In Vergil’s Aeneid, the idea of the gods feeling typically mortal emotions, particularly anger, is emphasized heavily. Soon after Juno urges King Aeolus to release the winds under his control, so that she can attack the Trojan sailors, Neptune becomes aware of the chaos they create. In this passage, he addresses these winds using rhetorical questions, carefully-chosen verb forms, and various forms of parallel structure. These devices all create a sense of anger mirroring that of Neptune: utterly furious in the beginning, and gradually calming down in order to constructively convey orders to the winds.
In the beginning, Neptune rhetorically interrogates the personified winds, asking “caelum terramque...miscere, et tantas audetis tollere moles?” …show more content…
The sudden break in the text serves to emphasize Neptune’s sudden level-headedness, a trait that marks him as an effective leader. He then states that “commissa luetis,” roughly translated as “you will atone for [what has been] committed.” (1.136) His use of second-person verbs continues, this time in the future tense, which adds a more subtly menacing tone to his …show more content…
(1.137) “Maturate” and “dicite” are in the imperative mood, which emphasize Neptune’s authoritative position over the winds without sounding overly harsh and angry. After this, a somewhat extended anaphora is used; Neptune states that “non illi imperium pelagi...sed mihi sorte datum...tenet ille immania saxa....illa se iactet in aula.” (1.138-1.139) This is roughly translated as “the power of the sea was not given to him, but by lot to me...he holds the immense rocks...let [Aeolus] rule in his palace” The repeated use of the pronoun “ille” underscores Neptune’s point that Aeolus (the implied subject referred to with said pronoun) is subservient to him. The phrases “non illi” and “sed mihi” also seem to have been placed in contrast with each other, at the beginning of lines 138 and 139 respectively, in order to emphasize the same
In the beginning, Neptune rhetorically interrogates the personified winds, asking “caelum terramque...miscere, et tantas audetis tollere moles?” …show more content…
The sudden break in the text serves to emphasize Neptune’s sudden level-headedness, a trait that marks him as an effective leader. He then states that “commissa luetis,” roughly translated as “you will atone for [what has been] committed.” (1.136) His use of second-person verbs continues, this time in the future tense, which adds a more subtly menacing tone to his …show more content…
(1.137) “Maturate” and “dicite” are in the imperative mood, which emphasize Neptune’s authoritative position over the winds without sounding overly harsh and angry. After this, a somewhat extended anaphora is used; Neptune states that “non illi imperium pelagi...sed mihi sorte datum...tenet ille immania saxa....illa se iactet in aula.” (1.138-1.139) This is roughly translated as “the power of the sea was not given to him, but by lot to me...he holds the immense rocks...let [Aeolus] rule in his palace” The repeated use of the pronoun “ille” underscores Neptune’s point that Aeolus (the implied subject referred to with said pronoun) is subservient to him. The phrases “non illi” and “sed mihi” also seem to have been placed in contrast with each other, at the beginning of lines 138 and 139 respectively, in order to emphasize the same