and more artificial, presenting some great idea in a narrative shape, and not merely telling stories for love of the story.

The Aeneid is clearly in the second of these classes: it is a literary epic. The age of Augustus was a time of great literary activity, promoted by the emperor himself: but it is even more remarkable for the high standard of finished and artistic workmanship than for its productiveness. This high standard was owing to various causes, among which the chief was the general study of Greek. There had been Epic poets before, such as Naevius and Ennius: but Vergil, in point of execution, may be said to be centuries in advance of his predecessors.

The subject and purpose of the Poem.

The main idea of the Aeneid is the national greatness of Rome. Several causes combined to make Vergil undertake this work. Augustus himself, who was a munificent patron of literary men, desired him to write a great poem, which should glorify the Empire and stimulate the patriotism of Romans in the new Era. Again, the new era itself excited a genuine enthusiasm, quite apart from Court influences. After the corruptions and incapacity of the later Republic, and a century of smouldering civil wars, when Augustus had given peace and stable government to the Roman world, everybody felt that 'a good time was come.' And the poet himself was on every ground desirous of achieving the work. He had won himself by the Georgics a first-rate literary position, and he had given his whole life to developing his unrivalled poetic faculty. Thus every influence united to stimulate him to produce a Great National Poem. The people believed in their National Destiny, and imagined a future even greater than their past. The emperor promoted it, both from personal and patriotic grounds: and the poet himself, with his reverence for the Roman religion and antiquities, his matured powers and his strong national enthusiasm, was the man for the task.

The greatness of the destinies of Rome was then the main subject of the Aeneid. Vergil connected it with the story of

Aeneas, partly because the house of the Caesars, the gens Iulia, traced back its origin to Iulus, son of Aeneas; but principally no doubt because it gave him so convenient an opportunity of bringing before his countrymen, in a national dress, the glorious poems of Homer. The battle pieces, the sea adventures, the councils of the gods, the single combats, the royal feasts and funerals, the splendid scenes and similes—all these things, which charmed the educated Romans so much in the Greek epics, Vergil transplanted and naturalised in his own stately and melodious verse. Moreover, by going back to Aeneas and the tale of Troy, he raised the destinies of Rome to the old heroic level in the imaginations of men. But however much of Homer he may give to his readers, he never forgets his main purpose, to impress men with the dignity and greatness of Rome, her significant history, her national unbroken life and growth, and the divine protection which guided her fate.

One aspect of the poem was intimately connected both with the Augustan revival and the poet's own nature: and that was its profoundly religious character. To nothing did Augustus pay more attention than to a revival of the national religion. He rebuilt the temples, restored the worship, paid offerings to the shrines, increased the priestly colleges, and took the office permanently of Pontifex maximus. And the poet himself viewed Rome as a state powerful by the protection of gods, great in its ancient and elaborate ceremonial, and predestined by the divine will to its career of Empire. Hence it is that he is careful to weave into his narrative all manner of religious references, allusions, and associations. Sacred places and customs are mentioned all through; and the background of the poem is the working of the gods themselves, with Fate ordaining all.

Nor should we forget the antiquarian interest. The unity of the race and the greatness of its destiny gave a high significance to all old memories. Accordingly Vergil has collected into his poem a mass of local traditions, old Latin customs, explanations of names, and antiquarian lore of all kinds. He feels that nothing can so stimulate the common patriotism, and

feeling of unity with a great past, as thus to enrich his National Epic with every ancient association that admits of poetic treatment.

Outline of the Story.

According to Homer, Aeneas was son of Anchises and Aphrodite (identified with the Roman Venus, goddess of love), and the nephew of Priam king of Troy. At first he takes no part in the Trojan war; but being attacked by Achilles, afterwards performs many heroic deeds for the Trojans. He escapes by help of the gods when Troy is captured, and Homer clearly conceives him as reigning at Troy after the departure of the Greeks.

The later stories recount his wanderings about Europe after the fall of Troy: and these Vergil adopts, making many alterations and additions of his own. One great episode, his landing in Carthage, and the love and desertion of Dido, is apparently Vergil's own invention. At last, according to our author, he reaches Italy.

One of the most effective portions of the Aeneid is his descent to Hades by the lake of Avernus near Naples, where he meets his dead father, Anchises, who shews him the souls of the future great men of Rome. He then emerges from the realms below and rejoins his fleet.

Reaching at length the coast of Latium, he discovers by a sign that this is his fated home. He sends to the king Latinus to offer peace, which is at first agreed to, and Aeneas is betrothed to Lavinia, daughter of the king; but difficulties arise, the gods interfere, and Turnus, king of the Rutules, who is a suitor of Lavinia, induces Latinus to join him in war against the Trojans.

Here the eighth book begins. An embassy is sent to Argyripa or Arpi to request the aid of the Greek Diomedes. Meanwhile Father Tiber appears in a vision to Aeneas, and tells him that he has reached the home destined for him, and that he must make friends with Euander the Arcadian, settled on the site of

the future Rome. He accordingly sails up the river with a few followers, and is hospitably received by the king Euander and his son Pallas. They invite them to the feast, tell them the legend of Hercules, make friends, and the king shews Aeneas over the city. Finally he advises Aeneas to ask aid of the Tuscans of Caere. Meanwhile Venus persuades Vulcan to make armour for Aeneas; and we have a description of the volcanic forge. Euander bids farewell to his son Pallas who accompanies Aeneas, and whom he is not destined to see again; and the party starts for the Etruscan camp. There Venus brings Aeneas his divinely fashioned armour; and the rest of the book is occupied with a description of the shield, and the scenes from the history of the Rome to be that are carved upon it.

Then the war is begun. After much bloodshed, in which Pallas son of Euander, and the terrible Tuscan king Mezentius, are slain, it is at last agreed that the issue shall be decided by single combat between Aeneas and Turnus. Juno tries to interfere; but at length the heroes meet, and Aeneas grapples and slays Turnus.

Note on the Similes.

The following are the similes in this book:

(1) Line 22 The fluctuating anxiety of Aeneas, like the wavering of a ray reflected from water.

(2) 243 Light let into Cacus' cavern, like light let into

Hades.

(3),, 391 Vulcan feels the flash of love, like the flash of lightning through a cloud.

(4) 408 Vulcan early astir and active, like a matron who is

(5) 589

(6) 622

poor.

Pallas bright in armour, like the morning star. Red gleam of a copper (bronze) shield, like sunset on a cloud.

In studying these similes, we see at once what they add to the poem in the way of ornament, and of picturesque suggestiveThis (1) is a pretty bright picture of a dancing sunbeam,

ness.

well drawn; (2) is an impressive description, suggesting à monstrous and horrible chasm, hating the light and upper air; (4) is interesting from the pure and high ideal it presents of the chaste and laborious matron; and the others, though slight, have their own beauties, especially the lovely line about the morning star, 'extulit os sacrum caelo tenebrasque resolvit.'

But at the same time the point of the comparison in all these cases, as elsewhere in Vergil, is more or less obvious: (1) 'wavering like a sunbeam reflected,' (3) 'the lightning flash of love,' (5) 'bright as Lucifer,' (6) 'red as sunset'-such similes would occur to any one. The thing compared lies on the surface, it is one prominent feature of the scene: the simile is an ornament rather than a true illustration. The art is shewn not so much in the choice of the comparison, as in the expression and workmanship: in the vividness of the picture, the beauty of the language, and the truth of the details.

And we must also observe that these details have no bearing upon the comparison. Thus in (1) 'the sunbeam rises and strikes the spaces of the roof': a good description of the dancing ray, but corresponding to nothing in Aeneas' state of mind; (2) and (3) are too brief and slight to quote: they are only passing touches. In (4) the motive 'to keep her bridal-bed pure and rear her little ones' is beautifully descriptive of the virtuous matron of the olden type, whom Vergil doubtless had seen, in the country rather than at Rome: but nothing can be less like the feelings of the brawny fire-god Vulcan, with whom she is compared1.

Thus in the Vergilian simile, for the most part the details are worked out independently, and while they relieve and adorn the epic narrative, the comparison usually turns on but one or two points and those commonplace.

This is what we may call the primitive use of the simile, as it is employed in Homer, and imitated in many poets since.

1 It is true the picture is begun not as a simile, but only to shew the time of night at which the god arises: but it drifts into a simile, and ends with a haud secus, &c.