Historical allusions and setting in Eclogue 1

     The main historical allusion within the first Eclogue is, according to our commentary, the word iuvenum, which Virgil uses in reference to Octavian.  According to Appian, there was a period of insubordination where veterans under Octavian's authority grew discontent with the slow disbursement of land.  There were insufficient funds at the time to properly purchase the land that the state was supposed to distribute to her veterans.  While Octavian attempted to find a solution to this problem, the soldiers decided to arrive at their own solution by seizing the land themselves, rather than wait for the cities.  As could be expected, these seizures were neither proper nor fairly adjudicated.  

    The occupants of the seized land and neighboring territory themselves grew discontent, as the soldiers pushed themselves further and committed other outrages beside the seizures.  Octavian saw no real solution to the problem, because there were no funds to compensate those who were facing this injustice, but opposing the soldiers too strongly would have greater political ramifications.  So instead, he attempted to appease the soldiers with other methods until he could properly distribute the land.

    For a time, Octavian's attempts to appease them with other offerings only seemed to exacerbate the issue, and the soldiers continued more boldly, culminating to the point that the they became aggressive with Octavian himself.  Finally, they killed a spokesperson for Octavian while he was on his way to formally distribute the land, and when he gave them the land in spite of this fact, they were moved to remorse, praising Octavian and correcting themselves.

Vergilian Pastoral (Eclogue 1)

Eclogue 1 begins, in good pastoral fashion, with a pastoral name. Vergil chooses Tityrus. What is untypical is the role Vergil gives him. Traditionally a low character in Theocritus, Tityrus is included in the music-making only once, in Id. 7.72 (Coleman). Vergil gives him preeminence in his opening eclogue, but his humble origins are not abandoned. A lingering symbol of the herdsman’s status seems to be his use of the avena, the oaten pipe, which, thanks to Vergil, would later become associated with pastoral (Coleman). avena is Meliboeus’ word and the first reference to Tityrus’ instrument. If it is to be taken literally, the image of Tityrus blowing on slender oat grass would be comical; but so simplistic a scene that it might still be charming, not unlike the image of a barefooted rustic reclining on a riverbank and chewing on a blade of grass. It is, on the other hand, also possible that avena is being used metonymically, referring to only the reed of a larger instrument.

In Tityrus’ own words, he is playing on a rustic reed-pipe (ludere…calamo…agresti). This would be more practical for playing music than a blade of oat grass, and the Greek loan word calamus (κάλαμος) makes for a more convincing evocation of Greek rustic music. But if the reed is a more serious instrument than the oat, the way that Tityrus uses it seems less so. Meliboeus claims that he is pondering (meditaris) the woodland Muse - one of many Lucretian sentiments in Vergil (cf. Lucr. 4.589 fistula silvestrem ne cesset fundere musam) - with the oat stalk, but Tityrus insists he is playing (ludere) on the reed pipe. The two pairs (meditaris avena; ludere…calamo) contrast both on their own and with each other. To meditate is to think with serious reflection. To do so on so flimsy an instrument as an avena seems absurd. But to “play” on a calamus seems to be a mirrored juxtaposition of this. The verb meditari can mean “to practice” as well, but it probably shows both of its meanings here; so the contrast is maintained. The two pairs might reflect each speaker's respective situations: Tityrus can relax and “play” his pipe in otia, which Meliboeus desperately desires to do again. But he cannot because he has been forced to give up his lands, and now he must wander like an exsul. Meliboeus understands that he will no longer sing songs (carmina nulla canam). Tityrus is the new singer. 

There are indications of the poem's own self-awareness. In line 5 especially, Meliboeus seems to point out the poem itself: formosam resonare doces Amaryllida silvas. Tityrus, the singer of this song, is teaching the woods to echo fair Amaryllis. In this way, it is a sort of elegiac pastoral: both the (former) beloved and the woods inspire the song (cf. Coleman’s note); and the singer is said to teach the woods to sing back. The connection between nature and poetry – at least pastoral poetry – is made clear. You cannot have one without the other. It is why Meliboeus can no longer sing. The city – the disruption of nature, in one sense – has intruded on Meliboeus. It has, quite literally, displaced him, and so has robbed him of his ability either to meditate or to play on the pipe. On the other hand, it is only by compromising with the city that Tityrus’ song is allowed to continue.

Do sheep have horns? Animals in Eclogue I

Detail from the Wall Painting of Polyphemus and Galatea in a Landscape, Imperial Villa at Boscotrecase, 1st century BCE, 187cm x 119cm, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 20.192.17

    I decided to title this blog post with my most recent google search: “do sheep have horns?”. I included a detail from a wall fresco that appears to show a hierarchical scale from top to bottom of sheep to goat (it doesn't), but I did not realize that not only do rams have horns, but there are species of sheep who do as well, be them ram or ewe. I must admit, my knowledge of the animal kingdom is...basic-- and basic is forgiving. I digress…      

   Theocritus sometimes incorporated a hierarchical scale of herdsman in his idylls, cowherds being the most prestigious, then shepherds, then goatherds. The earliest observation of this was noted by Donatus and it continues to be a contested topic of discussion among Virgilian scholars. Thus, my question: Does Virgil utilize this scale in his bucolics?

    In the first twenty lines of Eclogue I, we see Virgil making use of this hierarchical scale. Tityrus is established as not only a cowherd but a shepherd as well, whose flock is so prosperous that he is able to often produce a sacrifice to his beloved "god", Augustus. He is juxtaposed with Meliboeus, a goatherd, who faces displacement under the same system which Tityrus prospers.

namque erit ille mihi semper deus illius āram
saepe tener nostrīs ab ovīlibus imbuet agnus
ille meās errāre bovēs

...permīsit (10)

for that man will always be a god to me,
often, a delicate lamb from my sheepfold will stain his altar
that man/god allows my cows to to roam

...ēn ipse capellās
prōtinus aeger agō hanc etiam vix Tītyre dūcō
hīc inter dēnsās corylōs modo namque gemellōs

spem gregis, ā! silice in nūdā conīxa relīquit (15)

see, I myself, a sufferer, lead my goats onward yet this one, Tityrus, I barely lead
for,  here between dense hazel trees, just having given birth to twins, 
ah! the hope of the flock, she abandoned them on a bare rock.

    Here, the hierarchical scale of herdsmen not only reflects the social status of both Tiyrus and Meliboeus but also reflects a sort of emotional hierarchy where happiness and leisure correlate with the status of a cowherd/shepherd and sadness/turmoil with a goatherd. The animals themselves are paralleled to the emotional state of their herdsmen. While Tityrus’ cattle are roaming, his sheep thriving, and himself relaxing, Meliboeus is struck with a series of bad omens-- notably that of his she-goat abandoning twins, which in better circumstances would enrich his flock. Later we learn Melibeous, too, must abandon his flock. The emotional connection between herdsman and animal is repeated during Meliboeus' last speech:

īte meae, felix quondam pecus, īte capellae           (74)
Go, once happy flock, go my little goats

(Go, once happy Meliboeus, go!) 

    To end, I would like to completely abandon the subject of herdsman and sheep-goats and turn to the Hyblaean Bee mentioned in line 55. This may be considered a "shout out" to Theocritus, as these bees are local to Sicily. The name "Hyblaean" is either in reference to an ancient Sicilian king, an unknown city "Hybla", or a local goddess- but today the name is certainly associated with the south-eastern Hyblaean Mountain Range. As for the bee, there is a special type of bee found on Sicily; it has populated the area for thousands of years, and it is super cute; the black bee! Although it almost went extinct in the 70's/80's, some continue to populate the island. The black bee is more productive in extreme temperature changes and more docile than the average Italian honey bee and it usually produces a table honey with a vinegary quality.

Save the bees!

Rhetorical Devices in Eclogue I

Since it will of course make for an excessively long post to mention all of the rhetorical devices in Eclogue I, I will limit my remarks to the three I found most interesting.

The Happy Tityrus

The most extensive rhetorical device I noticed is found in lines 46--58 (line numbers based on the 1916 edition of LCL 63), where Meliboeus proclaims Tityrus' happy state. The device might be called "extended parallelized anaphora".

Meliboeus' words here divide nicely into two parallel but unequal sections. Both begin with fortunate senex (lines 46 and 51). The lines immediately succeeding these beginnings start with et (lines 47 and 52). The last two lines of these sections end with negative indicators: non ... | nec (lines 49--50) and nec ... | nec (lines 57--58). Throughout both sections, the future tense is used exclusively for all main verbs (this futurity actually continues until line 72).

The shorter section prophesies ease in raising flocks. The longer section prophesies enjoyment of comfort. That the two ideas are presented in so similar a pattern suggests that the two are part of one bigger idea, namely, the happy state of Tityrus.

Two Contrasts, One Idea

Another two lines of note are to be found in line 22 and line 62. In both lines, a combination of anaphora and elision work together to express two seemingly contrasting ideas but which are used together to express one sentiment.

Line 22 (sic canibus catulos similes, sic matribus haedos) exhibits anaphora in its repetition of sic (and, in fact, line 23 also contains a sic to round out a tricolon), and similes is elided from the second sic clause. This reliance of both sic clauses on the central similes draws attention to the synchysis exhibited by this line (the pattern is ABCDABC). As we find out in line 23 (where noram has been enjambed), Tityrus used the pattern of puppies being like dogs and [goat] kids being like [goat] mothers to think about how big things compare with little things. Line 22 acts as concrete examples of how he came to think in this way.

Line 62 (aut Ararim Parthus bibet aut Germania Tigrim,) exhibits anaphora (polysyndeton, more specifically) in its repetition of aut, and bibet is elided from the second aut clause. Again, the reliance of both aut clauses on the central bibet draws attention to the peculiar word order (ABCDACB), which is chiastic if we ignore the conjunctions (BCDCB). Looking at the context of this line, we find Tityrus claiming that he will not forget the kind master who has guaranteed that his lands will not be confiscated. To emphasize the lasting impression the master has made on his mind, Tityrus has claimed that the people from the far East would drink from a river in the far West and vice-versa before he forgets the face of the kind master.

Triple Metaphor

The final lines I wish to comment upon are lines 24--25 (verum haec tantum alias inter caput extulit urbes, | quantum lenta solent inter viburna cupressi.). It continues from the earlier discussion on comparing smaller things to bigger things. Tityrus admits that his method of comparison was inadequate to the task of comparing Rome to other cities and so launches into metaphor to more adequately express the difference.

Line 24 compares Rome to other cities, as though raising its head above the others. Assuming the original sense of caput referring exclusively to the human head, we see a personification of the cities, with Rome being the tallest (or at least standing on top of the highest point).

Line 25 continues the metaphor, comparing Rome to the cypress tree. The other cities are compared with wayfaring trees.

Through elision, line 25 also depicts the cypress raising its caput higher than the other wayfaring tress. This personification might be more narrowly termed a pathetic fallacy, since nature is taking on human characteristics.

Thus, cities are like humans, cities are like trees, and trees are like humans. All three ideas are used to convey the same idea: that Rome surpasses all other cities.

The Characters of Eclogue I

 

Meliboeus: This young shepherd is one of the people affected negatively by land reform in the age of Augustus. In Eclogue 1, he complains to his older counterpart about his woes. He must abandon his livelihood because of this redistribution, and I would honestly not be happy about that either. His anxiety about the future separates him from Tityrus, and by the end, Meliboeus seems to be fed up with the other’s laissez-faire behavior. After receiving an offer to stay over at Tityrus’, we don’t know whether or not Meliboeus accepts.

 

Etymology: Meliboea is the name of a town in Thessaly, which happened to be the birthplace of Philoctetes. Servius tells us that Meliboeus is short for “μέλει αυτο̂ι το̂ν βοο̂ν” or he has care of the cattle, which is odd because Meliboeus is primarily a goat herd. Fun fact: Meliboeus is also the name for the genus for jewel beetles. Neat! An anglicized version of the name was used in Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales.

 

Idylls: We do not see Meliboeus in Theocritus’ work or any Greek pastoral poetry even though it is a name with Greek origins.

 

Other Eclogues: However, we do find the shepherd again in Eclogue 3, mentioned briefly, and in Eclogue 7 as the narrator.

 

Tityrus: Tityrus is an old cowherd that has recently come into good fortune. He has gained freedom from servitude and has been allowed to keep his land. I think sitting against a tree playing music sounds like a great way to celebrate. His ever-grateful tone throughout the first Eclogue is a direct contrast to the worried one of Meliboeus. All of the misfortunes that he speaks of are in the past, and Tityrus happily looks forward to the leisure of the future.

 

Etymology: His name most likely comes from the Greek Τίτυρος possibly meaning “he-goat” or “reed/pipe.” In Theocritus, Τίτυρος has been synonymous with Silenus and the satyrs. Later on in the Medieval period, tityrus was used to name a sheep-like beast similar to the satyr.

 

Idylls: Tityrus has made an appearance before as a more subordinate herdsman in the Idylls 3.2-4, and is mentioned again in 7.74 as a singer.

 

Eclogues: In Vergil, he is mentioned three more times outside Eclogue 1 as one who is receiving orders (3.20 & 96, 5.12, 9.23). This also ties in to his former role as a slave in the first poem.

 

Amaryllis: As Tityrus’ current lover, Amaryllis is the muse of his current musical habits. She is notably called beautiful by Meliboeus in the first couple lines, and it seems that the love is reciprocated as Meliboeus mentions later that she was mournful when Tityrus was gone.

 

Etymology: Coming from the Greek word αμαρύσσειν meaning “to sparkle,” the name Amaryllis is still present today. However, anyone named that now is most likely named after the flower. Even a minor planet was named 1085 Amaryllis.

 

Idylls: Theocritus uses this name as well in Idylls 4.36 and the entirety of Idylls 3 as a girl refusing a man’s pursuits.

 

Eclogues: Amaryllis is also a popular name for Vergil because he uses it again in 2.14, 3.81, and 9.22. In Eclogues 2 and 3, her name is quickly followed by the word ira, indicating that she was not to be desired. Again, in Eclogue 8.77 she is mentioned as the sorceress’ attendant.

 

Deus (Augustus): Although not named, I wanted to mention the importance of Augustus (Octavian at the time) being referred to as a god by Tityrus after the former had granted him freedom and land. The willingness of Tityrus to abandon the immortal gods for a mortal one is perhaps an indication of Vergil’s feelings forwards the new political environment.

 

Libertas: She is a Roman goddess and, similar to the role of Cupid, is also the personification of Liberty. It sounds like Tityrus is referring to the abstract concept here instead of talking about her intercession.

 

Galatea: The ex-lover of Tityrus does not receive a favourable characterization. When Tityrus was dating her, he felt even more like a slave than he already was with “no hope of freedom…and no concern of saving money.”

 

Etymology: In Greek, Galatea means “she who is milk white.” Perhaps the most popular name of the bunch, Galatea’s most famous role, as Pygmalion’s statue in Greek mythology, earned her several renditions in art, science and music. For example, Galatea is also a moon that orbits Neptune.

 

Idylls: In Greek pastoral poetry, Galatea was present as a sea nymph in Idylls 6.10-11 and11.13-14. Ovid uses this version of her as well in his Metamorphoses as the romantic counterpart of Acis and the object of affection for Polyphemus the cyclops.

 

Eclogues: In Vergil Galatea appears again twice as a sea nymph in 7.37 and 9.39, pictured as a seemingly unattainable romance.

Light and Dark, Shade and Open Spaces: notes on Eclogues Book 1

The beginnings of shadow play between the light and dark is a prominent component in the Eclogues. From what I could translate, there were heavy imagery mentions of shade, and how it painted a cooling and relaxing atmosphere. I also took notice of certain words that suggested open spaces and wild feelings (if I, too, can be poetic). For example, the idea of the heavens or sky in line 18 made me think of a bright day or light being touched and shrouded by a tree canopy, and how this shows an image of nature covering our speakers organically. I also noticed that shade could be seen as a gateway to emotion. It either brings happiness with Tityrus. He is a lucky, old man for being able to relax under the shade - when he can finally stop working and retire!

As for a simple commentary of Eclogues 1, the use of light and dark, shadows, etc. give a sense of passing time. We start in the beginning with a sense of, possibly, a finished working day of traveling. A moment of reprieve, if you will. The sense of light starts to diminish away under the trees and from the caves, and head into nightfall. The great shadow, tall as a mountain, moves across the city homes as the poem ends. Could this be a foreboding feeling of dread in what was once a relaxing space? Things are slow, cool, and heavy in the shadows.

For this book, and as my first assignment post, I decided to make a list of sentences or lines that mention shadows, darkness, light, and so on. I added my own commentary and beliefs on what they mean in a, hopefully, broader and poetic context:

tu patulae recubans sub tegmine fagi silvestrem tenui Musam meditaris avena (1.1-2)

Reclining under a beech tree certainly gives a relaxed feeling to the beginning of this poem.

tu, Tityre, lentus in umbra formosam resonare doces Amaryllida silvas. (1.4-5)

The first official mention of shade, the shadow of the trees gives a sense of slowed movements given by our speakers.

saepe malum hoc nobis, si mens non laeva fuisset, de caelo tactas memini praedicere 

quercus.(1.16)

The sky is covered and touched with trees! This might be a stretch, but the image of trees becoming the sky struck me as something pleasant.

fortunate senex, hic inter flumina nota et fontis sacros frigus captabis opacum (1.51)

How lucky and happy it is to be an old man! You can lie in the cold/cooling shade, near your familiar and sacred surroundings.

maioresque cadunt altis de montibus umbrae. (1.83)

Falling mountainous shadows as the poem closes….perhaps this is an image of the evening turning into the night?

If I miss any, please let me know! I look forward to your comments and other posts.

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