The children and the future as they are portrayed in Virgil’s epic poem Aeneid is the topic of a very interesting lecture which will be presented by Dr Anne Rogerson, lecturer in Latin at the University of Sydney.
The lecture will be held at 7.00 pm on Thursday 30 April as part of the seminar series of the Greek Community of Melbourne (Greek Centre for Contemporary Culture, Mezzanine Level, 168 Lonsdale Street), thanks to the kind contribution of Nick Dallas and Nick and Marina Theophilou.
Virgil’s Aeneid is an epic about a journey towards a glorious future yet a personal poem contemplating loss and sacrifice.
From the smoking ruins of Troy in quest of a destiny promised by the gods begins a tale about all the glittering prizes and power men have been promised at almost every struggle’s end.
However, this talk will focus on the children of the Aeneid, who represent the future and especially on the character of Ascanius, Aeneas’ young son, discussing how they reflect on the narrative agenda and subsequently, modern times.
The refugees of the fall of Troy in Italy walk on a path that leads to a Roman future and world domination, while at the same time, its achievement and success are questioned.
“Ascanius is introduced in Book One by Jupiter as a vitally important link in a generational chain that leads from Aeneas and his divine mother Venus to the Julio-Claudian family and the emperor Augustus,” highlights Dr Anne Rogerson.
“At the same time, however, this introduction hints at discontinuities in the smooth flow from one generation to the next, and also at the personal cost to the child who is here made a symbol of future glory.
“Later episodes further expose the fault lines in Virgil’s representation of this important child, whose natural instincts and desire to grow up to play the part of a man in his father’s epic are continually suppressed.”
*Dr Anne Rogerson is the Charles Tesoriero Lecturer in Latin at the University of Sydney, and specialises in Latin epic and lyric poetry, as well as the later reception of Virgil’s Aeneid. She is the author of a number of articles, and a book on the Aeneid (Virgil’s Ascanius: imagining the future in the Aeneid), soon to be published by Cambridge University Press. For more information phone +61 3 9662 27222.