Book Two THE ODYSSEY

 Aeneas narrates the sack and destructions of Troy to Dido and her company.  Dido and her court listen in silence, as if gripped by this tragic tale.  Inspired by the god Minerva, the Greeks build a wooden horse and pack it with men. Leaving the structure in front of Troy’s great battlements, the Greeks retreat to the island of Tendos (appearing as if they had left altogether).  A priest by the name of Laocoon, dismisses the “gift” as a plot and even drives a spear into the base of the horse. Next, a Greek called Sinon is dragged before the Trojan assembly. BOOK TWO

 He tells a tale about how Ulysses wanted him sacrificed to attain favourable winds from the gods, for the Greeks’ return journey home. Sinon said he escaped before the appointed time of the sacrifice.  Fooled by his story, King Priam loosens Sinon’s chains and welcomes him as a guest.  Sinon tells the Trojans that the Greeks were not successful because they had insulted Minerva. They stole her statue from a temple and brought it in front of the besieged city. BOOK TWO

 While Laocoon was sacrificing a bull, some way off, two snakes emerge from the water and swallow his two sons who are nearby.  The snakes then turn on the priest, strangle and eat him. The snakes rest on the altar of Minerva. The Trojans take this as a sign that he is wrong about the horse and they then heave the giant structure inside the city.  The Trojans celebrate and party. BOOK TWO Laocoon and his sons being eaten by a snake

 At night, when all is quiet and the Trojans are sleep, Sinon releases the Greeks from the belly of the horse. At the same time, the Greeks return from the island of Tendos, they are let into the city. They quickly set about killing and burning Troy.  The ghost of Hector visits Aeneas as he sleeps. He is told to leave the city and bring the statues of the home and hearth (the Penates) with him. He is to seek a new city for them.  When Aeneas awakes, Troy is already in flames – Greek soldiers are everywhere. BOOK TWO

 Aeneas takes some men and goes straight into battle. At one point he even exchanges his armour for that of some dead Greeks he has just slaughtered, so he can go around the city easier.  Aeneas reaches Priam’s royal palace. He sees the havoc created by Pyrrhus, Achilles’ ferocious son, who first of all kills Polites (King Priam’s young son) and then King Priam at the Altar of Jupiter.  Fleeing the palace, Aeneas also comes across Helen. He was tempted to kill her because it was she who caused the war in the first place, but Venus intervened and asked Aeneas to save his own family instead. She tells him the gods, not Helen, had decided the fate of Troy. BOOK TWO

 Aeneas meets up with his family amid the burning ruins of Troy. His aged father Anchises asks his son to leave him for he was too old and burdensome.  His wife Creusa asks Aeneas, to first of all protect his own house and leave Troy to its own sorry end.  A shooting star across the night sky is seen as an omen from the gods. It is seen as a sign that Aeneas should leave Troy and save his own family. BOOK TWO

 Aeneas carries his father Anchises on his shoulders and takes his own son by the hand – he leads them out of Troy. However, along the way he loses Creusa.  Afterwards, he returns to try and locate her, but is visited by her ghost. She tells him that she was not fated to leave Troy alive. She also informs him that he must to go to Italy.  The ghostly figure then departs, as the grief stricken Aeneas tries to embrace her. Finally, the book ends with refugees pouring out from Troy, to safety of Mt Ida. BOOK TWO

 Aeneas is able to narrate the collapse of his native city from the victim’s point of view – and an entirely new perspective of the Trojan War is, therefore, offered. Certainly a different account from the one given by the Greeks in the Odyssey, (books 3-4).  Even though Aeneas represents the losers of that conflict, (the beaten Trojans), he is no less a hero. He fights bravely, performs heroically in battle, will not abandon his city, shows bravery and only departs because the gods have ordered him to vacate the city. He is as courageous as the Greek heroes and at one stage frantically slaughters a group of them as the battle inside Troy rages. BOOK TWO IMPORTANT POINTS

 Be able to recall the key events of the fall of Troy, from the arrival of Sinon, the battle within Troy to the exit of Aeneas from Troy. Note how the key personalities: Hector, Priam, Helen, Laocoon etc., play a role in the disastrous events.  Note the omnipresence of ghosts: Hector, Creusa (Aeneas’ wife). They both tell Aeneas to flee Troy, whose collapse is fated and is irreversible.  There are also omens from the heavens and a visit from Venus, accentuating the inevitable fall of Troy. (e.g. shooting arrow, a burning flame over Ascanius’ head). BOOK TWO IMPORTANT POINTS

 Aeneas is a faithful family man, loyal and loving: he carries Anchises on his back, (refusing to let him commit suicide) he brings his son Ascanius to Mt Ida and searches in vain for his wife. He is a supreme family man and places their safety above his own. This characteristic is developed elsewhere in this epic.  In Aeneas’ sensitive telling of the fall of Troy, there is nothing glorious about war: it brings death, dislocation and lays waste the land. Aeneas’ narration is packed with horror and brutality (anti-war).  Finally, the rescue of Anchises is important. Aeneas father will prove to be an important pillar of moral support in the years ahead. BOOK TWO IMPORTANT POINTS

What impression are you forming of Aeneas based on Book 1 and 2 of The Aeneid? Note  When the question asks you for your IMPRESSION you are expected to give adjectives/describing words.  Break down the key adjectives you would use to describe Aeneas (pious, loyal, brave, a good leader etc.)  Then dedicate an individual paragraph for each point/adjective and give the reasons you think this, with examples to back up your point. BOOK TWO QUESTION