Post date: Sep 20, 2016 6:31:19 AM
So I usually look up playlists that are based off of the literary works we're reading in order to get myself in the mood. For the Aeneid most of the playlists were poking fun at Ancient Rome (ah memes) but the others were intense, passionate, and warlike. If I actually was athletic, I would say they pumped me up in an "I'm feeling too much emotion let's go punch something" kinda way.
In much the same way, the style of the Aeneid captures the adrenaline and the rapidly flashing snapshots that take place in a high stakes situation. The lines are simple yet evocative, creating a brush of sensation and skips hurriedly along to new ideas and scenes, drawing the reader in as someone who lived these battles and these tragedies and not someone just hearing of them. It's a stream of consciousness that embodies the entire Roman society, flitting from person and event as needed. It isn't the rambling pace of a twisting and turning journey but the fast clip of a warship.
The story featured in the Aeneid is also propaganda. Augustus, the ruler of Rome at the time of publication, is also depicted as the descendant of Aeneas and therefore the correct and true ruler of Rome. Aeneas originally led the Trojans to the region that would one day become Rome. Augustus by virtue of being related to this founder would be connected to the legacy depicted in book one. Rome is continuing the greatness of Troy, the establishment of Augustus would signify a return to their origins as well as usher in peace, as promised by Jupiter on line 379 where "violent centuries, battles set aside, grow gentle, kind." An Empire without end was prophesied. The rise of Augustus was viewed by the Roman people as a potential threat to their freedom, his ability to hold power reliant on how much people would trust him and see his actions as legitimate. Therefore, any piece of writing that allied Augustus with Rome's history and fate would have been most welcome. The origins of the Roman people and their heritage came with Aeneas, their future came with Augustus.