The Epic Distilled: Studies in the Composition of the Aeneid

by Nicholas Horsfall

Overview

The Epic Distilled is a rich exploration of Virgil's use of sources in the Aeneid, considering elements of history, geography, mythology, and ethnography. Building on and developing the research involved in the author's monumental commentaries on the Aeneid, the volume investigates how the poem was written, what Virgil read, and why particular details are interwoven into the narrative. The volume looks beyond the Aeneid's poetry and plot to focus on the 'matter' of the epic: details of colour, material, arms, clothing, landscape, and physiology. Details which might seem trivial are revealed as carefully deliberate and highly significant. For instance, one Trojan's specifically oriental trousers are suggestive of the Trojans' non-Roman 'otherness' and fit solidly into a complex ethnographic argument. In this way, the meaning and implications of Virgil's heavily allusive style, including practices and techniques of composition, are unpicked meticulously. Particularly difficult and intricate passages are delved into and the significance of specific details, legends, arcane references, places, names, digressions, and inconsistencies are uncovered. By exposing new layers of illuminating material, The Epic Distilled offers readers a fresh approach to understanding the full intellectual texture of Virgil's epic poem.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780191076404
Publisher:	OUP Oxford
Publication date:	02/25/2016
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	192
File size:	411 KB

About the Author

Nicholas Horsfall is Honorary Professor of Classics and Ancient History at Durham University.

Table of Contents

• Preface
• Bibliography
• 1: To Peel the Artichoke
• 2: 'Ceaselessly Wrangling in the Bird-Cage of the Muses'
• 3: Doctus et lector
• 4: Erudition and Invention
• 5: The Invention of Myth
• 6: Inconsistencies
• 7: Signposts by the Wayside
• 8: So the Story Goes
• 9: The Poet as Jackdaw, and the Role of Anachronisms
• 10: An Epic of Many Voices
• Index

Editorial Reviews

"...the book does contain a wealth of information on Virgil and his methods by a scholar who must know about everything about Virgil and Virgilian studies, and will thus be of great use to those interested in one way or another in the Aeneid, I must conclude with a positive evaluation of the book." — Olli Salomies, University of Helsinki, De novis libris iudicia

"It goes without saying that all those interested in the serious study of Vergil will have to read this book very carefully. Indeed, all scholars working on Augustan poetry generally will profit greatly from the researches presented here." — Damien Nelis, Schwabe Verlag Basel

"Horsfall's slender book offers a splendid investigation of the manner in which Vergil composed the Aeneid and the manner in which it was received by his audience. Through its richness Epic Distilled raises many questions for future research, such as about variation in Vergil's audience or the effect of the poet's disguising of his inventions, while, at the same time, its numerous examples provide enticing points from which to begin. Horsfall allows us to overhear Vergil's intellectual dialogue with his readers, and it is a conversation that all those interested in the Aeneid, Vergil, or Roman literature and culture will want to join themselves." —Aaron M. Seider, Classical Journal Online

"Those familiar with [Horsfall's] scholarship will not be surprised at the astonishing display of learning bursting from this book. The allusions and insights he draws upon are at times dizzying, always thrilling and, for this reader, usually convincing." —Andrew M. McClellan, The Classical Review

"This is a truly extraordinary book, more workshop manual than explicatory text. The more one reads, the more one will find matters to pursue in other texts, or translate, or compare and contrast, or make judgements on, or any combination thereof. Latin is needed and access to the great (big as well as good) Horsfall commentaries on the Aeneid. Very self-referential, Horsfall, though the footnotes are plentiful, precise and diverse. And who could resist the epithet 'atrabilious' for one reviewer? It might be advisable to have Google open, if only to relieve you of all the palaver Virgil might have gone to (Chapter 2, 'Ceaselessly wrangling in the birdcage of the Muses') to research his material." —Adrian Spooner, Classics for All

"If you love Virgil's epic, you will want to read this short book...you will derive both pleasure and learning from the continuing unfolding of Professor Nicholas Horsfall's signal contributions to Virgilian studies.1 The present volume is both beautifully produced and well proofread; Oxford Press and editor Charlotte Loveridge deserve special credit for excellent work here...To appreciate fully Horsfall's method and reporting...you really must appreciate the poet's artistry and learning as much as he does. There is a palpable passion in these pages, whether the subject is the toy weapons of Camilla or the trousers of Chloreus...In short, one is left hungry - but the diet prescribed for the patient is another Horsfallian wonder for for which to salivate in eager anticipation - this time around, Aeneid 110 - the advent of which we await with genuine excitement and grateful appreciation for the editor's service both to poet and reader." —Lee Fratantuono, Bryn Mawr Classical Review

From the Publisher