THE SUBJECT MATTER OF VERGIL'S SIMILES

b y Michael Coffey

There has been l i t t l e systematic work on Vergi l ' s similes i n modern times. There a r e many valuable comnents i n recent ed i t ions o f individual books, but none of the general s tudies t r e a t s them fu l ly . Heinze has a few excel lent notes, and s imiles have an important place i n Pb'schl's in te rpre ta t ion of the Aeneid, but the l a t e s t handbook, tha t of K. a c h n e r , pays l i t t l e a t ten t ion to them. There i s no work of Vergil ian scholarship comparable to H. F r k k e l ' s important study of the Homeric

1 s imiles , Die homerischen Gleichnisse.

The purpose of the present paper i s l imited to an examination of the subject matter of Vergil 's s imiles , not i n order to evoke a sentimental, autonomous 'world' o f the Vergilian s imile ( f o r tha t , as we sha l l see, i s impossible), but i n order to assess the i r range in re la t ion to the canons of propriety i n the ancient genre of epic. This may be of i n t e r e s t for the understanding both of Vergi l ' s craftsmanship and a l so of the technique of ancient epic i n general. The most important questions a re these: Did Vergi l ' s p rac t ice suggest that he considered ce r t a in kinds of subject matter beneath the digni ty of epic verse? Did he extend or r e s t r i c t the range employed by h i s predecessors? What kinds of s imiles could be included that were derived from the t rades , tasks add l e i su re occupations of ordinary men and women? Fina l ly , how far were chi ldren, t iny animals and domestic u t ens i l s thought of a s sui-table subject matter for the epic poet? The s imile i s a complex figure of speech containing many d i f fe ren t ideas and multiple overtones of be l ing and intention. Consequently, i t s subject matter cannot be evaluated a s 'unpoetic' or otherwise i n the way that i t i s possible to assess the s t a tus of a s ing le un i t of vocabulary. We sha l l sometimes, i n discussing the subject matter of a pa r t i cu la r s imile , a t the same time note the relat ionship between simile and context and a l so i t s function: the s t a t i s t i c a l approach t o the simile, a s to imagery i n general, i s of l imited value. 2

Before examining Vergi l ' s p rac t ice i t w i l l be useful to consider b r i e f ly ancient l i t e r a r y propriety and a l so the range of similes i n Homer and Apollonius Wodius.

Ancient c r i t i c s devoted much a t ten t ion to defining the d i f f e ren t genres of poetry. A r i s t o t l e discusses poetry according to the genre^.^ Alexandrian scholars c l a s s i f i ed them assiduously and made nice d i ~ t i n c t i o n s . ~ approach i s advocated by such diverse wr i te rs as Accius, Cicero, Horace, Quin t i l i an and the Younger Pl iny, and a poem of Martial presents the genres of poetry i n descen- ding order of nob i l i t y from epic to epigram5 Pa r t of the generic approach i s the notion of propriety. Each kind of poetry has i t s own l ex operis (Hor. s. 2 , 1 , l f f . ) o r pr inc ip le of decorum. Greek theor i s t s considered T'o T d n o v as one of the most important ingredients of s t y l e , and Pohlenz has shown tha t the notion of T?I ' & ~ o v

In Latin l i t e r a r y c r i t i c i sm the generic

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was connected with the generic approach.6 Jensen) p re sc r ibes T'O T.@TCOV i n every genre, and p ropr i e ty of s t y l e i s fundamental t o the A r s Poe t i ca (e.g. 89) of Horace, who presumably c o d i f i e d what was general ly

7 accepted i n Roman theory.

Philodemus i n h i s mp\L ~ O L ~ & T W V (35,16,

The researches of modern scho la r s have shown t h a t the ancient p r a c t i c e i n p ropr i e ty corresponds t o what we know of the theory. Axelson has shown t h a t i n choice of voca- bulary each genre i n L a t i n l i t e r a t u r e had i t s permit ted range and t h a t i t i s p o s s i b l e t o cons t ruc t a hierarchy o f generic p ropr i e ty with e p i c a t the top and epigram a t t he b o t t o m 8 V e r g i l ' s contemporary, Horace, shows i n h i s p r a c t i c e too a f i n e l y ad jus t ed regard for d i s t i n c t i o n s o f t h i s kind. w i th the corresponding A c t i u m epode (Epod. 9 ) Ed. Fraenkel comnents * i n any p i e c e of anc ien t poetry the r u l e s (Horace would say the l eges ) of the d i f f e ren ' t l i t e r a r y genres and e s p e c i a l l y the d i f f e r e n c e i n t h e i r s t y l i s t i c l eve l a r e s t r i c t l y observed".

I n comparing Horace Odes 1.37 (nunc est bibendum)

9

A s may be expected i n a work devoted l a rge ly t o f i g h t i n g , the I l i a d contains many s i m i l e s from n a t u r a l phenomena and wild animals, and, a s the tension of the n a r r a t i v e r i s e s , these become more e l abora t e and v io l en t . There a r e a l s o s i m i l e s from a wide range of human a c t i v i t i e s and craftsmanship: carpentry (xv 410), bu i ld ing ( x v i 212), tanning ( x v i i 389). pot-making ( x v i i i 600). weaving ( x x i i i 760); a g r i c u l t u r a l p u r s u i t s : s tock-farming ( x i i 451, i v 275). reaping ( x i 67 ) , threshing (xx i 346), hunt ing ( x i 292, xv 271), wood-cutting ( x i 86, xvi 633), f i s h i n g (xvi 406). There a r e p o l i t i c a l s i t u - a t i o n s i n the s i m i l e s : a squabble about a boundary ( x i i 421), R besieged c i t y ( x v i i i 207), and a man on the run from a murder charge (xx iv 480); a l s o such occupations a s s t u n t - r i d i n g (xv 679) , t r a v e l l i n g ( v 597), cou r t ing ( x x i i 127) and the h u r l i n g of abuse by women (xx 252). I n add i t ion , t he re a r e ch i ld ren a t work and p l ay , cudge l l ing a stubborn donkey ( x i 558) and k i ck ing a sandcas t l e over (xv 362); unheroic small animals: var ious i n s e c t s such a s mosquitos ( x v i i 570), wasps (xv i 259). f l i e s ( i i 469, xvi 641). a l s o cicadas ( i i i 151), l ocus t s ( x x i 12) and a worm ( x i i i 654). Similes de r ived from everyday o b j e c t s include beans ( x i i i 588 ), a spinning top ( x i v 413). f i g j u i c e ( v 902), bedroom doors (xx iv 317) and p i g f a t being rendered down ( x x i 362). The Odyssey has fewer s i m i l e s than the I l i a d , but the emphasis on the everyday and p rosa i c i s even more marked. There a r e s i m i l e s from a r t i s a n s (9,384; 9,391) and a l s o the s i m i l e of t he man who l i v e s by himself i n a remote p l a c e and h ides a brand under- nea th the embers (5,488). Fieces of skin from Odysseus' hands pee l o f f on the rocks i n the way t h a t pebbles s t i c k t o the suckers of a squid (5,432) . Odysseus' t un ic i s s a i d t o shine l i k e the skin of a d r i e d onion (19.233) and i n h i s anxiety he tu rns from s i d e t o s i d e j u s t a s a man tu rns a black pudding wa i t ing eagerly fo r i t t o be cooked (20,ZS). from the he ro ic plane t o the everyday, the s i m i l e of the black pudding (Blutwurst- g l e i chn i s ) descends from Odysseus' unheroic s i t u a t i o n t o t h e vulgar.

10

Hermann FrGnkel says t h a t j u s t a s the s imiles of t he I l i a d drop

11

There a r e sharp comnents i n the I l i a d Schol ia on the s u b j e c t mat ter of some of t hese s i m i l e s . The s i m i l e of f a t b o i l i n g i n the cauldron i s condoned on t h e grounds t h a t Homer does n o t introduce the heroes themselves b o i l i n g meat (&I on xxi 362). Some similes a r e descr ibed a s vulgar and unseemly, x v i i 389), the shaking beans (2B on x i i i 589), t he mosquito (ZB on x v i i 570), t h e locus t s (I3 on xxi 12). I n a l l these scho l i a while t he sub jec t mat ter i t se l f i s dismissed with the e p i t h e t TanELv6v o r o the r such term,12 t h e r e i s a comnent exp la in ing t h a t Homer's p o e t i c language has disguised the unseemliness of the matter : at 8; - K O L V L ~ ' L A ~ ~ E L S E~LW.&~TOWL ~b ~ a m ~ v 6 v . (m on x v i i 570). p a t r o n i z i n g (on xv 362): E ~ & v , 6 ~ s &JL YVUTC.~~.

fo r example the tanner (m on

7 np\oc 61 l ~ a k b v ouv mi knip,ovov \ E)LX;V On the s i m i l e of t he c h i l d and the sandcas t l e the B Scho l i a a r e

6Lavam6oU(SL TZv n b w v at mpapoha'L, m'L Tam~v\T1 $v 4 The s imi l e of the gossiping women f a r e s worse, a s according

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t o the A Scholia on xx 251 the l ines a re a thet ized a s being unworthy of heroes and because i t is a barbarian Egyptian custom for women to come out and hurl abuse. Such cr i t i c i sms would seem to be associated with the at tack on the allegedly unseemly and inappropriate i n Homer. keeping with a t tacks on T‘O ATPE&G i n Homer by Aristarchus, i t seems impossible to assign them with any cer ta in ty t o a par t icu lar scholar or date.

While the c r i t i c i sms j u s t mentioned a re not out of

13

The Argonautica of Apollonius Rhodius belongs to an age dominated by scholarship, Homeric scholarship i n par t icu lar ; Herter argues for t races of the influence of Homeric c r i t i c i sm in Apollonius’ technique of re la t ing the simile to i t s context. That there a re few l ion s imiles i n Apollonius i s not surpr is ing, for there a re comparatively few b a t t l e scenes. Similes from inanimate nature, as Lesky has suggested, emphasize i t s calm and fr iendl iness towards men, a cha rac t e r i s t i c of much Hel len is t ic l i t e r a tu re . l5 f e l l e r s (1,1003), the ploughman who curses manual labour (1.1172, cf. 3,1323), the helmsman (2,70), the shipwright (2,79), bee-keepers smoking bees (2,130), the t r ave l l e r (a textual ly corrupt s imile , 2,541), the bui lder who packs the t i l e s t i gh t (2,1073), the blacksmith’s hamner that leaps back from the anvi l (3,1253), the man who fearing a boundary dispute cuts down h i s crop in has te (3,1399), hunters (4,109) and the butcher ( P o L K ~ o < ) who s t r ikes down a s a c r i f i c i a l bu l l (4,468). i s a group of similes presenting women, usually young women, i n a s t a t e of tense emotion. Character is t ical ly‘ Hel len is t ic i s the dulcet sentimentali ty of the s imile o f the br ight s t a r (1,774) that seems to symbolize for the g i r l i n love her fiancg who i s far away, a usage that i s unhomeric but highly praised by the schol ias t on the passage for i t s appropriateness and a r t i s t r y . l6 i l l -u sed by her stepmother (i,269), the prematurely widowed br ide (3,656), the g i r l who i s taken prisoner and compelled to endure a b ru ta l and unfamiliar slavery (4.35). and the lamenting widow struggling to bring up her children (4,1062).

14

There a re s imiles from human occupations: t ree-

In addition there

Other examples a re the g i r l

There is a l so the simile of the chi ld and the wintry stream (4,460) and the s i m i of the an ts and f l i e s (4,1452), and the gadfly (3,276, cf . 1,1265). Some scholars have emphasized elements of r e a l i s t i c human l i f e i n the s imiles of Apollonius, but t h i s should not be exaggerated, for apar t from the emotionally charged group of s i m i from women’s l i f e , he has l imited Homer’s wide range and avoided the hunible and banausic subject matter that i s c r i t i c i zed i n the Homer scholia. l7 This may be due pa r t ly t o the differences in the nature and sca le of the I l i a d and Odyssey, and the Argonautica, but i t a l so seems that Apollonius de l ibera te ly excluded cer ta in themes because he considered them too unseemly and improper to be included i n an epic.

That a la rge number of similes i n the Aeneid draw on violent natural phenomena, gales, whirlwinds, hail-storms, r ivers i n spate, rough seas, an avalanche, i s t o be

es

e s

expected, for they a r i s e na tura l ly a s a t rad i t iona l means of i l l u s t r a t i n g the movements and sounds of men i n b a t t l e , j u s t as warriors a re compared to mountains i n point of s ize . l8 These s imiles a r i s e na tura l ly in the i r contexts but are’ not of importance for the present enquiry. Some of the simi€es derived from s t a r s and conditions of l i g h t a r e of greater i n t r i n s i c i n t e re s t . Aeneas in the dim l igh t of the underworld recognizes Dido with d i f f i c u l t y in the way that ear ly in the month a man sees or thinks ‘that he sees the moon through cloud (6,453); here, a s for example in Sappho (Frg. 34 LP) was associated with female beauty.” Vulcan f e l t the warmth of Venus’ embrace spreading through h i s body i n the way tha t l ightning jumps across thunderclouds (8,391), a personal appl icat ion of the t rad i t iona l comparison to descr ibe violent movement in ba t t l e . 2o The whole passage i s akin to the episode of the love-making of Zeus and Hera i n I l i a d xiv, i n which Zeus himself compares the i r r e s i s t i b l e appeal of Hera (favourably) to that of a se lec t ion of h i s mistresses (317 f f . ) ,

a s Norden has pointed out , moonlight

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a passage r e fe r r ed t o by Leaf ( i n t r o . to x i v ) as the 'Leporel lo-catalogue ' , and a t h e t i z e d by learned Alexandrians f o r i t s unseemly t ac t l e s sness . 21

Trees i l l u s t r a t e s i z e , a f a l l e n man o r c i t y , o r something imnovable; crops and leaves i l l u s t r a t e v a s t numbers. 22 plough o r smashed by r a in t o desc r ibe the f a l l e n Euryalus (9 ,435) . 23 such a simile of a dead s o l d i e r (11. v i i i , 306; Ap.Rh. 3,1399 i s perhaps remotely connected); i n V e r g i l ' s time no doubt i t was impossible t o escape the a s s o c i a t i o n s with the l y r i c and epy l l ion of Ca tu l lu s , who appl ied i t t o the s e l f - p i t y i n g j i l t e d self and a l s o o b j e c t i v e l y t o plundered v i r g i n i t y (Cat. 11,22 f f . ; 62,.19 f f . ) . V e r g i l ' s choice of s i m i l e i s i n keeping with the sub jec t mat ter and tone of t he episode o f Euryalus and Nisus. He a l s o compares the dead body of P a l l a s t o a plucked flower (11.68). I t seems poss ib l e , but t h i s i s o f f e r e d as no more than a specu la t ion , t h a t Vergi l a s soc ia t ed flowers i n these similes with the flowers a t a funeral : compare the l i n e s on Marcellus (6 ,883-4):

Vergi l uses the s imile of a flower cut by the Homer uses

manibus d a t e l i l i a p l e n i s , purpureos spargam f lo re s . 24

Qu i t e d i f f e r e n t i s the comparison of Lav in ia ' s blush to rose among l i l i e s (12,68) . Lavinia i s a dumb personage, of no d i r e c t importance except as the pas s ive instrument of Rome's d e s t i n y , but what i s important i s the impact of he r blush upon Turnus: a r d e t i n arma magis (12.71)) This s i m i l e seems t o d e r i v e from the language of epithalamion and l y r i c . 25

The simile from the animal of prey was i n e v i t a b l y very frequent i i i a l l b a t t l e n a r r a t i v e s throughout ancient epic. I n the books of f i g h t i n g Vergi l i l l u s t r a t e s i nd iv idua l prowess by s imiles from the behaviour of l i o n s , a t i g e r , and an unspec i f i ed wild animal, f e r a , corresponding t o the u n d i f f e r e n t i a t e d Homeric 0:~. Vergi l a l s o draws on f i e r c e animals which were found i n I t a l y , the wolf and the boar, thus combining a t r a d i t i o n a l e p i c theme with the experience of the I t a l i a n countryman; both animals a r e mentioned frequent ly i n Eclogues and Georgics, and the boar of t he s i m i l e i n Book 10 o f the Aeneid (10,707) belongs t o Monte Viso i n the Co t t i an Alps o r Laurentum i n Latium.26 Elsewhere the connexion between sub jec t ma t t e r and language i n the Georgics and s i m i l e s i n t he Aeneid i s even c lose r . Of the two snake s i m i l e s i n Aeneid 2, t h e f i r s t :

improvisum a s p r i s v e l u t i qui s en t ibus anguem - 2,379,

draws on the d e s c r i p t i o n i n the Third Georgic of a snake which i s dangerous t o encounter (G. 3,435) both for the theme and for some d e t a i l s of ph ras ing (G. 3.421 - A. 2 ,381) , while the second inco rpora t e s one l i n e unchanged from the same passage and another with the a l t e r a t i o n of the i n i t i a l monosyllable only. 27 e p i c theme i n the same language t h a t he had previously used himself i n g iv ing i n s t r u c - t i o n about animals of the I t a l i a n countryside.

Vergi l expresses a t r a d i t i o n a l

28 There a r e a l s o two similes from dee r , one from a ho r se and two from f i g h t i n g b u l l s . The d e s c r i p t i o n of the horse owes much t o the e p i c t r a d i t i o n but l i t t l e t o the Georgics. In the s i m i l e of the de fea t ed b u l l t h a t prepares for a second f i g h t , Vergi l r epea t s two l i n e s from h i s d e s c r i p t i o n of b u l l s i n the Third Georgic and c l o s e l y adapts another. Such r e p e t i t i o n s should n o t be regarded as temporary props i n view of the appropriateness and verbal excel lence of t h i s simile and the snake similes mentioned above. Perhaps Vergil regarded the l i n e s i n the Georgics a s unsurpassable; perhaps he wished i t t o be c l e a r t h a t i n o rde r t o p re sen t t hese t r a d i t i o n a l e p i c themes he was a l s o us ing the experience which h e had already comnunicated i n the Georgics. Elsewhere, as i n the l a s t l i n e s o f the Fourth Georgic, he shows t h a t he i s conscious of the c o n t i n u i t y of h i s own p o e t i c work (4 ,563 f f . ) .

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The b i r d of p rey , another t r a d i t i o n a l way of i l l u s t r a t i n g a v i o l e n t a t t a c k e r ,

Swans and c ranes i l l u s t r a t e n o i s e , occu r s i n the Aeneid i n s i m i l e s and a l s o i n the n a r r a t i v e i n such omens as the e a g l e which l e t s go the swan t h a t i t has se ized .29 and mig ra t ing b i r d s f l i t t i n g s o u l s i n the underworld. The s i m i l e of t he dove and the cave i s j u s t l y famous. Mr. Will iams r i g h t l y sugges t s t h a t some of i t s d e t a i l s were d e r i v e d from t h e simile of t he hawk i n Apollonius Rhodius (2 ,933) ;30 a l s o n o t e t h a t a dove i s used a s a t a r g e t i n the games (5 ,485 f f . ) . ?he simile o f t h e s w i f t t h a t f l ies about i n the r i c h man's pa l ace i s n o t a b l e for i t s i n t r i n s i c exce l l ence and a l s o because i t nlone o f a l l t he similes of t he Aeneid has f a i l e d to y i e l d to the probings of Quelleriforschung, though the p h r a s r &v&poc &vsLo'io occurs i n a s i m i l e i n the I l iFd ( x x i v 318). I n view of V e r g i l ' s genera l method, one may p o s t u l a t e a l o s t H e l l e n i s t i c o r i g i n a l . I t i s a l s o p o s s i b l e t o b e l i e v e t h a t Verg i l h a s one s imile t h a t i s completely o r i g i n a l i n s u b j e c t ma t t e r . There a r e probably contemporary Roman elements i n t h i s d e s c r i p t i o n , fo r s t agna (12 ,477) sugges ts t he f i s h ponds desc r ibed by Varro (" 3,17) end by 6 l u m e l l a (8 ,16-17) . t h e sea b i r d (4 ,254) t h a t i l l u s t r n t e s t h e deqcent of Mercury to v i s i t Aentas poses a d i f f e r e n t problem, t h a t o f p r o p r i e t y of vocabulary:

we may

The s i m i l e of

a v i s i m i l i s , quae circum l i t o r a , circum p i s c o s o s scopulos humi l i s v o l a t aequora i u x t a .

Se rv ius and h i s e n l a r g e r comnent t h a t Verg i l cons idered i t o u t of keeping wi th h e r o i c poe t ry to u s e t h e words mergus ( g u l l ) o r a s had been suggested f u l i c a (cormorant), j u s t a s h e r e f e r r e d t o a white s t o r k ( c i c o n i a ) by a p e r i p h r a s i s :

candida v e n i t a v i s l o n g i s i n v i s a c o l u b r i s (G. 2,320)

Se rv ius ' comment i s probably t r u e of V e r g i l ' s avoidance i n the Aeneid of t h e names of s p e c i e s or t echn ica l terms: w e may n o t e t h a t Homer by c o n t r a s t i n t he cor responding s i m i l e i n t he Odyssey ( 5 , 5 1 ) has no such i n h i b i t i o n s : Gf$ 6pvLOL &OLX&. . . Eht h i s procedure i n the Georgics i s more complicated. While a f e e l i n g f o r h i g h poe t ry may have e l imina ted t h e word c i c o n i a , none the l e s s h e used t h e word f u l i c a i n the Georgics (1,.%3), n o t t o mention t h e word c i i rcu l io , f o r which h e i s censured by Porphyr ius the commentator on Horrice (G. 1,186; Porph. on Hor. A . P . 47). But how o the rwise could Vergi l have warned t h e farmer a g a i n s t t he weevi l? For a gene r i c name o r a p e r i p h r a s i s would have been n e i t h e r p o s s i b l e nor s u f f i c i e n t . However, where Verg i l had no d i d a c t i c i n t e n t i o n , a s i n t h e s i m i l e of t h e Aeneid, he avoided the s p e c i f i c name t h a t seemed to lack d i g n i t y .

Bees i n Homer and Apollonius Rhodius i l l u s t r a t e v a s t numbers moving v igorous ly (e.g. I l i a d i i , 8 7 ; Ap.Rh. 1 ,879) ; Verg i l follows these p receden t s i n t h e 6 t h book o f t h e Aeneid. I n t h e f i r s t book h e i l l u s t r a t e s b u i l d i n g a c t i v i t y a t Carthage by a d e s c r i p t i o n of t h e work of bees i n s u m e r . This seems to d e r i v e i t s moral tone from s i m i l e s i n Hesiod, where bees and drones make a p a t t e r n of behaviour analogous to t h a t of human be ings (W.D. 304; Th. 594).31 I n adop t ing Apollonius ' s i m i l e of t h e bee-keeper who smokes o u t bees (2 ,130) , Verg i l (12,587) a l l u d e s to t h e expos i t i on o f bee-keeping i n h i s Four th Georgic; scence of cerea regna (G. 4,202). comparison of t he a c t i v i t y o f t h e Tro jans p repa r ing t o l eave Car thage h a s t i l y wi th t h a t of a colony of a n t s (4 ,402) . s i m i l e of Apollonius (4 ,1453) , b u t t h e p rov iden t a n t , messor barbarus , to g ive i t i t s Linnaean name, appears a s a p e s t i n t h e Georgics (1,186). Verg i l r e f e r s to the h a r v e s t i n g a n t ' s h a b i t of s t o r i n g g r a i n , perhaps because i t occur red i n a n c i e n t f a b l e s (e.g. Fab.Aesop. 295 Halm) and perhaps a l s o because i n p o i n t of zoologica l fact i t i s t rue . 32 Comnentators have remarked on metaphors from human s o c i e t y wi th in t h i s s imile , e.g. agmina cogunt (406) , a m i l i t a r y ph rase ; w e may a l s o n o t e

t h e ph rase c e r e a castra (12,589) i s a remini- The s t r a n g e s t of V e r g i l ' s animal s imiles i s t h e

The a n t i s mentioned ( b u t n o t desc r ibed ) i n a

67

t ha t the ra re word convectare i s a l so used by Vergil i n the catalogue to descr ibe the l i f e o f tough I t a l i a n s from Aequi t e r r i t o r y (7,749): Servius comnents tha t the wards i t nigrum campis agmen (404) were used by h i u s o f elephants and by Accius of Indians. cence consciously, once again he de l ibe ra t e ly made a t a c i t comparison between the t iny animals and something la rge , a s happens frequently i n h i s descr ip t ions of bees. The d i f f i c u l t y i s not i n the elaborate s imile i t s e l f , but i n i t s context, for i m e - d i a t e l y a f t e r i t there i s an impassioned apostrophe to Dido:

cortvectare iuvat praedas).

If t h i s i s t rue , and i f Vergil used the reminis-

qu is t i b i tum, Dido, cernent i t a l i a sensus (408),

so tha t there i s an abrupt t r ans i t i on from the homely s imile to the descr ipt ion o f Dido's frenzied unhappiness. According to Servius ad s tudium r e s p i c i t cornparatio hoc loco, the words non ad personas being added l a t e r ; and indeed semita ferwet i n the s imile corresponds t o l i t o r a ferverc i n the context (407 and 409). Perhaps Servius had reservat ions about the propriety of t h i s s imile i n i t s pos i t ion , and i t i s possible tha t a s there a r e t races of unfinished work i n the passage (400 i s a h a l f - l i n e ) , Vergil was undecided about the exact placing of h i s s imi le of the ants . On the o ther hand there i s a s t rong emphasis on the visual i n these l ines : the imper- sonal cernas (401) before the s imile , cernent i (408), prospiceres (410). vidercs (410) a l l i n the apostrophe to Dido, and a l so vides i n Dido's words to Anna (416), and so

the s imile seems t o suggest the undignified has te of the Trojans a s seen by Dido. On t h i s in te rpre ta t ion the choice of s imile i s appropriate , for the scurrying an ts a r e l i k e the impersonal mass of Trojan s a i l o r s seen a t a distance. I t i s a t t h i s point t h a t Dido f i r s t sees the r e a l i t y of the Trojan departure.

In s imiles based on the l i f e of the farmer o r the shepherd there a r e reminiscences of the Georgies s imi la r t o those already noted i n many of the animal s imiles . The s imile of the crops destroyed by f i r e o r flood (2,304) repeats four words

sa t a l a e t a boumque labores from a descr ipt ion of storms i n the spr ing i n the First Georgic (1,325). Vergil thus incorporated i n new work a memorable phrase from the old. of the same kind i n the following s imiles: countryfolk who hide from a hai ls torm (10,803); the storm tha t comes i n from the sea and br ings ruin to crops (12.451); the shepherd who l i g h t s sca t te red f i r e s among the s tubble and then looks down i n triumph on a wide conflagrat ion (10,405; cf. G. 2,303 f f . ; see a l s o A. 12,521).

There i s subject matter

33

One o f the most d i f f i c u l t s imiles of the Aeneid i s tha t of the woman who i s compelled to earn a l i v ing by spinning and lengthens the time ava i lab le by making her s laves work by the l i g h t of the f i r e ; she does t h i s in order t o keep her husband's bed chaste and br ing up her family (8,408). In Homer a h i red woman weighs wool i n order t o earn money for he r chi ldren ( x i i 433); i n Apollonius (4.1062) a newly widowed woman surrounded by her sobbing chi ldren spins a t night. Vergil takes over some points from these sources, but there a r e two important differences. I t i s not c l ea r i n Vergil whether the woman remains f a i th fu l t o the memory of her dead husband o r whether he i s s t i l l a l i v e and separated from he r through army serv ice o r o the r cause. Secondly, she owns s laves (famufas - 411). A t Os t ia there were women who owned s laves and plumbers' shops; on the other hand, a t the end of the Republic some small holdings were worked without any s lave labour (Varro RR 1,172). Perhaps w e should ra ther compare the l i f e of women spinning andweering i n Terence's Heouton Timoroumenos; 129-30 Kb'.).34 In any case i t seems impossible to d is t inguish l i t e r a r y t r a d i t i o n from soc ia l r e a l i t y i n Verg i l ' s simile. We cannot deduce anything about the s imi le from i t s context a s i t i s used merely to ind ica te a time i n the night . There a r e no o ther s imiles from trades i n Vergil.

and i n the Menander o r ig ina l (Ter. HT 285 f f ; Menander fJT

68

The f i r s t s imi l e i n t h e Aeneid i s taken from Roman p o l i t i c a l l i f e (1,148): Neptune calms the sea i n the way t h a t a statesman who i s respected f o r h i s personal p r e s t i g e m o l l i f i e s a s e d i t i o u s mob. Homer compares a tu rbu len t crowd t o a rough sea ( I l i a d ii 144) and the comparison w a s popular i n Roman r h e t o r i c a l s o ; Vergi l reverses the u s u a l p i c t u r e and con tex t , so t h a t the mob becomes the s i m i l e and the sea the o b j e c t of comparison. 35 I n the I l i a d (xvi 386) the re i s a r e fe rence wi th in a s i m i l e t o v i o l e n t men who p e r v e r t j u s t i c e i n pub l i c . Verg i l ’ s statesman i s p r a i s e d for a v i r t u e t h a t i s e s s e n t i a l l y Roman ( p i e t a t e gravem ac mer i t i s - 151). Conway, and more r e c e n t l y Pb’schl have suggested t h a t Verg i l r e f e r r e d s p e c i f i c a l l y t o the younger Cato, who i s dep ic t ed on the s h i e l d of Aeneas a s one who i s t h e a n t i t h e s i s of the f i r e -b rand C a t i l i n e and d i spenses judgments t o t h e j u s t (8 ,668 f f . ) . 36 had any i n c i d e n t i n l a t e Republican h i s t o r y i n mind; o r usurping a u c t o r i t a s , t h a t i s , the q u a l i t y of t he man who i s p i e t a t e g rav i s . i s probably p re sen t ing an i d e a l statesman who may have been based on the specu la t ions of p o l i t i c a l theory. Fu r the r , the statesman i n the f i r s t s i m i l e of the poem has the pietas which i s r e f e r r e d t o i n the ornamental e p i t h e t o f Aeneas; i t i s a l s o o f g r e a t importance f o r t he motivat ion o f t he whole s to ry .

I t i s however u n l i k e l y t h a t Verg i l h i s pa t ron Augustus w a s assuming

Vergi l

War and the weapons of t he war a r e used as m a t e r i a l fo r similes. The women o f Carthage lament loudly a t t h e s u i c i d e o f Dido a s i f Carthage o r Tyre were f a l l i n g t o a bes i eg ing enemy (4,669). 37 This i s not a f u l l s i m i l e , i n t h a t they mourn t h e i r queen i n the way t h a t they would mourn i f t h e i r c i t y were occupied i n war. depa r tu re p o i n t i s probably the I l i a d s i m i l e s o f the besieged c i t y ( x v i i i , 2 0 7 ) and t h e burning town (xx i ,522) , but h i s comparison draws on the immediate con tex t , t he c i t y of Carthage. The s i m i l e emphasizes the c l o s e connexion between the f a t e of Dido and the we l fa re of h e r c i t y (4 ,655) , a l l u d e s t o a main theme o f t he Aeneid, t h e i r r e - c o n c i l a b l e enmity between Carthage and Rome, and by an ob l ique r e fe rence t o fu tu re h i s t o r y , h i n t s a t t he eventual d e s t r u c t i o n of Carthage (see 1 , 2 1 f . ; 10.11 f f . : 10 ,53 f f . ) . opponent i n the way t h a t a bes i ege r a t t a c k s a c i t y o r h i l l - t o w n (5,439) . 38 h u r l e d by a b a l l i s t a i l l u s t r a t e the speed of a weapon o r a cavalryman’s f a l l (12,921; 11,616). and an arrow’s f l i g h t t he specd of a s h i p o r a Fury s e n t on t o the e a r t h (10,248;

Verg i l ’ s

I n the games i n Book 5 a cunning boxer seeks an opening a g a i n s t a heavy-weight Stones

12,856).

Verg i l has one s i m i l e from a contemporary b u i l d i n g technique, the u s e o f hydrau l i c cement. The f a l l of a s o l d i e r i n heavy armour i s compared t o the f a l l of a p r e - f a b r i c a t e d conc re t e block i n t o the sea a t Baiae (9,710). h y d r a u l i c cement, and Vi t ruv ius ( 2 , 6 ; 5 ,12) the technique o f u s i n g i t i n under-water bui lding. This technique was employed i n Augustan t i m e s both f o r p u b l i c works such a s Agrippa’s p o r t u s I u l i u s and a l s o fo r v i l l a s b u i l t i n t o the sea. These seem t o have a f fo rded as much p l e a s u r e t o t h e i r owners as they gave o f fence t o phi losophers and o t h e r declaimers. The t echn ica l process seems n o t t o have been known o r a t any r a t e no t a v a i l a b l e fo r Greek harbour cons t ruc t ions .

P l i n y the E lde r (NH 35,166) d e s c r i b e s

39

Horace r e f e r s s e v e r a l t i m e s t o t hese f e a t s of engineer ing, no tab ly i n the 1st ode o f t he t h i r d book (3.1.33-37). 2,1,11-13) a p i e c e of s y n t h e t i c i nd igna t ion about luxury i n domestic a r c h i t e c t u r e inc lud ing v i l l a s b u i l t i n t o the water, and the same theme i s p a r t of a more genertil c a s t i g a t i o n o f t he p l e a s u r e s o f the r i c h i n Seneca the Younger ( E p p . 89.21). But t h e t o p i c cannot be dismissed as no more than a r h e t o r i c i a n ’ s comnonplace, f o r i t i s p o s s i b l e t h a t s u b j e c t ma t t e r from the poe t s found i t s way i n t o the s tock of declamatory themes. More important , Horace and Verg i l have d i f f e r e n t a t t i t u d e s towards t h i s topic . Horace regards the p i l i n g of masonry i n the sea a s p a r t of a h y b r i s t i c m a t e r i a l progress t h a t c o n t r a s t s with t h e i n e v i t a b i l i t y of death: h e t h e r e f o r e p r e s e n t s i t wi th a sneer (e.g.

There i s i n a Controversia o f t he Elder Seneca (Contr.

69

caernerrta demi t t i t redernptor - 35). and uses technical words. included the construction o f harbour works i n the bay of Naples along with the h i l l towns a s p a r t o f the glory o f I t a l y ( G . 2,155 f f . ) , and Aeneas a t Carthage i s shown admiring new buildings where there had recent ly been a shanty town ( A . 1,421 f f . ) . The s imile descr ibes the ac tua l moment of the masonry's descent i n t o the sea and the churning up of the sea bed tha t resu l t s . I t seems to have no p a r a l l e l i n the Greek ep ic t r ad i t i on , and in any case the process described i s spec i f i ca l ly Roman; s imi le contains no technical terms and i n r e fe r r ing to the Ti tan Typhoeus i t s language becomes hyperbolic. unbecoming o r morally degrading, and presented i t with poe t ica l and even ornamental 1 anguage.

Vergil however had

but the

Thus Vergil used a subject which t o him implied nothing mater ia l ly

There a re a l so s imiles taken from the visual a r t s . Venus gives Aeneas a t t r a c t i v e h a i r and f lashing eyes, a s an a r t i s t ' s s k i l l transforms ivory o r a s s i l v e r or marble a r e chased with gold (1,592). technique; Vergil may a l s o have i n mind the technique of making chryselephantine s t a tues and of adding to a s t a t u e eyes and other d e t a i l s i n a d i f f e r e n t mater ia l . Ea r l i e r i n Book 1 there i s a descr ipt ion of the paint ings of Troy (1,456 f f . ) , and so a s imile from a r t i s pa r t i cu la r ly appropriate a t t h i s point . Ascanius i s compared to a gem o r ivory i n i t s s e t t i n g (10,134); t h i s presumably r e fe r s t o Greek gold vases s e t with gems such as were famous i n the f i r s t century B.C. and a piece of furn i ture i n l a i d with ivory. 40 from the Homeric s imile ( I l i a d iv,141).

The g i ld ing o f marble s t a tues i s pr imari ly a Roman

The comparison of Lavinia 's blush (12.67) to dyed ivory der ives

h e s imile i s derived from re l ig ious experience. The personif ied goddess Roma, of whom i t i s said:

septemque una s i b i muro circumdabit arces

(6,783, a l i n e repeated from G. 2,535), i s compared to Cybele r id ing through the c i t i e s o f F'hrygia and surrounded by her divine descendants (6,784). the f i r s t t o assoc ia te with Cybele the Trojan legend and the o r ig ins of Rome, for she p ro tec t s the Trojan forces i n Book 9,77 f f . and i s appealed to by Aeneas (10,252 f f . ) . Norden regards the s imile as Greek i n i t s overtones and r e fe r s to the Greek in sp i r a t ion o f the Gemma Augustea, i n which Cybele appears with Augustus; the goddess Roma appears on Augustan a r t , e.g. the Al ta r of G z ~ r t h a g e . ~ ~ s imi le a subject which i s a l s o found i n the na r ra t ive of the Aeneid.

Vergil seems t o have been

Once again Vergil has chosen for a

Vergil compares boats racing i n the games to a char io t race (5,144); several words a r e repeated from a . s imi l a r descr ipt ion i n the Third Georgic (certarnine. . .currus , C. 3,103-4 and A. 5,144-5).42 Orestes wfio i s scaenis ag i t a tus (4,469). According to Servius these a r e both refe. rences to plays by Pacuvius. 43 Dream experience i s the source of a shor t comparison (6,702) and of two s imi les , i n the f i r s t of which the phantom Aeneas i s compared to a ghost o r a f igure i n a dream (10,641). The second i s more important. The col lapse ofTurnus' s t rength and energy i s compared to a man's vain endeavours i n a dream i n which he t r i e s t o run but f inds tha t h i s physical powers f a i l him (12,908). There i s a dream s i m i l e a t the climax of the Iliad (xxi i ,199) t o descr ibe the unsuccessful e f f o r t s of two f igures kith pupsuer and pursued. Vergil has only one f igure and h i s anxiety dream has a much more complex psychological content. This s imi le i s akin to Dido's dream i n the na r ra t ive of Book Four, a nightmare of oppression, f rus t r a t ion and lone l iness (4,465 f f . ) .

Dido, i n her nightmare, i s compared to Pentheus and to

44

One simile draws on the games of children. Amata i s inc i t ed by Allecto and rushes In Homer a so ld i e r s t ruck i n through the c i t y l i k e a top whipped by chi ldren (7,378).

b a t t l e i s compared to a spinning top (If. xiv,413), but Vergi l ' s s imile i s imnediately modelled on l i nes i n an epigram of Callimachus ( E p . 1 Pf.), i n which chi ldren chase t h e i r tops and shout:

70

T;v rnT& oavrbv ha.

In Vergil’s simile there i s one top instead of many, and he presents with carefu l ly chosen epic language a theme that i s taken over from a d i f f e r e n t genre of poetry. There i s disagreement among scholars about the tone and intent ion of t h i s simile i n i t s context. Conway considers i t an example of a ‘gent le humour’: ‘ t he angry o ld lady Amata spinning about the town so wildly that she i s compared to a top’: to PSschl, however, the top s imile suggests a t r ag ic development, and to Magdalena von Ixlhn i t s i g n i f i e s that Amata w i l l throw the house of Latinus in to confusion and destroy it.45 Certainly there i s nothing comical about the woman who d ie s ra ther than see her daughter married to the leader of what she considers the occupying power ( 1 2 , s f f . ) . One o f the points of comparison i s tha t Amata i s impelled by Allecto a s the top i s driven by a force outside i t s e l f . The subject matter o f t h i s simile i s frivolous, but there i s no l ev i ty in the context.

There a re two s imiles from everyday objects. Turnus i s s t i r r e d to fury by Allecto in the way that a cauldron of water bo i l s and steams (7,462). Vergil expresses the everyr!ay occurrence with in tens i f ied poe t ica l language, e.g. l a t i c e s (464). and amnis (465) in the sense of l iquid i n movement. Homer compares the burning of the waters by Hephaistos to the seething of a cauldron in which p ig f a t i s rendered down ( I l . xxi, 362). Vergil does not mention any such humble process, for he i s descr ibing the emotions of the hero Turnus. A t the beginning of Book 8 Aeneas’ mind i s turning from one problem to another and i s compared to a f l icker ing l i gh t re f lec ted from water (8,22). A s imilar comparison i l l u s t r a t e s the pa lp i t a t ing hear t of Medea i n Apollonius (3,756). Now what i s an appropriate s i m i l e to describe a g i r l i n love i s not necessar i ly approp- r i a t e to a so ld ie r and p o l i t i c a l leader, and while Wartle Fowler and Piischl have defended the ornate Alexandrian p re t t i nes s of Vergil’s s imile , Heinze has condemned i t a s far- fetched.46 scene of ag i ta t ion and decision i s usually i l l u s t r a t e d by a simile. scene including the simile of the sea tha t does not know which way to turn (11. xiv 9 f f . ) i s sometimes quoted as a p a r a l l e l , but a c loser pa ra l l e l for the pr incipal character who turns h i s troubles over i n h i s mind before sleeping i s Odysseus i n Book 20 of the Odyssey; t h i s s i tua t ion i s i l l u s t r a t e d by s imiles of a barking b i tch and a man turning a black pudding (20.14: 20,25). If t h i s i s a t rue p a r a l l e l , Vergil , who of ten took over a s imile from a corresponding place i n the I l i a d and Odyssey, re jected the unheroic similes and i n order to i l l u s t r a t e mental ag i ta t ion chose instead a decorative s imile from Apollonius.

The reason for Vergi l ’s choice can perhaps be found i n Homer, where the Nestor’s decision

A f inal group of s imiles has mythological or fabulous subject matter, e.g. the pa t te rn of the labyrinth, Centaurs, Orion etc . Camilla and her troops a re compared t o Amazons around Hippolyte o r Penthesilea. 47 Dido, l i k e Nausicaa, i s compared to Diana/ Artemis pre-eminent among her companions ( . A . 1,498; Od. 6,102). Here the Homeric and Vergilian comparisons occur in a s imilar s i tua t ion , protect ion to fugi t ives from the sea.

for both women a re about to br ing

Vergil i s nearer to Apollonius Rhodius than to Homer i n the range of the subject matter of h i s s imiles , and even r e s t r i c t s the range of Apollonius. He has for the most pa r t adapted the work of h i s epic predecessors without introducing or ig ina l s imiles , though the s w i f t i n search of food has no forerunner, the concrete p i l e s i n the sea a re Roman, and other s imiles such a s the statesman contain Roman elements. Some of the s imiles from animals and natural phenomena are s e t i n I t a ly . Vergil has avoided most of Homer’s s imiles from trades and occupations; a l l h i s s imiles from t h i s sphere a r e ag r i cu l tu ra l , except that of the working woman, which i s bas ica l ly the sentimental s imile of d i s t ressed womanhood as found frequently i n Apollonius. He has a l so avoided Homer’s similes from unheroic people and unpoetic everyday objer t s : he has no loud- mouthed women, no squids and no black pudding. There a re a number of technical words i n the nar ra t ive of the Aeneid, notably a rch i tec tura l terms, for example testudo (1,505)

71

and the terms for warfare (12,672 f f . ) . Wlt in the s imiles words such as carcer a re exceptional, and Servius noted that i n one place Vergil preferred to r e fe r to the general term avis rather than t o the name of a species. There a re no technical terms i n the s imile of the p i l e s . Indeed, i f ever Vergil chooses a theme which suggests the unheroic, a s for example the top o r cauldron, he enhances i t by carefri l ly chosen poet ic vocabulary and ornamentation.

Mr. L. P. Wilkinson has recently argued that Vergil , l i ke Horace, adhered to the t r ad i t i on that good poetry could be composed of everyday words. 48 point of departure a remark a t t r i bu ted to Agrippa c r i t i c i s i n g Vergil for comnonplace language. Though no doubt great respect i s due to the ob i t e r d i c t a of a f i e l d marshal, they a re perhaps not a su f f i c i en t bas i s for judging the technique of a major poet. We would expect a p r i o r i the prac t ice of Vergil the ep ic poet to diverge from that of Horace the l y r i c i s t , and we have noted such divergences i n the i r t r e a t - ment o f the same theme. There i s nothing in the s imiles of the Aeneid tha t departs from the highest standard of ep ic digni ty and propriety.

He takes a s h i s

In l imit ing the range of h i s s imiles Vergil , l i k e Apollonius, was perhaps influenced by c r i t i c i sm based on generic propriety such a s i s re f lec ted i n Homer Scholia. I t i s a l so possible that the technical s imile became associated more and more with the t rad i t ion of d idac t ic poetry as exemplified by Empedocles and Lucretius. p rac t ice in t e rac t i n a complicated way, and Vergil , whose choice of s imiles was no doubt influenced by theory of propriety a s well as by precedents, i n turn dominated h i s epic successors i n the f i r s t century A.D., who adhere to and even r e s t r i c t h i s range. Exceptions a re few, and most of them a re i n Lucan, who was by nature inventive and i n

49 any case the wr i te r of an h i s t o r i c a l epic.

Theory and

Final ly there i s a pos i t ive aspect of Vergil 's choice of simile. There a re many correspondences between the similes and the r e s t of h i s work. Vergil was conscious of the continuity of h i s work, and t h i s cont inui ty appears i n the repe t i t ions and adapta- t ions i n the Aeneid of l i n e s from the Georgics. In choosing topics which had already occurred i n the Georgics Vergil enriched h i s s imiles with the associat ions to be drawn from h i s e a r l i e r work. Often the subject matter of a simile i s a l so important i n the nar ra t ive . an important pro tec t ress of Aeneas' connexion between Carthage in the s imile and the fa te of Carthage a s referred to throughout the poem. Elsewhere the connexion i s l e s s spec i f ic , as i n the s imi le of the statesman who shows p ie tas , a cardinal v i r tue of the whole Aeneid. Sometimes i t i s a general appropriateness: for example, the sculpture s i m i l e occurs shor t ly a f t e r an g q p a a ~ < on the paintings of Troy, or a s imi la r i ty of technique, a s i n Dido's dream and the nightmare simile j u s t before the f ina l defeat of Turnus. A l l such connexions are pa r t of the uni ty of the Aeneid.

Cybele i s used in a s imile t o descr ibe Roma because she i s l a t e r t o be followers. In the same way there i s a c lose

50

University College London

NOTES

1 R. H e i n z e , Virgils Epische Technik ed.4 (Stuttgart 1957). V. Poschl, Die Dichtkunst Virgifs (Innsbruck-Vlenna 1950); K. Schner, P. Verdifius Maro (Stuttgart 1955); r f . FrLkel, Die hanerischen Gleichnissk (Gb'ttingen 1921).

2 'here i s a u s e f u l warning a g a i n s t t h e s t a t i s t i c a l a proach t o imagery i n W. H. Clemen, The Development of Shakespeare's Imagery' (London 1951) i.

3 Poetics 1447 and 146lb 26.

72

4 See f o r example, A. E. Harvey, ‘The C l a s s i f i c a t i o n o f Greek L y r i c P o e t r y ’ , CQ NS 5 (1955) 157 f f .

5 Accius, Didascafica (Frg.13 Morel); Horace, A.P. 8 6 f . ; a i n t i l i a n 10,2,22; P l i n y Epp. 6 ,21 ,4 ; M a r t i a l , 12,94. On Horace see 0. Immisch,’Horazens E p i s t c l Gber d i e Dichtkunst’ , Phifofogus Supplbd 24,3, 1932, 95. On t h e h i e r a r c h y of gen res see J. F. D’Alton, Roman Lfterary Theory and Criticism (London 1931) 413 f f .

6 On ‘Iheophrastus’ theory o f st l e see C i c . , Or. 23,79 and 0. Regenbo en, “Iheophrastus von M. Pohlenz, E p s o g ’ RE Supplbd 7,1530. b p r o p r i e t y o f vocabulary see Pap. H i t eh 183.

Ein Beitrag zur Geschichte des griechischen Geistes, NG Gb’ttingen ( E e r l i n 1933) 53” %?: 7 Compare C ic . , opt. gen. 1,l.

8 B. Axelson, Unpoefische Vdrter, S k r i f t e r u t g i v n a av Vetenskaps-Societeten 9 Lund 29 (Lund 1945).

9 Ed. F raenke l , Horace (Oxford 1957) 159 f .

10 On t h e s u b j e c t ma t t e r o f t h e Hpmeric s imi le , i n a d d i t i o n t o t h e work of H. F r L k e l ( n o t e 1 above) , see: A. Severyns, Homere I11 ( B r u s s e l s 1948) ; hlar a r e t e Riemschneider, Homer Entwickfung und Stif ed.2 ( L e i z i g 1952) , esp. 141 ( h e r a n a y y t i c a l c o n c l u s i o n s , however, are unaccep tab le ) ; T. B. L. d b s t e r , From Mycenae t o Homer (London 1958) , esp. 218 f f .

11 H. F r i n k e l , Dichtung undPhilosophie des frchen Griechentums (New York 1951) 64.

1 2 For t h e term nxm1,~6< see A r . Poet. 1458a 18 f f . and Bywater on 1458a 20.

1 3 M. H. A. L. Van d e r Valk, The Textual Criticism of the Odyssey (Leiden 1949), 118 and 157 f f .

1 4 H. Herter, Heffenistiche Dichtung 11, JAW 285 (1944-55) 262 and 266.

1 5 A. Lesky, @MA!I!I!A Der Weg der Griechen zum Meer (Vienna 1947) 257 f f .

16 Herter, 264 f . o n s t a r similes H. Fae rbe r , Zur dichterischen Kunst in Apollonios Rhodioa Argonautica, D i s s . B e r l i n 1932, 11 f f . For t h e S c h o l i a see C. Wendel, Schofia in Apolfonium Rhodium Vetera ( B e r l i n 1958).

See a l s o Wilamowitz, Heffenistische Dichtung I1 ( B e r l i n 1924) 304 f .

17 H. Friinkel, ‘Das Argonautenepos d e s Apollonios’ MH 14 (1957) 8; J . F. Carspecken, Rhodius and t h e Homeric E i c ’ , YCS 13 (1952) 64 f f . ; Herter, 264 f . on r e a l i s t i c i n similes from gods see f . Ku les sa , Zur Bifdersprache des Apollonios von Rhodoa (Bres l au 1938) 9. H. Erbse, 190 f f . esp. 195.

10,603; 12,84; 12 ,923) ; . h a l l storms: 5,458. 9,668; o t h e r weather phenomena: 11 611; 11,616; 12,84 (comparisons) ; sea: 7 ,528; 7,586; 7,718; 7,810; 10,693; 11,624; mountain: 9,6$4 (comparison); 12,684; 12,701.

Note on t h e o t h e r hand Apollonius’ consc ious withdrawal from evefyday language: ‘Homerscholien und h e l l e n i s t i s c h e Glossare b e i Apollonios Rhodios , Hermes 81 (1953)

18 Gales: 2,416; 10,97; 10,356; 12,365; 12 ,451 (comparisons wi thou t main verb: 5,242; 6 ,702;

r i v e r s : 9 ,30 ; 11,297 {used of t h e murmurin s o f an assemblyj , 12,523;

19 E. Norden, P. Vergifius Maro Aeneis Buoh VI ed.4 (Darmstadt 1957)

20 Shoot ing s t a r : 5,527; comet or S i r i u s 10,272; L u c i f e r 8 ,589; moonlight:

21 FA on x i v 317.

22 Trees: 2 626r 3 679; 4,441; 5,448; 9 ,674; 9 ,679;

8.1.

l i g h t n i n g : 8 ,391; b r i g h t cloud: 8 ,622; rainbow: 5,88.

p l a n t s and l eaves : 6 ,309 plant , , the mistletoe, t o i l l u s t r a t e t h e golden bough: 6 ,205.

6 ,270; 6,453;

7,720; a f a m i l i a r

23 S e r v i u s a.f. r e f e r s t o t h e Hyacinthus myth, an unconvincing a l l e g o r i c a l i n t e r p r e t a t i o n .

24 See p a r a l l e l s c o l l e c t e d by Norden a.f., e.g. A.P. 7 ,485 and Carm. Epigr. 467,578 (s.). co lour c o n t r a s t of r e d and w h i t e f lowers was common i n Greek poe t ry , e.g. Theocr. 11,57. 62 ,39 h a s a fo re runne r i n Sappho 105(c ) (LB); 19551, 121.

o f c o n t r a s t i n g c o l o u r Cat . 61 ,193 f f . ; see a l s o Cat . 61.21 f f . and K r o l l a . f . , who r e f e r s t o theof For rose and l i l y t o i l l u s t r a t e a woman’s beauty see e.g. A.P. 5 , 3 5 , 5 f f .

26 Lion: 9 ,339; 9 ,792; 10,454; 10,723; 12,4; t i g e r : 9 ,730; fera: 9 , 5 5 1 ( S e r v i u s auc t . s t a t e s t h a t some commentators i d e n t i f y t h i s b e a s t w i th t h e pardus); wolf: 2,355; 9’59; 9,565; 11,811; boar: 10,707. For t h e wolf and boar i n Ecf. and G. see e.g.: E c f . 5,60; C. 3,537; Ecf. 5 76; G. 3,411. V e r g i l ’ s l i o n i s a nob le an ima l , t h a t o f Homer sometimes a low marauder: This change may i n p a r t be due t o t h e p i c t u r e o f t h e nob le l i o n i n t h e o r i s t s l i k e A r i s t o t l e and i n p a r t to an a t t i t u d e d e r i v e d from t h e pageantry o f H e l l e n i s t i c monarchs and t h e Roman

The Cat .

see Denys Page, Sappho and Alcaeus (Oxford

25 c f . S t a t i u s Sifv. 1 ,2 ,244 f . ; Lygd. (Tib. 3 ,4 ,30 f f . ). For comparison o f b r i d e to f lowers

o f such comparisons i n Menander Rhetor (Rhet. Gr. 3, 404.6 Sp.) .

73

people; see J . Aymard, ' Imanem V e l i t t i Pecora Irvter I n e r t i a T ig r im ' , R.Ph. Sdr. 3, 18 ( 1944) 7 1 f . A. 2,475= G. 3,439; A. 2 473 = G. 3,437 ( e x c e p t nunc a t t h e beg inn ing o f t h e l i n e f o r cum i n t h e ea r l i e r poem). The s imi le of t h e wounded ' snake on t h e road ( 5 , 2 7 3 ) c o n t a i n s the f a v o u r i t e e p i t h e t arduus (G. 3,439; A. 2,475; A. 5 ,278) ; i t i s used i n t h e l i g h t - h e a r t e d c o n t e x t o f t h e c r i p l e d boa t i n t h e c o n t e x t ( n o t e : inrisam ... ratem, 272). games t o d e s c r i b e wEeeling horsemen i n t h e simile of do lph ins ( 5 594) , which a l s o appear on t h e s h i e l d of Aeneas (8 ,673) . Virgil Aeneid V,(Oxford 1960)on 5,448-9 and W. S. M a p i n n e s s , Virgil Aeneid Book XZI (London 1953) on 12,715 f .

Deer: 4,69; 12,749 (12,750 c G. 3,372); ho r se : 11,402 ( c f . Iliad v i , 5 0 6 ; Ap.Rh. 3,1259; Ennius Ann. 514-8 Vahlen ed.3; Macrobius S. 6 , 3 , 7 ; S e r v i u s 8.1.; Heinze, Virgifs Epische Technik ed.3, 258 n . ) ; b u l l s : 12,103 (12 ,104 - G. 3,232; 12,105-6 = G. 3,233-4); 12,715.

B i r d o f prey: 9 ,563; 11,721; 11,751; a s omen: 1 ,393; 12,247.

R. D. W i l l i a m s on 5,213; Ed. Fraenkel , Gedanken zur einer deutschen Vergiffeier ( B e r l i n 1930) 41 f .

On t h e CZ;VO< i n Hesiod 's similes s e e I . Se l l s chop , Stifistische Untersuchungen LU Hesiod (Hamburg 1934) 86 f .

W. R i c h t e r , Vergif Georgica (Munich 1957) 145 i s vague on tlie p o i n t . But see T. F. Royds, The Beasts. Birds and Bees of Virdif (Oxford 1918. e d . 2 ) , 2 9 f f . For t h e h a b i t s of messor berbarus see J. T. Moggridge, hatveating ants and trap-door spiders (London 1873, supp l . 1874); A. D. Imms rev. 0. W. R icha rds and H. G. Davies (London 1957 ed .9 ) . I am g r a t e f u l t o Mr. R. B. Freeman, Reader i n Taxonomy i n t h e U n i v e r s i t y o f London, f o r a d v i c e on t h i s s u b j e c t .

?here is an element o f Homeric background i n t h e s e similes from t h e coun t rys ide : i v ,275 ; x i , 155 ; xx,490.

R. Meiggs, Roman Ostia (Oxford 1960) 229; W. L. Westermann, The Slave Systems of Greek and Roman Antiquity ( P h i l a d e l p h i a 1955) 76 f .

Heinze (206 n .1 ) quo te s Cic . Clu. 49,138 (quod saepe dictum est); between V e r g i l ' s procedure and t h a t of C i c e r o i n M i l . 2 ,5 . Ver i l compares murmuring i n t h e assembly o f t h e gods t o t h e sound o f a f r e s h e n i n g wind (10,971.

R. S. Conway, P. Vergifi M. Aeneidos L'iber Pr imus (Cambridge 1935) on l i n e 148; P'dschl 34 f f . They r e f e r t o an i n c i d e n t o f 54 B.C. i n which Cat0 wi ths tood and p a c i f i e d a r i o t o u s mob ( P l u t . Cat. Min. 44). Pb'schl does n o t p r e s s t h e r e f e r e n c e c l o s e l y and a r d s a a i n s t a l l e R o r i z i n g . On t h e r e p u t a t i o n o f Ca t0 immediately a f t e r t h e f a l l of t h e r e p u b E c see gyme, The Roman Revolution (Oxford 1939) 317 f . More p e r t i n e n t i s ano the r p a r a l l e l o t e d by Conway t h a t o f a speech by S c i i o a d d r e s s i n g mut inee r s (Livy 28,27,11; Polyb, 11,%,9-10) i n which he compares them t o t i e s e a t h a t i s c o n t r o l l e d by winds. equa te s auctoritas wi th t h e q u a l i t y o f t h e man who i s pietate gravis.

For t h e c l o s e connexion o f Tyre and Car thage see 1,12.

To t a k e mofibus wi th cefsam ( 4 3 9 ) , t h e i n t e r p r e t a t i o n favoured by T. E. Page and n. D. Williams, s u i t s t h e c o n t e x t b e t t e r , f o r t h e massive F n t e l l u s i s d e f e a t e d by h i s opponent 's speed r a t h e r than t h e ower o f h i s punch. Warde Fowler, The .Death of Turnus, 120, s u g g e s t s a connexion between t i e a n a c h r o n i s t i c t e c h n i c a l terms a t 12,672 f f . ( n a r r a t i v e ) and t h e war commentaries o f J u l i u s Caesar .

G. L u g l i , L a tecnica edilizia Romena (Rome 1958) 165, 394 f f . ; Construction (Washington 1947) 346 f . (on t h e p o r t u s I u l i u s ) and 245 ( r ema ins o f v i l l a s of Augustan times on c o a s t Anzio-Posi l ipo); the Roman Empire ed. 2 (Oxford 1957) 60-2 ( p l . v i i i - i x ) ; rSmische A r o h i t e c t u r l a n d s c h a f t , R'dm. Mitt. 26, 1911, 75; P l i n y Epp. 9 , 7 , 2 ; K. Lehmann- Har t l eben , 'Die a n t i k e n Hafenanlagen d e s Mittelmeeres' , Klio R e i h e f t 14, 105. Hor. C. 3,1, 33 f f . (K ies s l ing -He inze ed.8, a.l.), C. 2,18,17 f f . (Ba iae i s mentioned h e r e ) , fipp. 1! 1,83 f f . , A.P. 6 3 f f . C l c e r o I n pro Caefio i s t a l k i n g t o a b r i e f ;

Also i n t h e

On similes wi th a geographical l o c a t i o n see R. D. Wil l iams,

i v ,452 ;

See a l s o Ter. Andr. 69 f f .

S e r v i u s n o t e s t h e c o n t r a s t

The S e r v l u s commentary on A. 1,155

Marion E. Blake, Ancient Roman

M. R o s t o v t z e f f , The Social and Economic History of R o s t o v t z e f f , '[lie h e l l e n i s t i s c h -

For an o b j e c t i v e d e s c r i p t i o n o f Daiae see S t r a b o 5 , 4 , 7 ( ~ 2 4 6 ) . c f . a l s o Varro RR 3 ,17 ,9 and Men. 44 B-H (Baiae?)

27

28

29

30

31

32

33

34

35

36

37

38

39

40 Fulys Carpen te r , AJA 35 (1931) 255-258, f o r a d e s c r i p t i o n o f a s i z i n g f o r go ld on t h e h a i r and On t h e t echn lcpe o f c h r y s e l e p h a n t i n e s t a t u e s see t h e s a n d a l s of t h e Hermes o f P r a x i t e l e s .

moulds found a t P h e i d i a s ' workshop a t Olympia (Kunze, Gnomon 27 (1955) 222 f . , 28 (1956) 318 f f . ) . On t h e p i c t u r e s o f Troy see R. D. Williams, C@ NS 10 (1960) 145 f f . R i c h t e r , Metr. Mus. of Art A", Catalogue of engraved gems (Rome 1956) x v i i i , who q u o t e s P l i n y NH 37,6 and S t r a b o 15 ,1 ,69 (=t718). and decora t ed wi th i v o r y ; a l s o G. M. A. R i c h t e r , Ancient F u r n i t u r e ~ ' ( 0 x f o r d 1926) 155 f f .

On gems see G. M. A.

BlGmner, RE 5,2,2360 .9-.V. El fenbe in on f u r n i t u r e made o f

4 1 K. L a t t e , Rzmische Refigionsgeschichte (Munich 1960) 260 n.3;

42 I n a d d i t i o n t o t h e a r a l l e l from Od. 13,81, quoted by Macrobius (Sat. 5 ,11 ,20 ) V e r g i l may have

Norden 323 f . ; R o s t o v t z e f f , Soc.Ec.Hist., 43 f . , and b ib l iog raphy t h e r e .

been i n f l u e n c e d by f;omer's t r i c k r i d e r (If. xv,679) . On A . 5,144-7 see Wil l iams a.1.

74

4 3 I t i s p o s s i b l e t h a t t h e r e f e r e n c e i s t o t h e Duforestes, b u t such a s cene could have occur red only i n t h e l a s t few l i n e s o f t h e p l ay . i t t o t h e Hermione, b u t i t i s j u s t a s l i k e l y t o have come from t h e Chrysea or from some p l a y , t h e t i t l e o f which h a s n o t come down t o us.

Warmington (Remains of Old Latin, V01.2, 227) a s s i g n s

44 GI t h e Homeric simile see E. R. Dodds, The Greeks and the Irrational (Berkeley and Los h g e l e s 1951) 106. H. R. S t e i n e r , Der T r a m in der Aeneis (Bern 1952) 7 2 f f . compares t h e two; see a l s o h i s a n a l y s i s o f d i f f e r e n c e s between Dido’s dream (4 ,465 f f . ) and i l i a ’ s dream i n Ennius Ann, 35 f f - v ed. 3 ( 5 0 f . ) ; on t h e H e l l e n i s t i c background t o I l i a ’ s dream, W.-H. F r i e d r i c h ,

p. J. Enk, Pfauti Mercator (Leiden 1932) 7 f f . ‘Ennnins-Ertcr;;rurrgrrr’, Philofogus 97 (1948) 288, on Greek e l emen t s i n dreams i n Roman comedy

quae res ex puerorum l u s i b u s ducto n e e p i c i c a r m i n i s d i g n i t a t i d e t r a h e r e t , i p s a t r a c t n t i o n e e t d i c t i o n i s g r a v i t a t e poetam e f f e c i s s e . Note e. . t h e u s e o f habena (380) f o r t h e u s u a l flagellum a s P e r s i u s 3 51, and t h a t Callimachus’ c h i l i r e n p l ay i n t h e s t reet , V e r g i l ’ s vacua atria circum. turbo, 7A 2, 1374 f f . C h i l d r e n ’ s games a r e a f r e e n t sou rce o f exempfa i n Horace e. S. 2,3,171; 2 ,3 ,247; ( 1 , 5 , 3 f . ) u s e s a mimile o f a t o R. S. Con&.iy, The Vergifian Age PCmbridge Mass.1928) 142;

‘Die G l e i c h n i s s e ?n d m Al lac toszenen des,7 Buches von Ver ils Aeneis’, Gymnasium 6 4 (19.57) 83. G e r t r u d e Hirst , Note on Verg i l Aeneid 7 , 376-64’, CQ 3 1 f1937) 6 5 f . , unaware o f t h e Cal l imachus p a r a l l e l , b e l i e v e s t h a t V e r g i l saw i n t h e top a snc red emblem o f Dionysus ( c f . 385 f f . ) , see R E S.V. turbo 1375,58. I t i s of cour se a p p r o p r i a t e t h a t a Eerson posses sed by Dignysus/Bacchus should ge compared t o a sp inn ing top. O T ~ @ L ~ O L meaning ‘ s p i n n i n g movement i n a dance’ see E. Roos, Die tragische Orchestik im Zerrbifd der aftottischen Komb’die (Lund 1951) 96 f f . and 205 f f .

46 On t h e simile i n Ap.Rh. see H. F r L k e l , AJPh 7 1 (1950) 127 n.29, who b e l i e v e s i t d e r i v e s

45 c f . Heyne a.1.:

For the a n c i e n t top see RE S.V. S p i e l z e u g 3A 2, 1776 and S . V .

T i b u l k i s t o d e s c r i b e h i s own s t a t e o f i n d e c i s i o n and tu rbu lence .

c h i l d r e n ’ s t o y s a r e m e n t i o n e r i n Homer, e:g. Od. 18,323.

Pb’schl, 50; Magdalena von Duhn,

GI t h e u s e o f P E p @ L q and

from S t o i c physics . ht assages such a s Ep ic t . 3,3, 20 f f . have a moral censo r iousness wh+ch . i s i n a p ro r i a t e i n xpo l lon ius ’ s i m i l e . p a i n t i n see x. gum f , JHS 67 (1947) 14. 1 9 1 7 ) 55 f . Pb.scgl, 239 ‘f.; Helnze, 250.

On t h e r e p r e s e n t a t i o n o f h igh l i g h t s i n Warde Fowler, Aenens at the Site of Rome (Oxford

47 P a t t e r n o f l a b y r i n t h : 5,588; maenad: 4,301; Centaur: 7 ,674; Aegaeon: 10,565; Orion: 10 763; Amazons: 11,659 ( s e e Ed. F raenke l , ‘Vergi l und d i e A i t h i o p i s ’ , Philofogus 87 (1932) 242 f f . j ; Mars: 12, 331.

48 L. P. Wilkinson, ‘The Language of V i r g i l and Horace’ , CQ NS 9 (1959) 181 f f . Suet . Vit. Verg. 44; see a l s o F. Marx, RhM 7 4 (1925) 185.

49 GI t h e t r a d i t i o n o f t h e i l l u s t r a t i v e simile i n d i d a c t i c v e r s e see: H. D i l l e r , (p-, Hermes 67 ( f932) 15.& 40 f . ; B. S n e l l , Die Entdeckung des Geistes ed.3 (Hamburg

G l e i c h n i s und Vergleich i n d e r f rGhgriechischen P h i l o s o p h i e ’ , Hermes 0. Regenbogen, Lukrez, seine Gestalt in seinem Gedicht ( L e i p z i g & B e r l i n 1932) 1955) 284 f f . , W. Kranz,

73 (1938) 108; 44; W. Kranz, ‘Lukrez und Empedocles’ Philofogus 96 (1944) 79 f f .

Similes i n 1st cen tu ry A.D. e p i c o u t s i d e t h e range of Ver i l ‘s similes: Lucan: As tu r i an gold-miner (4 ,297) ; g l a d i a t o r (4 ,285; 4,!08); perfume sp ray i n t h e a t r e

( 9 , 8 0 8 ) ; V a l e r i u s Flaccus: t anne r (6 ,358, c f . If. 17,389) c i v i l war (6 ,402) ; can ine h y s t e r l a (7 ,1241; S t a t i u s : u n c e r t a i n l o y a l t i e s a t Achaemenid c o u r t i T h . 8 ,286) ; c o l l a p s e o f mine-shaft (Th. 6,880 S i l i u s I t a l i c u s : men dug o u t shocked from a f a l l e n b u i l d i n g (7 ,727) ; c i t y (17 ,504) ; widening r i p p l e s i n a pond made b a pebb le ( 1 3 24; c f . Sen. NQ 1,!,2). t h e wider r m g e o f Ovid’s Metamorphoses, e. ( 2 , 8 2 5 ) ; hiss from l i m e k i l n ( 7 , 1 0 6 ) ; mur8kr o f J u l i u s Caesa r (1 ,200) ; w i t h e p i c i s i n s t r u c t i v e .

bod ie s t r apped under a c o l l a p s e d b u i l d i n g (2 ,187) ; quick dea th by Po i son ing (9 ,819) ’

f i r e sp read in through Note

c h i l d l e a v i n g mother’s womb (7 ,125) ; d i s e a s e t h e c o n t r a s t h e r e

50 I a m g r a t e f u l t o P r o f . 0. Skutsch, ME. E. W. Handley and Mr. R. D. Williams f o r v a l u a b l e s u gg e s t i on s .

75