Virgil's Aeneid
A Reader's Guide

“This book is well conceived, and extremely well written. It approaches the big issues in nuanced ways, and brings out the complexities of the Aeneid in ways that will make the poem accessible to undergraduates, and to anyone interested in Virgil.”
–Richard F. Thomas, Harvard University

David Ross (Author)

9781405159722, Wiley

Hardback, published 16 February 2007

168 pages
23.6 x 15.5 x 1.8 cm, 0.381 kg

“I believe that everyone—professional academic, student, or layperson—will benefit from Ross's lyrical and insightful reading of Vergil's great poem.” (Bryn Mawr Classical Review, March 2009)

“The book says a great many things that need to be said, or said again. It does not seek controversy and avoids much that is easily available elsewhere. What it does say is largely familiar, even comfortable, but it is well said, clear, detailed, moderate.” (New England Classical Journal, February 2009)

Written by eminent scholar David O. Ross, this guide helps readers to engage with the poetry, thought, and background of Virgil’s great epic, suggesting both the depth and the beauty of Virgil’s poetic images and the mental images with which the Romans lived.

• 
  
• Guides readers through the complexity of Virgil’s poetic style and imagery
  
• All extracts are translated, with original Latin given when necessary
  
• Provides useful historical and social context in which to understand the poem as it was viewed in its time
  
• Includes short introductions to important topics such as Roman religion and the Roman concept of ‘character’
  
• Features a helpful appendix which clarifies how to read and hear the poem's Latin hexameter

Preface vii

Subject Areas: History [HB]