Friday, August 11, 2023

Evander Mourns the Death of His Son Pallas


Evander Mourning Over the Body of his Son, Pallas, Aeneid: Book XI,
from Les Oeuvres de Virgile, after Charles-Nicolas Cochin, the younge
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This is follow-up is a companion piece to the post published on June 18: "Evander Begs Jupiter for his Son's Safe Return".

In Book XI, lines 148-163, of Vergil's Aeneid, Evander mourns his son Pallas killed in combat:

At non Evandrum potis est vis ulla tenere,
sed venit in medios. Feretro Pallante reposto
procubuit super atque haeret lacrimansque gemensque,    150
et via vix tandem voci laxata dolore est:
"Non haec, o Palla, dederas promissa parenti,
cautius ut saevo velles te credere Marti.
Haud ignarus eram quantum nova gloria in armis
et praedulce decus primo certamine posset.                       155
Primitiae iuvenis miserae bellique propinqui
dura rudimenta, et nulli exaudita deorum
vota precesque meae! Tuque, o sanctissima coniunx,
felix morte tua neque in hunc servata dolorem!
Contra ego vivendo vici mea fata, superstes                      160
restarem ut genitor. Troum socia arma secutum
obruerent Rutuli telis! Animam ipse dedissem
atque haec pompa domum me, non Pallanta, referret!"

And my translation:

Yet no force can hold back Evander,
But he comes into their midst. He threw himself
onto Pallas laid out on a litter, crying and groaning he clings,
and after a hard while he finds a way to utter from grief:
“O Pallas, you had not given these promises to your father,
that you would want to entrust yourself more warily to savage Mars,
I was by certainly not ignorant how much new glory there is in arms
and how much very sweet pride there can be in your first fight.
The wretched firsts of youth and the hard first attempts at war nearby,
no gods heard my vows and my prayers!
And you, O most holy wife, were lucky to die
and to have saved yourself from this grief!
As for me I have overcome my fates by stay alive,
so that I might remain a father surviving my son.
The Rutulians with their weapons should have overwhelming me having followed 
the allied arms of the Trojans. I myself should have given my soul
and this procession should be carrying me home, not Pallas!

Thursday, August 03, 2023

Sage Advice for the Traveler


The Villa Vergiliana: https://www.vergiliansociety.org/villa/

When I was a student in college, I had the privilege, in the fall of 1985, of spending a semester abroad in Rome at the Intercollegiate Center for Classical Studies (ICCS), more affectionately called the Centro. While we were on a two-week excursion to southern Italy and Sicily, we stayed a few nights at the Villa Vergiliana near Pozzuoli and Naples. While there, I found on the bulletin board this practical list, which should be considered by all who set out for vacation:

The Ten Commandments of Travel
  1. Thou shalt not expect to find things as thou hast left them at home - for thou hast left thy home to find things different.

  2. Thou shalt not take things too seriously - for a carefree mind is the beginning of a happy vacation.

  3. Thou shalt not let other tourists get on your nerves - as thou art paying out good money to have a good time.

  4. Remember thy passport where it is at all times - for a man without a passport is a man without a country.

  5. Blessed is the man who can make change in any language - for, lo, he shall not be cheated.

  6. Blessed is the man who can say "Thank You" in any language - it shall be worth more than many tips.

  7. Thou shalt not worry. He that worrieth hath no pleasure - and few things are ever fatal.

  8. Thou shalt not judge a people of a country by one person with whom thou hast had trouble.

  9. Thou shalt not make thyself too obviously American - when in Rome, do somewhat as the Romans do.

  10. Remember thou art a guest in every land - and he that treats his host with respect shall be treated as an honored guest.