Augustus, Aeneas, The Aeneid and Virgil

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Augustus,Aeneas, The Aeneid and Virgil
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Augustus

• Secured political situation
• Defeated Antony
• Convinced senate of his right to govern
• Wanted Romans to return to good ol fashioned
  values
• Ancient virtues and morals
• Leges Juliae law passed 81 BC
• The Aeneid was created to encourage the desire to
  return to the old ways

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Revival of Old Virtues

• dedication to duty
• sense of responsibility
• simple tastes
• character training
• hard work
• manliness and courage
• firmness of purpose

• Pietas
• Gravitas
• Frugalitas
• Disciplina
• Industria
• Virtus
• Constantia

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Augustus encouraged

• Restoring old temples
• Building new temples
• Reviving ancient cults and ceremonies
• Reviving obsolete priesthoods
• Place great importance on the role of family

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Restoring old temples
Building new temples
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Circus Maximus
Temple of Vesta
Ara Pacis Augustae
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The Aeneid

• Devotion to duty, religion and family
• Civil War 3 generations effected
• Virgil wrote The Aeneid to portray hopes and
  aspirations of Rome
• Deals with the idea of world-destiny
• Overall optimistic feel but with two elements
• Optimistic and Pessimistic

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Half full or Half empty

• Rome is going to be great
• Fate has a purpose
• Aeneas grows into his glory
• The promise of the afterlife

• Fate can be cruel
• Gods and humans cannot control fate
• How much human suffering was caused to found Rome

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Epic Poetry

• Not a novel
• Features of Epic Poetry
• Hero is the most important character
• Settings are grandiose
• Ceremonial writing
• Heroes are super-human
• Immortal interference

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Aeneas Wanderings