Key Facts
full title · The Aeneid
author · Virgil
type of work · Epic poem
genre · Heroic epic; mythological story
language · Latin
time and place written · Around 20 B.C.,
probably in Rome and in the north of Italy, and perhaps in Greece
date of first publication · Virgil died in 19 B.C.,
before he finished revising the Aeneid; it was
published after his death.
narrator · The poet Virgil, although Aeneas himself assumes the
narration in Books II and III, when he gives a retrospective account
of his adventures
point of view · When Virgil controls the narration, the point of view
includes the actions of the gods as well as the human story; Aeneas,
in his storytelling, does not have this access to the gods' perspective and
relates events only from his own perspective.
tone · When treating the glory of Rome, the epic is solemn
and honorific. When Virgil depicts the victims of history—those
who suffered in the course of the founding of Rome, like Dido—his tone
is tragic and sympathetic.
tense · Usually past, sometimes switching to present to increase
the immediacy of a scene. Virgil also uses the future tense, for prophecy
and prediction.
setting (time) · In the aftermath of the Trojan War, about 1000 B.C.
setting (place) · The Mediterranean, including the north coast of Asia
Minor, Carthage, and Italy
protagonist · Aeneas
major conflict · Aeneas is fated to travel from the ruins of Troy to
Italy, where he will establish a race that will lead to the founding
of Rome. Juno, harboring feelings of vengeance against the Trojans,
impedes Aeneas's mission by inciting a romance between Aeneas and Dido
and then a war between the Trojans and the Latins, causing suffering
for the hero, his fleet, and many whom they encounter on the way.
rising action · The epic has two parts: Aeneas's wanderings in Books
I–VI, and his struggle to establish himself in Latium in Books VII–XII.
In the first half of the epic, Aeneas tells the story of the siege
of Troy and his escape, causing Dido to love him. In the second
half of the epic, King Latinus offers the hand of his daughter,
Lavinia, to Aeneas in marriage, and Juno responds by inciting rage
in the hearts of Queen Amata and Turnus and then opening the Gates of
War.
climax · In the first half of the epic, Venus and Juno contrive
to isolate Dido and Aeneas in a cave during a hunting trip, and
there the two lovers consummate their affair. In the second half
of the epic, Turnus kills Pallas, inciting the lethal vengeance
of Aeneas.
falling action · In the first half of the epic, Aeneas leaves Carthage
for Italy at Mercury's prodding, causing the heartbroken Dido to
kill herself. In the second half, the war between the Trojans and
the Latins comes down to a duel between Aeneas and Turnus. Aeneas
wins, and, after considering sparing his enemy's life, he decides
to kill Turnus to avenge Pallas's death.
themes · The primacy of fate; the suffering of wanderers; the
glory of Rome
motifs · Prophecies and predictions; founding a new city; vengeance
symbols · Flames; the golden bough; the Gates of War; the Trojan
hearth gods; weather
foreshadowing · The events of the epic narrative are already history
to the Roman audience. The many dreams and prophecies of various characters
reveal a veiled future to mortals and are the epic's strongest form
of foreshadowing. Also, when Turnus kills Pallas, Virgil foreshadows
Turnus's own death.
