DOI
https://doi.org/10.52284/NECJ.51.1.article.vangeel
Publication Date
5-29-2024
Abstract
Although Pholoe, the Cretan slave (Aen. 5.281-5), and Cretheus, the bard (Aen. 9.774-7), have both received some scholarly attention, I demonstrate that there is additional significance in their fleeting appearances. Virgil’s seemingly rushed treatment of these two characters has larger implications than initially may seem the case, especially when placing them next to Virgil’s use of Homeric epic in the particularly intertext-heavy Books 5 and 9. I demonstrate how these minor characters function as Virgil’s illustrations of Aeneas’ movement away from the Homeric world, as the text progresses towards the proto-Roman project that features prominently in the Aeneid’s narrative.
First Page
64
Last Page
75
Recommended Citation
Van Geel, Lien
(2024)
"Minor Characters, Major Shifts: the Cases of Pholoe, the Cretan Slave (Aen. 5.281-5), and Cretheus, the Bard (Aen. 9.774-7),"
New England Classical Journal: Vol. 51
:
Iss.
1
, 64-75.
https://doi.org/10.52284/NECJ.51.1.article.vangeel
Keywords
Virgil, Aeneid, Homeric epic, intertextuality, minor characters, meta-narratives