Tuesday, September 24, 2013

Mythological References in Eclogue 10

Arethusa (yay!) (10.1):
Only mentioned here (no other eclogues).  A marked example of unrequited love- an important subject i this poem.
Myth (according to Williams):  the river Alpheus fell in love with her, but she wanted to maintain her chastity for Diana.  He chased her, and Diana changed her into a spring.  Diana opened the earth, and her waters fled to Ortygia (in Sicily), but Alpheus continued to pursue her, and mixed his waters with hers.  
Theocritus (1.117): χαῖρ᾽ ᾿Αρέθοισα,/ καὶ ποταμοί, τοὶ χεῖτε καλὸν κατὰ Θύμβριδος ὕδωρ, "Farewell Arethusa, and you rivers, which pour beautiful water along the Tiber."

Doris (10.5):
Also, only mentioned in this eclogue.  Daughter of Ocean, mother of Arethusa.  Nothing too special to mention here, as she seems to metonymically represent the sea.  I may add more after consulting Clausen, so check back later. 

Naides (10.10); Nymphis (10.55):
Specifically nymphs of the water, and thus applicable for the opening's Arethusa (as Williams mentions), and a particularly Greek choice.  
2 and 6 (Aegle); nymphae in 2, 3, 5 (x3), 6 (x2), 7, and 9.

Lycaei (10.15):
As Williams notes, these are mountains in Arcadia.  Here, Virgil paves the way for subsequent portrayals of an imaginary, idyllic Arcadia.  Pan and Jupiter were apparently worshipped here, and thus is a common epithet of Pan (see below). 

Adonis (10.18):
Beautiful youth that Venus loved, but Mars (or Diana?) out of jealousy, sicked a wild boar on him.  He was torn to shreds, but Venus transformed him into a flower (the anemone or the adonium?).  Here, the narrator encourages Gallus to be content with pastoralism, as Adonis himself was.  
Theocritean parallels: 1.109 and 3.47

Apollo (10.21):
Of course, applicable here as a (if not the) god of poetry and shepherds.  Here, he talks directly to Gallus (an honor in and of itself) and offers council, specifically referencing the fact that Lycoris has left with Antony: a Olympian god, involving himself in a mortal (and contemporary) love-triangle.  
Named in 3, 4 (x2), 5, and 6.
Side note: this is my favorite god (along with Bacchus/Dionysus).    

Silvanus (10.24):
Country god.  As Williams states, largely the Roman equivalent of Pan.  
Only mentioned in this eclogue.  More to add later, I'm sure. 

Pan (10.26):
2 (x3), 4 (x2)
A compliment to the goatherd in Theocritus (1.3): μετὰ Πᾶνα τὸ δεύτερον ἆθλον ἀποισῇ, "after Pan, you will take away the second prize."
Cautious response from the goatherd, who refuses to play during the day out of fear of Pan (1.16): τὸν Πᾶνα δεδοίκαμες.  Seeing Pan, according to Williams, was apparently associated with some sort of danger.   

Amor (10.28-9; 69 (x2):
Love, of course, is all over the eclogues (except 4).  Here, qualified as crudelis, and unsatiated from tears.  In 69, we get the age-old saying omnia vicit Amor- it certainly does seem to have dominated the eclogues, at any rate.  

Martis (10.44):
Interesting before this, and juxtaposition with Amor: We have all these mythological references in the beginning of the poem, then Amor, a gap of these references in the exact middle, and then the start of these references again with Love's exact opposite, War.  
This juxtaposition is further emphasized by the dual role of Martis as potentially dependent on amor AND armis.  
God of war and battle (though more brute strength than tactical warfare like that of Minerva/Athena).  Marked too if Mars was the one to have sicked the boar on Adonis.  

Hamadryades (10.62):
Only mentioned in this eclogue. 
The second specification of nymphs in this poem.  These are specifically wood nymphs, whereas the Naiads are specifically water nymphs.  What is more, these are not just dryads, the nymphs of trees, but hamadryads.  These are more specific types of dryads that apparently were bound to the life of a specific tree, or were even the tree itself.  Whereas dryads seem to have been just protectors or spirits of trees, hamadryads seem to have been the essence of the tree itself.  Once again, the specification is rooted in the Greek language.   
Side note:  I first learned this word when I read the Chronicles of Narnia.  :)  

Cancri (10.68):
During Herakles' twelve labors, apparently Hera sent the crab (καρκίνος/cancer) to aid the hydra.  It was nipping at Herakles' heels, so he squashed it with his foot.  Hera then turned cancer into a constellation.  
Outside of that, I know it's a water sign (which probably has little to do with this situation), and the constellation is "behind" the sun in the summer (hence Cancers are born in July-August).  So here, Gallus is talking about driving Ethiopian sheep in the (Ethiopian?) summer sun.  He's lamenting his condition and realizing that Love will conquer him whether he's shepherding in the wintry north, or in the blistering south.  
Side note:  I have a book, The Only Astrology Book You'll Ever Need, if you ever want to amuse yourself.  

Pierides (10.72):
Greek Muses, either in reference to the spring at Pieris.  Ovid tells a myth of the nine daughters of Pierus being changed into magpies because their father challenged the nine Muses.  
3, 6, 8, and 9.  

Hesperus (10.77):
The evening star.  A fitting reference for the end of the poem and the collection.  I'll look up more on him too. 
Also referenced in 8.  We saw Vesper and Hesperidum...mala in 6.
Compare this last line with 1.74: ite meae, quondam felix pecus, ite capellae AND 7.44: ite domum pasti, si quis pudor, ite iuvenci.  

Perhaps I misremembering, but this poem seems to be especially full of mythological allusions in comparison to the other eclogues- in particular ones that I have not been referenced before.  If so, I would say that this abundance, in addition to tying in previous eclogues, also firmly positions the eclogues in the pastoral/idyllic tradition.  It would also seem to add a level of seriousness/weightiness to the subject matter, as these mythological references also invoke the epic tradition, thus situating the eclogues in the broader corpus of Latin/Greek Literature in general.  

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