THE GREEK EPIC POETRY AND THE LATIN EPIC POETRY A work made by David, María and Uxía
THE GREEK EPIC POETRY AND THE LATIN EPIC POETRY THE MAIN AUTHOR OF THE GREEK EPIC POETRY Homer is the author of the Iliad and the Odyssey, and is revered as the greatest of ancient Greek epic poets. His epics have had an enormous influence on the history of literature.
Portrait of Homer, known as Homer Caetani. Pentelic marble, Roman copy of the 2nd century CE after a Greek original of the 2nd century BC. From the Palazzo Caetani in Rome When he lived is unknown. It is estimated that Homer lived 400 years before his own time, around 850 BC, while other ancient sources claim that he lived much nearer to the time of the Trojan War, in the early 12th century BC. Most modern researchers place Homer in the 7th or 8th centuries BC. His main works, the Iliad and the Odyssey, are literary manifestations of epic narrative that using a solemn and majestic language tell us the legendary exploits of heroes and mythical origins of a classical world.
THE MAIN FEATURES OF THE GREEK EPIC POETRY: 1. Oral character 2. Invocation of the Muse 3. Formulate language based on repetition to facilitate memorizing the poem 4. Prototypical scenes: banquets, combat readiness, duels, ... 5. Narrative of warlike facts 6. Death in combat, getting the glory and the fame for the protagonists 7. Intervention divine characters
Ulysses and the Sirens by Herbert James Draper
THE MAIN AUTHOR OF THE LATIN EPIC POETRY Publius Vergilius Maro was an ancient Roman poet who developed his literary work in the 1st century BC in the Augustan period. He is wellknown for the most important epic poem in the Latin literature, the Aeneid. This work was considered the national epic of ancient Rome from
the time of its composition to the present day and it was clearly inspired in Homer's Iliad and Odyssey.
THE MAIN FEATURES OF THE LATIN EPIC POETRY : 1. Homeric influence 2. Utilization of national history as epic narrative 3. Influence of Alexandrian poetry 4. Is the author who chooses the topic and consciously uses stylistic devices
Luperca breast-feeding the twins Romulus and Remus.
THE AENEID´S TOPIC The topic of this work is the escape from Troy and the adventures of Aeneas to reach the Lazio , where the hero has to overcome to different enemies to establish a new Troy , as the gods wanted. The success of Aeneas is due to the divine intervention of Venus, his mother and protector and the cultivation of virtus and pietas to the gods , representing the Roman citizen ideal that meets the basic values of their society.
The choice of this legend allows the author to connect Rome with the Greek culture and the gens Julia was considered a descendant of Venus through Julo.
Virgil Reading the Aeneid to Augustus, Octavia, and Livia by JeanBaptiste Wicar, Art Institute of Chicago