recognition of flaws

-the cost and emotional component of war

how does mezentius react to his son's death?

"flung himself on his son's body"-devestated abd enveloped with grief and anguish, languishes in the cruel life he lead which has "stained" his son's name, acknowledges the sacrafice was for his life and feels undeserving

-rushes backin to the battle field, intent on killing aeneas or to die trying - relentless, heroic, wants to mirror the sacrifice lausus made for him out of similar love, shows depth of father-son bond

how is mezentius' death described?

-marching into battle he is overcome with "fierce shame, frenzy and grief"

-he attacks aeneas with a flurry of relentless spears, bounce off him, helpless, "unequal battle", fighting an upward current

-in his dying breaths he asks aeneas for a proper burial next to his son

what is the significance of mezentius and lausus characterisation?

-virgillian move of pathos- makes us sympathise with the enemy, positioning himself as an impartial narrator while subtly presenting aeneas as the all-mighty hero, deepens sympathy and tragedy of war

-opposes mezentius' previous tyrranical persona by attributing him with piety and deeply affected by a father-son bond similar to aeneas, shows the universal power of love and anguish, humanises him and provides a character which has depth and contradictions

how is mezentius characterised overall?

-his epithet is "scourner of the gods" - known for cruelty and lack of pietas (his preferred form of torture is tying men to dead bodies until they starved- horrifying, supposedly unforgivable for modern audiences especially)

-changes significantly after his son's death, displays heroic behaviour by acknowledging mortality/ likely death, motivated by the love for his son and the heroic intention of avenging his sacrificial and death which was undeserving

-contrasts aeneas' behaviour often, acts as a foil to him, shows balance

-acts as a warning against scourning the gods

how is lausus characterised overall?

-selfless and pious young man, acts as a foil to his father

-as he sacrifices himself he reverses the father-son roles, acting as a protector

-shares similarities with pallas, both die young undeservingly at the hands of more experienced warriors, pious, brave, tragic yet epic narratives