Final Classics 10B - Grade: A- PDF

Preview

Summary

About corruption! see the essay notes...

Description

Image 1: This image shows Aeneas carrying his father Anchises on his back as they flee Troy, as told in Virgil’s Aeneid. We can reasonably assume that Aeneas’ son is out of frame, given that he is not holding his father’s hand, but is a crucial part of the tale of the fall of Troy and the events that follow it. In the hero’s right hand is what appears to be a statue. It appears to be a feminine form, dressed in warrior-attire. From this, we can gather that it might be a statue of Athena, which the Trojans held as a symbol of their safety. In other classes I have learned that, as long as the statue did not leave the citadel of Troy, the Trojans believed that the city could not be conquered. Aeneas taking this statue with him as Troy burns could point towards his future, and that he would need to keep the statue safe in order to one day ensure the safety of another city, this of course being Rome (any number of generations later, we must keep in mind). With the word ‘Caesar,’ we can tell that this coin was made by one of the emperors of Rome, as the name was taken by a number of Roman emperors after the first, Julius Caesar. By printing his name the same size as Aeneas, ‘Caesar’ (whichever one it was) could have been likening himself to Aeneas or claiming some sort of prestigious heritage, as powerful Romans often did to legitimize their position in or pursuit of power. The image on this coin is the epitome of pietas: Aeneas’ duty to his family and to the gods, and thus to his destiny. The inscription of the name ‘Caesar’ next to this image of near-perfect piety was most likely an effort by ‘the Caesar’ to align himself with Aeneas’ values and thus justify his position in power. Image 2: This image likely represents the Gallic sack of Rome, as told in Livy’s History. We can establish that the city on the other side of the wall from us is Rome from the statue of the Capitoline Wolf itself, and the orientation of the statue. The image represents the founding of the city because the wolf is nursing two baby boys, who historically are Romulus and Remus, the founders of the city. It is reasonable to assume that we are looking at the outside of Rome because, if the statue is curving in towards the city that it represents the founding of, then it is curving in towards Rome. As for the invaders, we can identify them as Gauls because of what they wear. While they were from Germany and central Europe, they were not Vikings (who were Scandinavian). However, they are dressed like Vikings (or rather, the pop-culture references we’ve seen for generations about Vikings); given that Vikings typically fill the ‘Invaders from the North’ role, and the Gauls fill that role in this event, it is reasonable to associate the Viking iconography with the Gauls in terms of the two-horned helmets, long moustaches, and beards. Taking the positioning of the Capitoline Wolf statue and the representation of the invading soldiers, we can reasonably draw the conclusion that this image represents the Gallic sack of Rome. The organization of the Gallic soldiers draws our attention to the determination of efforts against the Romans: this was not some group of barbarians running at the city gates, but a coordinated, planned effort to capture the city. This also, however, speaks to another theme: that of the stature of Rome. The height of the Roman walls is imposing when shown next to the struggling, small (in comparison), climbing bodies of the Gallic soldiers, and perhaps symbolizes the greatness of Rome when stacked up against non-Romans.

Image 5: This image represents the ‘marriage’ (or so Dido called it) of Dido and Aeneas in a cave in Carthage, which we learn about in Virgil’s Aeneid. We can positively identify Aeneas because of what he is wearing: most notably, he is wearing a regal purple cape, which Virgil tells us that Dido made for him. He and the queen are sitting in a casual embrace, indicating that they are relaxing in some pleasant emotional moment. On top of the cave, we see a young man sitting: this, we can assume, is Ascanius, Aeneas’ son. In Virgil’s tale, we see Ascanius going along with the group with the intention of hunting. In the top left corner of the image, we see an ominous, gray-ish figure covering him/herself with a shield. Most likely, this is either Juno, who had always ‘had it out’ for Aeneas, foiling every good situation he found himself in, or it is one of the helpers (nymphs, lesser gods, messengers, etc) that Juno would enlist to help her carry out her schemes against Aeneas. In summary, we see Dido and Aeneas in a cave, about to be ‘married’ (even though they were not on the same page about what happened, as we learn later in Book 4), while Ascanius hunts various animals and remains oblivious of the supernatural power watching the happenings from under a shield. Ultimately, we get a sense of foreboding from this image; while the illustrator places focus on the couple by outlining them in white and dressing them in rich colors, we can see ‘evil’ lurking in the shadows behind them. Image 6: This image represents the Rape of the Sabine Women from Livy’s History. The first notable detail is that the image appears to show pretty one-sided aggression: almost all the men are attacking basically any woman in the frame. We can establish that the men attacking are Roman thanks to the gentleman in the front right side of the image, with the golden shield facing directly at us. If one looks closely at the shield, they can see the image of the Capitoline Wolf nursing babies Romulus and Remus. Given that this is an extremely prevalent image of the founding of Rome, we can conclude that the soldiers with it depicted on their shields are most likely Roman. As for the victims, they are not only women; they are also children. This is in line with Livy’s description of events, as (if I recall correctly) it was explained that all Sabines present were under attack in the effort to separate the women from the bunch. This is most likely because the objective of the kidnapping was not to steal Sabine kids, but to steal Sabine women to provide the leaders of the community with wives and mothers to the future children of Rome. Ultimately, this image is extremely violent, and illustrates the dominion of Rome over its neighbors; the women are essentially crushed underfoot by the Roman soldiers, and then dragged away from any children they already have and married off to Roman men. The image is an apt illustration of the power ancient Romans saw in the tales of their city’s founding....