J. W. Zarker, 'the Hercules Theme in the Aeneid'

THE HERCULES THEME IN THE "AENEID"Author(s): John W. ZarkerSource: Vergilius (1959-), No. 18 (1972), pp. 34-48Published by: The Vergilian SocietyStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/41592381 .

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34 VERGILIUS

THE HERCULES THEME IN THE "AENEID"

The purpose of this paper is twofold: first, to assemble all the allusions to Hercules in the Aeneid and comment upon them; second, to examine Vergil's use of these allusions both as a unifying element in the Aeneid and as factors relating to the characterization of Aeneas, the epic hero of Augustan Rome. The Hercules theme is a pervasive and compelling one which appears and reappears throughout the Aeneid. Vergil uses the person and exploits of the epic Hercules as both foil and model for Aeneas and his deeds. This paper contends that identification with the epic hero of the past, Hercules, with his accountrements and labors should not be sought and, in fact, that Hercules is no longer a suitable hero in the world of Augustan Rome.

My interests in the Hercules motif in the Aeneid was aroused by an earlier study of "Aeneas and Theseus in Aeneid 6" (CJ 62 [1967] 220 foil.) where it was shown:

At first the more laudable aspects of Theseus are exhibited, those worthy of admiration and emulation. In Book 6, however, Vergil progressively reveals the less attractive qualities of the Athenian hero. In making Aeneas eschew these laterinclinations and actions of Theseus, Vergil raises Latin epic to a higher moral and spiritual plane and portrays Aeneas as a more noble hero who has profited from the "exempla temporis acti". One might even suggest that in Vergil's basically unsympathetic portrayal of Theseus there is a "tacita censura" of the morality and spiritual direction (i.e. pietas ) of the Greeks in general and of the Athenians in particular. . . The handling of Theseus in Aeneid 6 may be Vergil's method of condemning that aspect of Greek character which violates what is sacred as evidenced in the destruction of Troy.1

I am partially in agreement with the short article of Miss Gilmartin when she states:2

As the famous hero deified for his philanthropic labors, Hercules was an obvious parallel-model for Aeneas. Close examination of Vergil's presentation of Hercules in the Aeneid, however, has revealed that, subtly and continually, his heroism is distinguished from that of Aeneas. Hercules, in fact, is not a positive model for Aeneas. Eventually it is Hercules who follows the pattern of Aeneas, and demonstrates the humility characteristic of Vergil's hero.

This paper intends to prove that Hercules' example is followed by Aeneas and that Aeneas does not profit from the actions of his model.

As a focal point for the examination of Hercules in the Aeneid , one should note the volume on Vergil by Quinn where he describes the actions in the death of Priam scene and the Nisus-Euryalus episode as examples of the "heroic impulse.":3

Undoubtedly, some of these episodes leave an unpleasant taste in the mouth. Yet what Virgil wants from us is surely understanding rather than condemna- tion. The episodes are designed to stress the inadequacy of the hero's code, not its depravity; to show that the soldier's training, though it provokes a ready answer to the situations in battle, is a poor guide when the situation is not clear-cut, but demands moral or humane insight, an ability to reckon with the more far-reaching consequences of our first response to an emergen-



VERGILIUS 35

су. In such situations the heroic impulse often provides wrong answers. Aeneas demonstrates such an "heroic impulse" in Aeneid 2. 314-316 after he had been warned by the spectre of Hector to take the sacred objects and depart from Troy:4

arma amens capio; nec sat rationis in armis, sed glomerare manum bello et concurrere in arcem cum sociis ardent animi; .... (2.314-316)

Quinn comments further that Vergil's analysis of Aeneas' emotions is almost clinically exact:

furor iraque mentem praecipitat, pulchrumque mori succurrit in armis. (2.3 16-3 1 7)

The proper response to the situation is pointed out to Aeneas by Panthus, the priest of Apollo who rushes out bearing his "sacra . . . victosque deos parvumque nepotem" (2.320). The action of Panthus pathetically foreshadow those of Aeneas later in Book 2.

It is the thesis of this paper that Hercules is an exemplum of Quinn' s "heroic impulse" and that association with Hercules and his exploits is not compatible with pietas , yet Vergil does make Aeneas take Hercules as a model for emulation; he even has Aeneas assume the identity of Hercules. One can only speculate on Vergil's reasons for so doing. It may be that Vergil is attempting to show Augustus that the policies of the heroic past, including the heroes of the Roman republic, were not always in the best interests of the Roman State.

At this juncture it is important to realize that Hercules was claimed an ancestor by Mark Antony. Miss MacKenzie in her thorough study of "Hercules In the Early Roman Empire" (Unpublished Cornell Diss. 1968) cites Plutarch, Ant . 4:5

He had a noble dignity of form; and a shapely beard, a broad forehead, and an aquiline nose were thought to show the virile qualities peculiar to the portraits and statues of Heracles. Moreover, there was an ancient tradition that the Antonii were Heracleidae, being descendants of Anton, a son of Heracles. And this tradition Antony thought that he confirmed, both by the shape of his body, as has been said, and by his attire.

Miss MacKenzie also relates the anecdote from Appian, Civil Wars 3.16.16: Octavian is speaking to Antony:6

They have been spoken, however, as to a more fully declared friend of Caesar, to one . . . who would have been adopted by him if he had known that you would accept kinship with the family of Aeneas in exchange for that of Hercules; for this created doubt in his mind when he was thinking strongly of designating you as his successor.

In addition, Miss MacKenzie points out that Octavian began his triumph on the thirteenth of August, the very day or the day after the festival of the Ara Maxima of Hercules; the point of the date may be that Augustus was triumphing over the forces of evil as did Hercules or perhaps that he was disparaging Antony's geneological claims. Fully aware of the implications, Augustus refused to accept the title invictus, usually applied to Hercules and hence also applicable to Antony. Indeed Miss MacKenzie suggests that allusion to Hercules was a matter to be considered carefully



36 VERGILIUS in Augustan times because of Antony's claims of kinship; however, after Antony had been forgotten, comparisons of Augustus and Hercules may have become acceptable because of Hercules' victories over various monsters, his services to mankind, and especially his apotheosis.

The allusions to Hercules in the Aeneid begin with the description of Aeneas preparing to leave Troy with his family:

haec fatus latos umeros subiectaque colla veste super fulvique insternor pelle leonis, succedoque oneri; .... (2.721-723)

By assuming the lion skin, Aeneas takes up metaphorically the mantle of Hercules; in the guise of the epic hero, Aeneas begins his labors. In addition to the lion skin of Hercules, Aeneas is taking upon his shoulders his father with "sacra .... patriosque Penatis" and in his hand he leads lulus, "non passibus aequis." Here begins the tension, the dichot- omy between Hercules the epic hero and Aeneas the Augustan hero renowned for pietas. One could look at the Aeneid as a conflict between the heroic code of Greek epic as exemplified by Hercules and Theseus and the code of pietas of the Roman ideal hero.7

In Book 3 there is only a passing reference to Hercules when the Aeneidae have left Greece and are approaching the heights of Caulonia:

hinc sinus Herculei (si vera est fama) Tarenli cernitur, . . . . (3.551-552)

This allusion serves to remind the reader that Aeneas is crossing the path of Hercules and suggests an implicit comparison of heroic exploits. Quinn states.;8

Pretty clearly, Virgil's intention in the first half of the poem is to show Aeneas undergoing a series of labores to prove or rather to develop his pietas - a sort of transference from the physical to the psychological level the old story of the labours of Hercules. Book 4 furnishes no overt Herculean reference only a word pattern

to be noted later in Book 10. After being approached by Anna, Aeneas is buffetted like a mighty oak in the Alpine gusts:

Haud secud adsiduis hinc atque hinc vocibus heros tunditur et magno persentit pectore curas, mens immota manet, lacrimae volvuntur inanes. (4.447-449)

As Poschl notes the lacrimae are the tears of Aeneas and are analogous to the leaves falling upon the ground.9 In Book 10 (line 465) the effect of Hercules' inability to ward off death from Pallas is similarly described: "lacrimasque effundit inanis." The use of similar expressions to describe the feeling of Aeneas and Hercules in similar situations would seem to merge their identities and cause the auditor to think of them in similar terms. The point of the words is not that Aeneas and Hercules are affected in the same manner but that in both cases the tears are ineffectual. There are some situations in which the hero or hero-god cannot be effective.

In the funeral games in Book 5 Aeneas awards to Salius, who had been tripped up by Nisus, a lion skin:

sic fatus ter gum Gaetuli immane leonis dat Salio vfflis onerosum atque unguibus aureis. (5.351-352)

One wonders whether this be the same lion's pelt on which Aeneas carried



VERGILIUS 37

Anchises in Book 2; yet Conington comments that in 8.522-553 Evander gives Aeneas a similar hide as a kind of "horse-cloth". However that may be, Salius becomes a Hercules figure.10 What sort of luck does the lion skin bring to Salius? In Book 10 the fate of Salius is revealed in the midst of mutual slaughter:

. . .at Thronium Salius Saliumque Nealces insignia iaculo et longe fallente sagitta. (10.753-754)

There is some poetic irony in the fact that Salius, the Hercules figure, is slain by one who is skilled in the bow; the importance of Hercules' bow both to Philoctetes and the taking of Troy is easily recalled.

Also during the games in Book 5, Entellus speaks of the boxing weapons of Hercules in a kind of psychological warfare against Dares, the Trojan champion:

'quid, si quis caestus ipsius et Herculis arma vidisset tristemque hoc ipso in litore pugnam? haec germanus Eryx quondam tuus arma gerebat (sanguine cernis adhuc spar soque infecta cerebro), his magnum Aláden contra stetit, his ego suetus. . . . (5.410-414)

1 1

As a result of a blow that was ducked by Dares, Entellus falls heavily like a pine tree on Erymanthus or Ida (1.448). Reference to Erymanthus suggests Hercules' labor of the Erymanthian boar and confirms the Her- culis arma (1.410). Finally, Entellus becomes enraged and Aeneas puts an end to the fight lest Dares get killed:

Tum pater Aeneas procedere longius iras et saevire animis Entellum haud passus acerbis. . . . (5.461-462)

The irae of Entellus is not easily abated as Putnam has noticed: "Dares is . . . narrowly recalled from death Dates is spared through the sacrifice of the bull."12 In addition to the concept of sacrifice, there is the idea of ira - rage - as a characteristic of the hero, be he Hercules, Entellus, or Aeneas.13

In Book 6 Aeneas is contrasted with Theseus and Hercules both of whom had descended into the Underworld. Aeneas pleads that he too is of divine birth and others have preceded him:

si potüit manis accersere coniugis Orpheus Threicia fretus cithara fidibusque canoris, si fratrem Pollux alterna morte redemit itque reditque viam totiens. quid Thesea, magnum quid memorem Alciden? et mi genus ab love summo. (6.119-123)

The Sibyl grants his claim of divine birth as she addresses him:14 sate sanguine divum Tros Anchisiade, facilis descensus Averno: _ • • .pauci, quos aequus amavit Iuppiter aut ardens evexit ad aethera virtus,

At At «ЛГ*!?-- the (6.125-126; 129-131) ferried At At the Мух, Charon accosts Aeneas and the Sibyl; he admits havine ferried Hercules and Theseus across:

nec vero Alciden me sum lae tatus euntem eccepisse lacu, nec Thesea Pirithoumque, dis quamquam geniti atque invicti viribus essent15 Tartareum ille manu custodem in vincla petivit ipsius a solio regis traxitque třemen tem; hi dominam Ditis thalamo deducere adortí. (6.392-397)



38 VERGILIUS In his progressive delineation of the epic heroes Theseus and Hercules in Book 6, Vergil reveals the reasons for their going to Tartarus; the reasons were viable for epic heroes but not when judged by moral stand- ards. The Sibyl states that Aeneas' mission is different from those of past epic heroes:

nullae hie insidiane tales fabsiste moveri), nec vim tela ferunt; licet ingens ianitor antro aeternum latrans exsanguis terreat umbras, casta licet patrui .servet Proserpina limen. Troius Aeneas, pietate insignis et armis, ad genitorem imas Èrebi descendit ad umbras. si te nulla movet tantae pietatis imago, at ramum hunc (aperit ramum qui veste latebat) agnoscas. tumida ex ira tum corda residunt. (6.399-407)

The response of Charon upon seeing the bough ("longo post tempore") is immediate; he accepts Aeneas at once.16 Conington ad 6.409 comments:

It is scarcely likely that Hercules or Theseus was represented as having come with the bough, as Charon seems to say that they prevailed by other means, and that the consequences were accordingly disastrous.

The Sibyl herself suggests that the others did not have the Bough when they went:

namque ipse volens facilisque sequetur, si te fata vocant; aliter non viribus ullis vincere nec duro poteris convellere ferro. (6.146-148)

Servius suggests that Hercules in his visit used force and terrified Charon (ad 392):

Lectum est in Orpheo quod, quando Hercules ad inferos descendit, Charon territus eum statím suscepit: ob quam rem anno integro in compedibus fuit

In summary, while going to the Underworld Aeneas differed in motive but not in birth from his epic predecessors; while Hercules went to steal Cerberus and Theseus went with Pirithous to take away Prosperina, Aeneas went to see his father. Indeed the Sibyl emphasizes the two aspects of Aeneas' character by her double use of the patronymic, son of Anchises (6.126,322) and double use of pietas (6.403,405).

Finally, in Book 6 Augustus and his empire are compared with Saturn, Hercules, and Bacchus; the allusion to Hercules follows immediately the words, "Caspia regna," "Maeotia tellus," and "septem- gemini... ostia Nili" (6.798-800). These geographical references may refer to various events in the life of either Antony or Augustus:

nec vero Alcides tantum telluris obivit, fixent aeripedem cervam licet, aut Erymanthi pacarit nem ora et Lernam tremefecerit areu; ... . (6.801-803)

In this case the comparison between Augustus and Hercules is definitely in favor of Augustus; Conington (ad 801) comments on the line:

The truth seems to be that Virg. conceives of Hercules generally as a hero who puts down the various monsters in various parts of the world... and so compares him to Augustus, who in his progress received the submis- sion of the various barbaric nations, the reference being to that expedition through the provinces, which occupied the emperor during the last four years of Virg.'s life, and from which he was returning when the dying poet met him.



VERGILIUS 39

In addition to the comparison between Augustus and Hercules and a possible allusion to Antony in Egypt, there is a poetic connection with Aeneas involved because of the expression "fixerit aeripedem cervam". The usual story is that Cerynthian stag was to be brought alive to Eurys- theus.17 The only other appearance of cerva in the Aeneid is the notable simile describing the effects of love upon Dido:

uritur infleix Dido totaque vagatur urbe furens, qualis coniecta cerva sagitta, quam procul incautam nemora inter Cresia fixit pastor agens telis ... is (4.68-70)

This author is of the opinion that the phrase "ttxerit cervam" in 6.802 is not used as a variant of the myth but because of Vergil's attempt to equate the two deer episodes and the persons of Aeneas and Hercules. Further, both Erymanthus and Lerna (6-802-803) appear elsewhere in the Aeneid in what may be taken as unfavorable allusions. Entellus during the boxing match in Book 5 (above page ) falls heavily like a pine on Erymanthus (5.448); in Book 12 Turnus slays Menoetes, an Arcadian fisherman from "piscosae Lernae" (12.518. 19 In conclusion the passage in Book 6 about Augustus surpassing the travels of Hercules has a number of ties elsewhere in the Aeneid; further, both this scene and the others suggested by this passage do not reflect favorably upon Hercules.

Aventinus, one of the Italian leaders in the catalogue (7.646 foil.) has definite ties to Hercules; he follows immediately after Mezentius and Lausus. The whole description is of interest:

Post hos insignem palma per gr amina currum victoresque ostentat equos satus Hercule pulchro pulcher Aventinus, clipeoque insigne paternum centum anguis cinctamque gerit serpentibus Ну dram; collis Aventini silva quem Rhea sacerdos furtivum partu sub liminis edidit oras, mixta deo mulier, postquam Laurentia victor Geryone exstincto Tirynthius attigit arva, Tyrrhenoque boves in flumine lavit Hiberas. pila manu saevosque gerunt in bella dolones et tereti pugnant mucrone veruque Sabello ipse pedes, tegimen torquens immane leonis, tenibili impexum saeta cum dentibus albis indutus capiti, sic regia tecta subibat, horridus Herculeoque umeros innexus amictu. (7.655-669)

This passage is important for a number of reasons. First, the final lines indicate that the lion's skin is the garment of Hercules and suggested to this author that all passages involving Herculean attributes should be examined.20 Secondly, he is described as the handsome son of handsome Hercules. The identity of Rhea sacerdos is a problem; Conington following Seeley suggests that she may be Rhea Silvia the Vestal. Also, in light of the aetiological story of Propertius 4, the priestess may be, according to Camps, the Bona Dea; the tale of Aventinus' birth would seem to follow logically the assualt of Hercules on the temple for water (Prop. 4.61 ff.). In any case Hercules' action toward the priestess could not be condoned morally nor could his actions be presented as examples of pietas . Finally, in addition to presenting the idea of Herculean labors



40 VERGILIUS

by means of his shield with the hydra, Aventinus does prepare the reader for the tale of Hercules and Cacus in Book 8. Despite the detailed portrait of Aventinus given here in the Catalogue, he does not appear again in th eAeneid. It would appear that Aventinus, Agamemnonius, and Virbius are included in the Catalogue for the value of their story and time back- ground, not for their role in th eAeneid,21 Conington (ad 664) commented that "the passage may be said to show the want of the poet's final revis- ion." In the opinion of this author, the lengthy description of Aventinus not only furthers the Hercules theme but it is essential in preparing the auditor or reader for the events in Book 8.

Leaving the detailed Herculean description of Aventinus in Book 7, the reader finds that Book 8 is very rich in Herculean allusions, including a description of the struggle between Hercules and Cacus. Aeneas and Hercules are unequivocally merged in identity in two passages which encircle the Cacus episode. The very day on which Aeneas arrives, Evan- der and Pallas are celebrating the "sollemnem...honorem Ampit- ryoniadae" (8.102-103). In answer to Pallas' questioning, Aeneas reveals his name and ancestry with a long geneological explanation to show that Evander and Aeneas are distantly related. Evander seats the visitors:

. . . gramineoque viros locat ipse sedili praecipuumque toro et villosi pelle leonis accipit Aenean solioque invitât acerno. (8.176-78)

Here, Aeneas is seated on the lion's pelt, the very symbol of Hercules, to hear the myth of Hercules and Cacus. At the conclusion of the myth and after a sight-seeing tour to the location of the future Forum, Evander urges Aeneas to stoop before entering the hut as did Hercules:

ut ventum ad sedes 'haec* inquit 'limina victor Alcides, subiit, haec ilium regia čepit.' (8.362-263)

Not only is Aeneas likened to Hercules by having him sleep where Her- cules did, but Evander adds:

aude, hospes, contemnere opes et te quoque dignum finge deo, rebusque veni, non asper egenis. (8.364-365)

Otis comments that "Virgil is of course referring to the studied simplicity of Augustus' own palace' at this time (cf. Suetonius, August 72) but the essential purpose of the lines is to indicate the simplicity (the contempt for mere wealth) that the three divine men have in common.22 After sacrificing at the altars with Herculean fires (8.542), Evander provides the Trojan heroes with horses for their trip to Etruria:

dantur equi Teucris Tyrrhena petentibus arva: ducunt exsortem Aeneae, quem fulva leonis pellis obit totum praefulgens unguibus atireis. (8.551-553)

As in the scene prior to the Cacus myth, the Hercules-Aeneas tie is solidified. Otis states that "Aeneas now takes on, as it were, the aura of Hercules as he likewise accepts and appreciates the noble primitivism of this Arcadia."23

Within the two passages in which Aeneas is seated upon the lion's skin, there occurs the justly famous Hercules-Cacus episode. Galinsky in a recent article summarized the views of various scholars concerning the significance of the episode.24 In addition to the a/fie/i-theory about



VERGILIUS 41

the ara maxima of Börner, Schnepf argues for the identification of Hercules with Augustus; Ptfschl emphasizes the myth as a model for the victories of Aeneas and Augustus; Bucheit makes the equation of Hercules equals Aeneas and Cacus equals Turnus; Putnam equates Cacus with "furor impius;" Otis (p.33 1) takes "Aeneas as the active successor of Hercules and active prototype of Augustus." It is the contention of this author that Vergil is stressing the irrational elements in the behavior of Hercules and that he is pointing out that Hercules defeated Cacus by brute force, not intellect. That Cacus symbolizes 4 'furor impius is clear from the phrase "furiis Caci mens effera" (8.205); he is described as semihomo (8.194) and monstrum (8. 198). 25 What sort of force is needed to defeat furor personified? (The old adage about fighting fire with fire comes to mind.) Since other scholars have accurately identified the serpent imagery and the allusions to Tartarus, let us examine the picture of Hercules as given by Vergil in Book 8; he is described as:

. . . nam maximus ultor tergemini ne ce Geryonae spoliisque superbus Alcides aderat taurosque hac victor agebat agentis, . . . (8.201-204)

When Cacus decides to take the cattle he is described as "funis Caci mens effers." Hercules reaction to the theft of the cattle is described as: hie vero Alcidae furiis exarserat atro felle dolor. (8.219-220) Hercules took up his weapons and his knotty club; Cacus fled in fear

(timentem, turbatumque, timor, 222,223,224) and barricaded himself in his cave: ruptisque immane catenis

deicit saxum, ferro quod et arte paterna pendebat, fultosque emuniit obice postis, . . . (8.225-227) Hercules reaction is most interesting:26 ecce furens animis aderat Tirynthius omnemque accessum lustrane hue ora ferebat et illuc, dentibus infrendens. ter totum fervidus ira lustrat Aventini montem, ter saxea temptat limina nequiquam, ter fessus valle resedit. (8.228-232)

The key v/ords furens and ira should be noted. Not much rational activity can be discerned here. Eventually Hercules pushes aside a huge boulder which served as the roof of Cacus' cave. Hercules does everything by force. It is another example of Quinn's "heroic impulse." With the roof of the cave removed, Hercules throws anything wiòh he can lay his hands on ("telis," "omnia arma," "ramis," "vastis molaribus.") Cacus, mirabile dietu, puffs forth clouds of smoke ("caligine caeca," a possible pun on Cacus):

non tulit Alcides animis, seque ipse per ignem precipiti iecit saltu, qua plurimus undam fumus agit nebulaque ingens specus aestuat atra. (8.256-258) After throttling Cacus and recoving his cattle, Hercules drags out "pedibus informe cadaver" (8.264).27 Ever after Hercules' victory, the event was celebrated with Potitius as auctor and the Pinarian family as guardians



42 VERGIL IUS of the ara maxima . A wealth of poplar with Herculean shade covered the brow of Evander.

A few further words on the Hercules-Cacus encounter are neces- sary. The geneology of Cacus is most interesting and pertinent to the Aeneid. Although Cacus is furor personified, when danger comes in the form of hercules, he retreats into his cave and lets down the stone support- ed by "ferro. ..et arte paterna" (226); in 198-199 Vergil comments "huic monstro Volcanus erat pater:" ....: This would make Cacus through Vul- can and Venus a kind of half brother to Aeneas. Further, the geneology of Hercules is well known, thirteen generations from Io to Hercules (cf. Aeschylus P.V.). Among Hercules' ancestors are Acrisius and Ina- chus; they are also ancestors of Turnus as Amata states:

et Turno, si prima domus repetatur origo, Inachus Acrisiusque patres mediaeque Mycenae. (7.371-372)

The description of Turnus' shield again stresses the ties to Io and Acrisius:28

at levem clipeum sublatis cornibus Io auro insignibat, iam saetis obšita, iam bos argumentum ingens, et custos virginis Argus, caelataque amnem fundens pater Inachus urna. (7.789-792)

Hence, Hercules and Turnus are related. In fact, one might take the Hercules-Cacus episode as a symbol, not of the defeat of Turnus by Aeneas, but as the defeat of one aspect of Turnus' character, i .e. furor.

Since evening had come the Salii and Potitius robed in hides (of lions?) celebrated a festal meal. The Salii, with popular wreaths, sing of the Herculean praises and deeds:

ut prima novercae monstra manu geminosque p remens eliserit anguis, ut bello egregias idem disiecerit urbes, Troiamque Oechaliamque, ut duros mille labores. rege sub Eurystheo fatis Iunonis iniquae pertulerit. 'tu numigenas, invicte, bimembris, Hylaeumque Pholumque, manu, tu Cresia mactas prodigia et vastum Nemeae sub rupe leonem. te Stygii tremuere lacus, te ianitor Orci ossa super recubans antro semesa cruento; ne te uUae facies, non terruit ipse Typhoeus arduus arma tenens; non te rationis egentem Lernaeus turba capitum circumstetit anguis. salve, vera Iovis proles, decus addite divis, et nos et tua dexter adi pede sacra secundo.* (8.288-302)

To this song the Salii add Hercules' victory over the fire-breathing Cacus. Yet the elements of the song are in themselves closely related to the fight with Cacus. Cacus is choked in the same manner as were the serpents sent by Juno; he tore apart cities just as he tore apart the cave of Cacus. Cacus was divinely born as were the centaurs Hylaeus and Pholus; Cacus is a monster as was the Cretan bull and he was huge as was the Nemean lion. Cacus is himself a Typhoeus-like figure; the heads of the Lernean dragon and Cerberus recall the three headed nature of Cacus as related by both Propertius and Ovid. In fact, the long song of the Salii reveals



VERGILIUS 43

the greatness of the victory over Cacus in that it is a sum of the parts of all Hercules' other glorious labors.

There is one discordant note in the song of the Salii. In line 299 Hercules is described as not lacking in reason. Yet in the whole Cacus episode Hercules displayed only rage and brute force. Galinsky (note 24, page 41) believes that nequiquam (line 232) "hints at Hercules' begin- ning recourse to his rational faculties." The passage in the priests' hymn may be taken as a means of rehabilitation of Hercules to allow the reader to make the connection again between Aeneas and Hercules; it has been the unpleasant aspect of Hercules, his furor , which has been stressed in Book 8.

While the Hercules-Cacus episode is being related Aeneas is sitting on the lion's pelt to hear the tale; subsequently he uses the lion skin as a kind of horse-cloth. Further, in the hymn of the Salii Hercules is addressed as Invicte and is described as suffering "sub...fatis Iunonis iniquae". (8.293,292). Aeneas is addressed by Palinurus as Invicte !(6.293) and the anger of Juno is firmly imprinted in Aen 1.4 "saevae memorem Iunonis ob iram". Whatever the picture of Hercules presented in Book 8, Aeneas is definitely intended to be a second, a Roman-Trojan Hercules.

Although Hercules is not specifically mentioned in the long scene concerning Aeneas' new armor and magnificent shield, I believe that in addition to the obvious allusion to the shield of Achilles in the Iliad, there is also an allusion to the shield of Hercules as related by Hesiod. This is not the occasion to discuss in detail the comparison of the shields of Aeneas and Hercules by Vergil and Hesiod. There is, however, another shield, the "clipeus aureus", awarded to Augustus by the senate and Roman people (below p. ).29

In Book 9 Mnestheus gives the hide of a lion to Nisus in a Homeric type scene before Nisus and Euryalus undertake their night expedition:

dat Niso Mnestheus pellem horrentisque leonis exuvias. ... (9.306-307) The irony of the gift is revealed when later Euryalus is described as like a lion in his slaughter: impastas ceu plena leo per ovilia turbans (suadet enim vesana fames) manditque trahitque molle pecus mutamque meta, frémit ore cruento; пес minor Euryali caedes; incensus et ipse perfurit. .. . Í9.339-343)

Euryalus and Nisus, the one fighting like a lion and the other with a lion skin appear doomed to death. The lion imagery is used to refer to Turnus in 10.454, 9.792, and 12.6; the fate of Turnus becomes manifest. Hornsby comments on the "moral ambiguity implicit in similes of ani- mais... ." He adds:

In the simile used to compare Euryalus to a lion, Vergil indicates how the hunger for fame and glory reduces its victim to the level of an animal unthinking and unreasoning, and it is in the simile that we perceive the moral indictment Vergil makes on the two youths.30

Sftíťr tribute to the skmof N'sus and the lion-like behaviour of Euryalus con- tribute to the pessimistic overtones of the Herculean imagery



44 VERGILIUS Book 10 contains three different episodes in which the futility of

association with Hercules is stressed. It is most interesting that these are episodes most often overlooked by scholars when discussing Aeneas and Hercules. The first scene is in a battle describing Aeneas' aristeia:

nec longe Cissea durum immanemque Gyan sternentis agmina clava deiecit leto; nihil illos Herculis arma nec validae iuvere manus genitorque Melampus, Alcidae comes usque gravis dum terra labores praebuit (10.317-322)

It should be stressed that not the club, Herculis arma, nor the fact that their father had been closely associated with Hercules during his earthly labors was helpful to them. The deaths of Cisseus and Gyas and the lack of aid despite association with Hercules accurately foreshadow the similar fate of Pallas.

Turnus, like a lion who has spotted a bull from afar, runs to meet Pallas; Pallas facing unequal odds prays to Hercules:

'per patris hospitium et mensas, quas advena adisti, te precor, Alcide, coeptìs ingentibus adsis. ... .' (10.460-461)

Hercules hears the prayer and presses the lament within his breast and pours forth lacrimas inanis as did Aeneas when faced by Dido (above page 36 )• Jupiter addresses his son, Hercules, with kindly words:

stat sua cuique dies, breve et inreparabile tempus omnibus est vitae; sed famam extendere factis, hoc virtutis opus. (10.467-469)

Further, Jupiter comments that he had lost his son Sarpedon at Troy; Turnus' fate is near. There is considerable poetic irony in the fact that the shield of Turnus does not ward off the cast of Pallas and that Turnus slays Pallas by making a way through his shield. These allusions may cause one to think of the shield of Aeneas and its invulnerability. Finally Turnus addresses Pallas:

haud illi stabunt Aeneia parvo hospitia. (10.494-495)

The same word, hospitium, appeared both in the prayer of Pallas to Hercules and then in the vaunting of Turnus over the death of Pallas. Neither the hospitium appeared both in the prayer of Pallas to Hercules and then in the vaunting of Turnus over the death of Pallas. Neither the hospitium of Hercules or Aeneas was of avail to Pallas; the whole of Book 8 is recalled by these events. The heroic deeds of Hercules, as well as Aeneas assuming the identity of Hercules through the lion skin and entering and sleeping in Evander' s hut, count as nothing. Associa- tion with and identification with Hercules are of no benefit.

The final example of the curse of Hercules' friendship in Book 10 is Antores. Mezentius slays Antores while seeking to kill Aeneas; Aeneas' shield has protected him.

at ilia volans clipeo est excussa proculque egregium Antoren latus inter et ilia figit, Herculis Antoren comi tem, qui missus ab Argia haeserat Evandro atque Itala con9ederat urbe. (10.777-780).



VERGILIUS 45

One should note in passing that Vergil continues his emphasis upon the shield; Aeneas wounds Mezentius through the shield, three lines after the death of Antores. Lausus, defending the retreat of his father, receives his death wound through the shield. These allusions to shields tend to stress Aeneas' divine shield, like that of Achilles and Hercules.

The three allusions to Hercules in Book 10, the final ones in the A ene id, are in their own way a complete repudiation of the epic hero Hercules, his deeds, his companionship, even his worship. Association with Hercules and his brand of epic valor are not longer sufficient in the Aeneid itself.

To summarize the Hercules theme in the Aeneid : first, the deeds of Hercules as an epic hero are alluded to or told at length for their own value as epic material; secondly, there are those references which tend to identify Aeneas with Hercules and his deeds; thirdly, one passage suggests that Augustus is greater than Hercules; fourthly, at least one section merely keeps the figure of Hercules before us; fifthly, at the end of the Aeneid three scenes reveal that association with Hercules proves to be of no value at the time of death. It appears to this writer that in the light of the references to Hercules, Aeneas is constantly compared and identified with the glorious hero of another age. On occasion the furor or ira of Hercules is mentioned. It is possible that Vergil is suggesting that Aeneas, in contrast to Hercules, should master himself and become superior to Hercules. How does Aeneas profit from this advice? Anchises had stated in Book 6:

tu regere imperio populos, Romane, memento (hae tibi erunt artes pacisque imponere morem, parcere subiectis et debellare superbos. (6.851-853)

In other words, dementia towards the defeated and virtus to the arrogant is advised, just as the shield of Augustus presented by the senate in 27 B.C.:

... et clupeus aureus in curia Iulia positus quem mihi senatum populumque Romanům dare virtutis clementiaeque iustitiae et pietatis caussa testatum est est per eius clupei inscriptionem. Res Gestae 34. 2 With the statement of Anchises and numerous mythological exem-

pla to consider, what does Vergil have Aeneas do in Book 12 when the final confrontation with Turnus occurs? After Aeneas' spear has pierced the shield of Turnus and Turnus is at his mercy, (humulis supplex) Aeneas appears to follow the example of his heroic predecessor Hercules and meet force with force, violence with violence, furor with furor:

ille, oculis postquam saevi monimenta doloris exuviasque hausit, funis accensus et ira tembilis: 'tune hinc spoliis indute meorum eripiare mihi? Pallas te hoc vulnere, Pallas immolât et poenam scelerato ex sanguine sumit' hoc dicens ferram adverso sub pectore condit fervidus. ast Uli lolvuntur frigore membra. . . . (12.945-5 1)32

In Aeneid 2 after the vision of Hector had advised Aeneas to take the sacred objects of Troy and depart and after seeing the destruction and fire of Troy, Aeneas reacted as follows:



46 VERGILIUS arma amens capio; пес sat rationis in armis, sed glomerare manum bello et concurrere in arcem cum socns ardent animi; furor iraque mentem praecipitat, pulchrumque mori succurrit in armis. (2.314-317)

Finally, in the opinion of the author, Aeneas' inner control of furor has unfortunately not improved since his early "heroic impulse of Book 2. Aeneas was still acting according to the code set forth by the heroic figures of the past such as Hercules. Augustus had a choice: would he be like Antony and Hercules? Would he avoid the excesses and furor of the Roman Hercules of the Aeneid, Aeneas? There is considerable historical evidence to show that Augustus did change his policies sometime after the battle of Actium. The change is summed up by Seneca in his essay De Clementia 1.11; Seneca comments that Augustus in his youth "arsit ira" but after Actium his quality of mercy became evident. Because of the time element, one would find it difficult to argue that Vergil's portrait of Hercules and Aeneas influenced Augustus. At best one might say that in addition to pressing political, military, and economic factors, the negative literary presentation of the epic hero Hercules and his imitator Aeneas did not pass unnoticed by Augustus and did, in fact, contrast sharply with Augustus' later behavior. John W. Zarker lutts university

1. Cf. H.C. Rutledge, "Vergil's Daedalus" CJ 62 (1967)309-311 for a corrective view of the importance of Daedalus in Aeneid 6. This paper was presented in substantially different form at the meeting of the Classical Association of the Middle West and South meeting in Minneapolis, Minnesota April 1, 1971. A paper containing many of these ideas in nucleo was presented at the University of Tennessee in April 1969.

2. Kristine Gilmartin, "Hercules in th e Aeneid" Vergilius 14, (1968), 41-37. 3. К. Quinn, Virgil's Aeneid : A Critical Description (Ann Arbor 1968) 20; Quinn

also comments on Aeneas' reaction after Anchises' refusal to leave Troy: rursus in arma feror mortemque miserrimus opto. (2.655)

The heroic impulse joins together both a desire to kill and a death wish. 4. The text of Vergil used throughout is R.A. Mynors, P. Vergili Moronis Opera (Ox-

ford, 1969). 5. B. Perrin, trans. Plutarch's Lives (Cambridge, Mass. 1920) vol. 9, "Antony" 145,

147. 6. H. White, trans. Appian's Roman History (Cambridge, Mass. 1912) vol. 3, 547. 7. M. Adams in his school edition, C. Suetonius Tranquillus Divi Augusti Vita (London

1939) comments on Chapter 61 (Augustus' Clementia) p. 162: "Seneca (de ira XX i. 8-11) divides Augustus' career into a period of savagery in his youth and a period of mildness in his old age. The latter he calls not genuine clemency but 'Cruelty worn out'." One could say that Augustus himself was also involved in the conflict between the Greek heroic code and Roman pietas. See also W.A. Camps, An Introduction to Virgil's Aeneid (Oxford 1969) p. 100 for Octavian and Hercules.

8. Quinn (note 3) p. 123; cf. Aen. 12.435-436, Aeneas to Ascanius: Disce, puer, virtutem ex me verumque laborem, fortunám ex aliis.

9. V. Pöschl, The Art of Vergil: Image and Symbol in the Aeneid tr. G. Seligson



VERGILIUS 47 (Ann Arbor 1962) pp. 45-46. This view is contrary to that of J. Conington and H. Nettleship, P. Vergili Moronis Opera with a Commentary2 (London 1875) ad 4.449. See also Poschl note 18 discussed on page 186 concerning inanis.

10. In Book 8, the Salii sing a long praise of the deeds of Hercules (line 284 following) and they also appear on the Shield of Aeneas together with the Luperci (line 663).

11. Eryx was a son of Venus and Butes; in the boxing match with Hercules, Eryx was slain. In this regard one notes that a half-brother of Aeneas, Eryx, was defeated by Hercules; cf. pages below for the battle of Cacus and Hercules.

12. Michael C.J. Putnam, The Poetry of the Aeneid (Cambridge, Mass. 1969) p. 82; see also his note 22, page 215-216 where he points out that "the foot race and boxing contests look not so much to the events within Bk.5 as to the ultimate and most important conflict of the whole poem, the clash between Aeneas and Turnus in XII." Cf. 12, 764-765.

13. I am currently studying ira and furor in the Aeneid; Seneca (de ira 1. 1.2) describes ira as brevis insania. In the Aeneid I have located 63 occurrences as follows: 7, gods in general; 7 Juno; 5, Allecto, Aeolus, etc.; 3, animals; 8, Aeneas; 7, Turnus; 1, Aeneas and Turnus; 1 Hercules, 12 singles and doubles; 3 general, both sides, 8, groups, Trojans, Italians, Latins.

14. The Sibyl addresses Aeneas in 6.322 as "deum certissima proles". 15. Invictus is, of course, a common title of Hercules; he is so addressed in 8.293;

Aeneas is so addressed in 8.293; Aeneas is so addressed by Palinurus in 6.365; of the five other occurrences one is applied to Marcellus (6.878), once to the shield of Aeneas (10.243 "clipeum...invictum"), to Theseus and Pirithous (6.392 "invicti viribus"), to the Trojans (11.306 "invictisque viris"), both Trojans and Italians (12.191 "invicate gentes").

16. Cf. C.P.Segal, "Aeternum per saecula nomen, The Golden Bough and the Tragedy of History" Parts I and II, Arion 4 (1965) for a most illuminating study of Book 6 and the importance of the Golden Bough in understanding the book.

17. Cf. Conington (ad 803) who notes that Euripides however also represents Hercules as killing the stag in H.F. 378.

18. Cf. R.A. Hornsby, "The Pastor in the Poetry of Vergili" CJ 63(1968) 145-152, esp. p. 148 note 5 for recent bibliography on the simile; see also his volume, Patterns of Action in the 'Aeneid'; An Interpretation of Vergil's Epic Similes (Iowa City 1970) 91-92; see also W.S. Anderson, "Pastor Aeneas" ТАРА 99 (1968) 9; see also Poschl (note 9) pages 79-81 for an analysis of the simile. Conington notes Horace Ode 3.39 where there is a similar contrast of Hercules and Augustus followed by Bacche pater not Liber as in Aen. 6.6805. Cf. the pet stag of Silvia (7.483 foil.) where the use of harundo is common (6.73; 7.499). Ascanius wounds the stag "eximiae laudis succensus amore" (7.496).

19. This allusion may be taken as casting aspersions on the big fish of Lerna slain by Hercules or, at best, as a jocular reference to the labor performed there. The term hydra , however, appears in 6.576 as one of the dwellers near Tartarus; in 7.658 the hydra is the blazon on the shield of Aventinus, certainly a complimentary allusion to the labor of Hercules at Lerna. Ну drus is used twice in the Aeneid both times in Bk.7, later in the catalogue to describe Umbro (7.753) and earlier in the book concerning Allecto (7.447); neither usage refers to Hercules. 20. Cf. Gilmartin notes 9,10 page 46. I disagree with her comments about Aventinus not being a second Hercules; he does not reappear since Aeneas takes his place lateras Hercules personified. Further the role of Aventinus with his close relationship to Hercules is assumed by Pallas in Bks. 8 and 10. 21. Of the others mentioned in the Catalogue, Mezentius and Lausus appear often, especially in Bk. 10; Aventinus not again; Catillus and Coras in 11.640, 465,604; Caeculus in 10.544; Messapus numerous times, especially in 1 1 ; Clausus in 10.345;



48 VERGILIUS Agamemnonius, not again; Oebalus, not again; Umbro, 10.544; Viribus, not again; Turnus frequently; Camilla, especially Bk.ll.

22. B. Otis, Virgil : A Study in Civilized Poetry (Oxford 1963) 337-338; cf. Putnam (note 12) pages 57-59 for a discussion of cupido. D 335.

24. G.K. Galinsky, "The Hercules-Cacus Episode in Aeneid Vili" AJP 87 (1966) 24-26. Galinsky emphasizes the unifying elements of the episode in Book 8 as well as its relation to Books 2 and 12; further Books 6 and 8 are closely joined; finally, "Hercules and Cacus, symbolize, above all, Aeneas and Turnus" (page 25. Mynors' text reads fur is, cf. crit.app. p. 288, and 205. The appearances of furiis bear relevance to this scene; both Hercules (8.219) and Cacus (8.205) are so described

in this scene; Aeneas in the final episode in the Aeneid (12.946) is "furiis accensus et ira"; Etruria (8.494) "furiis iustis"; "maires accensas furiis" (7.392); "furiis Cassandrae" (10.68); Turnus (10.872, 12.668, 10,101). 26. Cf. the actions of Turnus after he had been led away by Juno:

ter conatus utramque viam, ter maxima luno continuit... . (10,685-686)

Vergil employs the consecutive ter two times for Aeneas, 2.792-3 (Creusa) and 6.700-01 (Anchises), both times ter conatus... ter frustra; in the storm 3.566-67; Dido at her death (4.690-91); Hercules triple ter above; Turnus here; Mezentius (10.885-86); and funeral ceremonies (11.188-89).

27. For a most informative, scholarly comparison of Vergil's Hercules and Cacus tale with that of Propertius 4.9 and Ovid, Fasti 1.543-78, see B. Otis, "Limitations of the Elegist" in Ovid as an Epic Poet (Cambridge 1966) 25-36. Propertius sums up Hercules' violent acts in two lines:

furem sonuere invenci, furis et implacidas diruit ira fores.

Maenalio iacuit pulsus tria tempora ramo. 28. See also S.G.P. Small, "The Arms of Turnus: Aeneid 7.683-92" ТАРА 90(1959). 29. Clipeus appears 49 times in the Aeneid, 10 times referring to the famous shield

of Aeneas:8,447,625,729; 10,242,261,330,638,777; 12,167,432; other uses of the word apply to other individuals or to shields in generál except for 12.724 which refers to the shields of both Aeneas and Turnus. Other words for shields are used: palma, 38 times; scutum, 13 times; umbo, five times; pelta, three times. Of passing interest is the shield included in the offering at Actium (3.286) where the dedicatory inscription states: "Aeneas haec de Danais victoribus arma" (3.288). 30. Hornby (note 18) p.66. There are 17 appearances of the lion in the Aeneid. In addition to the three referring to Turnus and two concerning Nisus and Euryalus, two refer to the lions of Cybele (3.113, 10.253), one to Phrygian lions as ships of Aeneas (10.157), the lion skin on Aeneas' back (2.722), Salius' gift (8.295), Ascanius hopes for a lion while hunting (4.159). Mezentius is described "ceu leo impas tus" (10.723) and the lions of Circe are mentioned Í7.15Í. 31 ' The labores of Hercules call to mind Poschl's comments on lopas and the tale which he sings at the Banquet at the end of Book 1: "Hie canit errantem lunam solmque labores ". Poschl is speaking of Aeneas as Apollo and Dido as moon. rJ?b°rcest referring to Aeneas may refer as well to his labors as a second Hercules; ct. 12.435: disce, puer, virtutem ex me verumque laborem "

32. Putnam (note 12) page 200 cites the reminiscence of Book 1, Juno as the "causae irarum saevique dolores"; further he notes that Aeneas in 1.92 when faced with the storm: "extemplo Aeneae solvuntur frigore membra". Dido in 4.697 is described as: subitoque accensa furore...". The adjective amens is also used of Aeneas in 2.745 after the loss of Creusa; Panthus (2.321); Iarbas (4.203); Nisus (9.424) at the capture of Euryalus; mother of Euryalus (9.478); Andromache (3.307) upon seeing Aeneas; Turnus (7.460, 10.681, 12.622,742,776) each case at a time of great stress; Aeneas in (4.279) after hearing the warning of Mercury. Amens both from the sense of the world and from its use does not connote rational action.



J. W. Zarker, 'the Hercules Theme in the Aeneid'

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