Vergilius Rhetor, Aeneas Orator: A Question of Method in
Aeneid 6. 122-123
Herman R. Pontes, Trent University
This paper investigates the influence of rhetorical training on
Virgil's poetic composition. Since antiquity readers of Virgil have been
uncertain whether to punctuate after Thesea or magnum in
Aeneid 6. 122.
Servius argued on moral grounds that magnum ought to be taken with
Alciden in the next line, because Theseus, a sacrilegus,
deserved it
less than Hercules. Modern discussion of the problem has tended to focus
on the Servian comment, though some have objected to the interruption of
the rhythm of the line's cadence that might result from Servius'
punctuation. I argue that magnum belongs to both heroes, but that
one
the basis of rhetorical and syntactic structures the punctuation should be
placed after magnum, as in the Medicean manuscript, and against the
punctuation in the Palatine Virgil.
hpontes@TrentU.ca
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