Virgil At Odds Essays - Julio-Claudian Dynasty, Epic Poets, Iulii

Virgil At Odds While on the surface the Aeneid could be seen as a Roman epic meant to glorify Rome and rival those of the ancient Greeks, the author was engaged in a struggle. Virgil had to satisfy the cultural demands of his work, the political demands of his time, and his own personal demands as an artist. In tackling his problem, Virgil is revealed to be slightly reluctant of embracing fully the still young regime of Octavian but still proud of Rome and his ancestry, and concerned with the moral issues of civil war. When considering the style with which Virgil composed the Aeneid, it is important to look at the time in which he lived and exactly what was going on around him when it was written. Virgil was born in 70 BC and died in 19 BC. This places him in the very beginning of what was to be a long and relatively stable existence of the Roman Empire. Further, it was during the poet's lifetime that Rome made citizens of all Italians, allowing a huge community to share in Rome's growing heritage. People who formerly may have felt like outcasts under the oppression of Rome could now call Rome their own. This included Virgil because he came from a provincial Italian town far outside Rome. W.A. Camps cites that while Virgil was still a young man, his family's estates were confiscated by Caesar to be given to veterans of the battle of Philippi (1). Caesar was eventually assassinated and the next twenty years of the poet's life are shaded by bloody struggles for power among heirs and military leaders. Eventually Caesar's adopted son Octavian defeats Marc Antony and Cleopatra's forces and brings all Rome under his rule, in about 30 BC. This is important because Virgil had been fond of Octavian, although it is not known if he publicly supported anyone during the conflict. It is known that Virgil came to enjoy first the friendship then the patronage of Octavian and his minister Maecenas, both of whom bestowed a small fortune upon him (Freeman 389). While Virgil accepted their patronage he was still wary of capitulating the new emperor and sacrificing any integrity. Charles Freeman writes that Virgil's contemporary, Horace also reflects these feelings. Octavian, now known as Caesar Augustus, took a liking to Horace just as he did Virgil, endowing him with gifts and money. Eventually Augustus asked Horace to be his secretary, and Horace refused, citing the need to protect his integrity as a poet. (391) Virgil felt great gratitude towards an emperor who vigorously supported the arts and brought the Empire much stability but at the same time faced a moral dilemma. Augustus was looking for a poet to write a national epic about him and his rise to power. In a letter Augustus wrote to Maecenas he says, If I had any talent for the heroic epic, I'd not waste my time on stories from mythology . . . I'd write about Caesar's wars and achievements (qtd. in Quinn 27). This sheds light on the morality issue Virgil faced as an artist. There were plenty of epic poets available in Rome at the time, and plenty were approached with this daunting task of writing an epic with Augustus as the hero. Nearly all declined, and even Virgil was reluctant. That says something about the attitudes of the poets of his time. They were not interested in art for art's sake. They wanted to create of their own accord something that came from within. Kenneth Quinn points out that they wrote with very high standards of integrity, and wrote not for widespread popularity of their works but for approval of their literary peers (30). Poets were writing of their own personalities; their own views and ideas of right and wrong. They were not to be leased out for purposes of glorifying Rome's leader. In a widely known of reply to Augustus' letter inquiring as to Virgil's progress, the poet writes that he thinks he may have been out of his mind to have undertaken the task in the first place (Freeman 387). He was obviously struggling to balance his need to satisfy himself artistically without sacrificing

How To Rediscover The Joy Of Writing

How To Rediscover The Joy Of Writing How To Rediscover The Joy Of Writing How To Rediscover The Joy Of Writing By Sharon Most people get into the writing business because they love to write. In fact, they cant imagine doing anything else. However, when you write for a living, you may sometimes feel as if youre writing by rote and as if the joy of writing has completely evaporated. Almost every freelance writer that I know has experienced this at least once. Its time to do something about it before the joy disappears completely. Here are some of the steps that I take. Sometimes it helps to step away from the computer. When you spend most of every day there, its no surprise that you might feel a bit stale from time to time. I find exercise very helpful in clearing my brain, so I go for a walk or if I really want to torture myself take a spin class. Reading has always been one of my favorite forms of relaxation. When youre trying to refresh your ideas, the trick is to read something completely different. When Im relaxing, I almost never read about mortgages or loans. Instead, I pick up a good biography or a trashy novel and lose myself in someone elses life. Its amazing how many good ideas you can get by doing that. The best writing appeals to people. If you work at home, you may not meet many people, but you can still find out what they think. Watch some daytime TV or get out there and talk to your friends. When you distract your brain from the subject at hand, then theres lots of room for ideas to flood in. Write for fun. For me, this is one way of recharging my batteries. Instead of working on an ebook or an article about property, I can experiment with a short story or a poem. Turning my thoughts in a different direction can flick a mental switch and get the creative juices flowing again. Take a challenge. Theres always a writing challenge going on urging you to talk about your successes, give writing tips, satirize a famous writer, write a piece of flash fiction or another form of writing. These give writers the chance to try something new. At worst, it makes a change. At best, writers will discover another form of writing that they love, and find the joy of writing again. These are some of the steps that have worked for me. I do have off days, but I still love what I do. What works for you when youre feeling burned out? Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Freelance Writing category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:35 Synonyms for â€Å"Look†Confusing "Passed" with "Past"How to Treat Names of Groups and Organizations