The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Roman Poets of the Augustan Age: Virgil by W. Y. Sellar This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at http://www.gutenberg.org/license Title: The Roman Poets of the Augustan Age: Virgil Author: W. Y. Sellar Release Date: October 29, 2010 [Ebook 34163] Language: English ***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE ROMAN POETS OF THE AUGUSTAN AGE: VIRGIL*** THE ROMAN POETS OF THE AUGUSTAN AGE: VIRGIL. BY W. Y. SELLAR, M.A., LL.D. LATE PROFESSOR OF HUMANITY IN THE UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH AND FELLOW OF ORIEL COLLEGE, OXFORD iv The Roman Poets of the Augustan Age: Virgil THIRD EDITION OXFORD AT THE CLARENDON PRESS OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS AMEN HOUSE, E.C. 4 London Edinburgh Glasgow New York Toronto Melbourne Capetown Bombay Calcutta Madras HUMPHREY MILFORD PUBLISHER TO THE UNIVERSITY vi The Roman Poets of the Augustan Age: Virgil IMPRESSION OF 1941 FIRST EDITION, 1877 THIRD EDITION, 1897 vii PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN TO E. L. LUSHINGTON, ESQ., D.C.L., LL.D., ETC. LATE PROFESSOR OF GREEK IN THE UNIVERSITY OF GLASGOW. MY DEAR LUSHINGTON, Any old pupil of yours, in finishing a work either of classical scholarship or illustrative of ancient literature, must feel that he owes to you, probably more than to any one else, the impulse which directed him to these studies. It is with this feeling that I should wish to associate your name with this volume. Many of your former pupils can confirm my recollection that one of the happiest influences of our youth was the admiration excited by the union, in your teaching, of perfect scholarship with a true and generous appreciation of all that is excellent in literature. The intimate friendship of many subsequent years has afforded me, along with much else of still higher value, ample opportunities for verifying these early impressions. Ever affectionately yours, W. Y. SELLAR. PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION This volume has been written in continuation of one which appeared some years ago on the Roman Poets of the Republic. I hope in a short time to bring out a new edition of that work, enlarged and corrected, and afterwards to add another volume which will treat of Horace and the Elegiac Poets. I have reserved for this later volume the examination of the minor poems which have been attributed to Virgil, most of which belong to the Augustan Age. Besides the special acknowledgments of ideas or information derived from various sources, which are made in notes at the foot of the page where an occasion for them arises, I have to make a general acknowledgment of the assistance I have received in my studies of the Augustan literature from the earlier volumes of Dr. Merivale’s ‘History of the Romans under the Empire,’ from the ‘History of Roman Literature’ by W. S. Teuffel, from M. Sainte-Beuve’s ‘Étude sur Virgile,’ and from the Introductions and Notes to Professor Conington’s edition of Virgil, and Mr. Munro’s edition of Lucretius. In the account given of the Alexandrian literature in Chapter I, I have availed myself of the chapters treating of that subject in Helbig’s ‘Campanische Wandmalerei’; in treating of the estimation in which Virgil was held under the Roman Empire, I have taken several references from the work by Sr. Comparetti, ‘Virgilio nel Medio Evo’; and in examining the order in which the Eclogues were composed, I have adopted the opinions expressed in Ribbeck’s Prolegomena. I have also derived some suggestions from the notes in the edition of Virgil by M. E. Benoist, and from the work of M. G. Boissier, ‘La Religion Romaine d’Auguste aux Antonins.’ As the greater part of this volume was written before the appearance of Dr. Kennedy’s Virgil, I have not been able to make so much use of his notes as I should have wished: I have, however, profited by them to correct or to illustrate statements made before I had seen x The Roman Poets of the Augustan Age: Virgil his work, and, in revising the Virgilian quotations for the press, I have followed his text. I did not read Mr. Nettleship’s valuable and original ‘Suggestions Introductory to the Study of the Aeneid’ until I had finished writing all I had to say about that poem. I have drawn attention in the text or in notes at the foot of the page to some places in which I modified what I had originally written after reading his ‘Suggestions,’ to others in which my own opinions are confirmed by his, and to one or two points of divergence in our views. Since the third chapter was printed off, I have received what seems a confirmation of the opinion expressed there as to the probable situation of Virgil’s early home, from a friend who recently visited the district, where I suppose it to have been. He writes of the country which he passed through—‘The result of my observations perfectly confirms what you had already supposed. The country south of the Lago di Garda for a distance of at least twenty miles is of a gently undulating character, and is intersected by long ranges of hills which gradually sink down towards the lake and the Mincio. The loftiest of these hills may perhaps reach a height of 1000 feet above the lake-level, but that is a point on which I cannot say anything certain.’ EDINBURGH, Nov. 1876. PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION The only material change which I have made in this edition is that I have added translations of the passages quoted, for the convenience of any readers, who, without much knowledge of Latin, may yet wish to learn something about Latin literature. In the translations from Virgil, I have sometimes made use of expressions which I found in Conington’s prose Translation and in Mr. Papillon’s recently published edition of Virgil. I have also availed myself of Sir Theodore Martin’s Translation of the Odes of Horace. In correcting or supplementing some statements made in the first edition, I have occasionally profited by remarks made in criticisms on that edition which appeared shortly after its publication. EDINBURGH, March, 1883. CONTENTS CHAPTER I. GENERAL INTRODUCTION. PAGE I. Relation of the Augustan Age to 1–8 other Literary Epochs Relation of the Augustan poetry to that 1 of the preceding Age Parallel of the Augustan Age with other 4 great literary Epochs —— especially with the Age of Louis 5 XIV Chief conditions modifying the poetry 7 of the Augustan Age II. Influence of the enthusiasm in 8–21 favour of the Empire General longing for peace 8 Revival of national sentiment and pride 10 of Empire Moral and religious reaction 13 Augustus the centre of the national en- 14 thusiasm Deification of the Emperor in the poetry 15 of the Age —— illustrated by other extant works 19 of art Direction given to national sentiment 20 by Augustus III. Influence of Patronage on the 21–31 Augustan Poetry Poetry employed in the interest of the 21 Government CONTENTS xiii Patrons of literature—Augustus 22 Personal influence of Maecenas 23 Pollio, Messala, Agrippa, Cornelius 26 Gallus Causes of the connexion between liter- 28 ature and social eminence Effects of this connexion on the tone of 29 literature IV. Influence of material conditions 31–37 on Literature Wealth and luxury of Rome in the Au- 31 gustan Age Liberality of Augustus and Maecenas 33 to Virgil and Horace Effects of this on the art of these poets 34 Reaction from the luxury of the Age 35 apparent in literature V. General condition of literary cul- 37–54 ture as affecting the Augustan Poetry Intellectual character of the last years 37 of the Republic and earlier years of the Empire Distinction between the earlier and later 38 periods Appreciation of Greek art and literature 39 in both Alexandrine influences on the Augus- 41 tan poetry Characteristics of the Alexandrine po- 42 ets Their treatment of mythological sub- 43 jects xiv The Roman Poets of the Augustan Age: Virgil Scientific and learned character of their 44 poetry Their treatment of the passion of love 45 Their treatment of external Nature 46 Pictorial art of the later Greeks 48 Superiority of the Augustan to the 49 Alexandrine literature Friendly relations among the poets of 51 the Augustan Age Influence of these relations on their art 52 Hostility of other literary coteries 53 VI. Causes of the special devotion to 54–58 Poetry in the Augustan Age Effect of the Monarchy on the great 55 forms of prose literature Poetry later in feeling the effects of 56 Despotism The Augustan literature the maturest 57 development of the national mind CHAPTER II. VIRGIL’S PLACE IN ROMAN LIT- ERATURE. Virgil’s pre-eminence acknowledged 59 till recent times Disparagement of his genius in the 60 present century I. Estimate of Virgil in former times 60–68 His former reputation as a great Epic 61 Poet Estimate of the Aeneid among the Ro- 61 mans " " during the ‘Dark Ages’ 64 CONTENTS xv " " at the revival of letters 65 " " during the 17th and 18th centuries 67 II. Change in the estimate of Virgil 68–77 in the present century Virgil’s alleged dissatisfaction with the 69 Aeneid Probable explanation of this 70 Adverse criticisms in the present cen- 71 tury Causes of these criticisms 74 Advance in Greek scholarship 74 Modern interest in remote antiquity 74 Literary reaction at the end of the 18th 75 century III.