Aeneidos: Liber Secundus

by Virgil, R.G. Austin (Editor)

In Aeneid II Aeneas relates to Dido his own experiences of the final sack of Troy, the treachery of Sinon, the awful fate of Laocoon and the mayhem that follows once the Greek warriors descend from the Wooden Horse. Aeneas loses campanions attempting to defend Cassandra, witnesses the death of Polites and Priam at the hands of Pyrrhus, and, restrained from killing Helen by the intervention of his divine mother Venus, makes his escape from Troy with his father and son.

All the main elements of the Ilioupersis (sack of Troy) are included in vivid narrative. Book II contains some of the best Latin poetry ever written and thus makes an ideal introduction to the Aeneid. This edition aims to provide students with help in translation without overwhelming them with intricate details of grammar and syntax. At the same time it encourages them to consider the sound of the poetry and appreciate the emotional impact of the story as Virgil portrays it. The edition includes general introduction, select bibliography, notes and full vocabulary; appendices deal with metre and scansion.

Genres: Classics, Poetry, History

312 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 20

About the author

born 15 October 70 BC
died 21 September 19 BC

Roman poet Virgil, also Vergil, originally Publius Vergilius Maro, composed the Aeneid , an epic telling after the sack of Troy of the wanderings of Aeneas.

Work of Virgil greatly influenced on western literature; in most notably Divine Comedy of Dante Alighieri.

Reviews

[Alex Geldzahler]

First entire book read in Latin!

"urbs antiqua ruit, multos dominata per annos" / "An ancient city falls, having ruled through so many years."

"Atque hic ingentem comitum adfluxisse novorum
invenio admirans numerum, matresque virosque,
collectam exsilio pubem, miserabile vulgus.
undique convenere, animis opibusque parati,
in quascumque velim pelago deducere terras.
iamque iugis summae surgebat Lucifer Idae
ducebatque diem, Danaique obsessa tenebant
limina portarum, nec spes opis ulla dabatur.
cessi et sublato montis genitore petivi."

"And here, astonished, I came upon a vast number of new comrades flowing, mothers, men, and young boys having been collected for exile; a miserable crowd converged from everywhere, souls and riches prepared for me to lead them over any sea into any land. Now, the light-bringing Sun was rising above the peak of Ida's crest, leading the day, and the Greeks were holding the seized threshold of our gates, nor was there any hope for help now given. I yielded, and bearing my father upon my shoulders, sought the hills."

Incredibly exciting and very challenging to get through this. I am very proud, however. At this time last year, I knew no Latin whatsoever. So cool to read the original description of what is now being visualized by Nolan. This book, considered one of the best in the Aeneid, tells the whole story over one night, from Sinon and the Horse to the death of Priam, and finally with the Trojans being led toward Italy.

[haleigh ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Much better than book one, plot was amazing, story telling was beautiful and the emotion that we see from Aeneas is refreshing. Roman Lit isn't afraid to expand upon men acting emotional, as they are HUMANS, and I really like that. Do I like roman lit more than greek lit? no. but was this a great book? YES!

[Wanderval Perry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aeneid II
This story made me feel as if a great deal of his story had been enhanced for the listener’s ear. As he told it to Queen Dido and others. After all he is the last one standing. I can see why the Romans did not keep his request to burn this poetry especially that of the story of Aeneid II. It built the story and history of Rome and Roman legacy to be great; as I am sure they were but probably not to this degree. It made them (the Romans) out to be great people. I guess I am a bit leery and hesitant when a story starts out with such words as “I shall be confessing the whole truth to you”. Maybe I’ve watched too much television or had too many life experiences. He tells of his loss of family which draws a reader in to sympathize with him. Ultimately a good read just a bit enhanced for us readers in my opinion. (165)

[Eleanor · Rating 5 out of 5]

This has got to be one of my favourite books of the entire Aeneid. (Sorry Dido…) Virgil pours so much intensity into Aeneas' suffering during Troy's fall and the crumbling of his entire value structure and identity. The death of Priam had me shuddering… and at that of Laocoön we are treated to one of Virgil's sublimely unsettling descriptions of snakes. All in all a fantastic read.

[Mustapha Nyallay · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading the Book II of Virgil’s Aeneid text. First of all the book is written in a clear and understandable format. Which makes it easier to read and grasp its content. The author tries to give an account of the rise and fall of the Troy Empire. In this book, Virgil explains how the Greeks invaded and destroyed Troy.
The author, Virgil simply tries to express his love and admiration for his Trojan heritage. He expresses this love through his central figure, Aeneas. He tries to portray Aeneas as a heroic figure even though he may not be quite considered as such. He portrays him as a hero who witnessed every aspects of the war between the Trojans and the Greeks. According to my understanding, Aeneas was caught between his love for country and that of family.
Though Aeneas wanted to revenge with the last drop of his blood for his countrymen, he still was led to believe Troy’s destruction was predetermined by the gods and therefore nothing can be done to rescue his dear city. Aeneas’ continuous confusion of whether to fight or remain to protect his family and his yielding to his mother’s (a goddess) advice of the predetermination of Troy’s destruction questions the heroic character of Aeneas’ as Virgil tries to portray. (217)

[Francisco Barrios · Rating 5 out of 5]

El libro II de la Eneida es, sin duda, el más intenso, humano y estrujante de toda la obra. Alternando entre la poesía épica en primera y tercera persona, describe la caída de Troya que supuso el fin de la guerra contada (al menos la parte enmarcada por la cólera de Aquiles y la muerte de Héctor) por Homero en la Ilíada.

Un fragmento que es una obra por sí misma, la versión en hexámetros castellanos de Vicente Cristóbal López recoge mucho, muchísimo de la riqueza (¡y complejidades!) sintácticas del poema original. Un deleite para aquellos que gustamos de la Antigüedad clásica y de las epopeyas homéricas. Un librito (apenas 88 pp.) a prueba de fallas.

[Daniel C · Rating 4 out of 5]

After teaching the ap syllabus for several years and now rereading book 2 in full it is striking how the omission of Sinon makes the Trojans seem pretty gormless. The notes in the commentary are pretty good but I think most of the content of this book is pretty well know and it is harder to get lost in epithets or mythological references.

[Margaret Gray · Rating 4 out of 5]

really got up in the guts of this thing. translated it all from latin into english. Notable moments include "thence, if by chance my foot, if by chance it was borne, I return to home". stunning poetics

[Jaylen]

Read this for class.

[Kacey · Rating 5 out of 5]

A couple of hard places to translate in Latin to English but I love this story so far.

[Rhea Sharma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aeneas is what Achilles thinks he is.

[dani · Rating 4 out of 5]

“wipe away the tears you are shedding for the Cruesa whom you loved… do not fail your love for our son” brb sobbing

[benedetta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fa davvero il suo dovere. Encomio alla traduzione che (per la gioia degli studenti) è libera solo dove non si può fare altrimenti.

[sreeja ⭐ · Rating 4 out of 5]

really interesting read!! would read the other books too if i had time because i really enjoyed this! can't wait to study it in year 13 latin

[Rei Ishikawa]

gcse latin set text

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

damb.....

[Rolanda Frank · Rating 4 out of 5]

Two things that stuck with me while reading this text was, the idea of ghosts coming to Aeneas to give him advise. I find that interesting because it introduces the idea of respecting your ancestors, and the importance of their wisdom, since the Romans placed a great deal of value on respecting one's ancestor's.

Secondly, the importance of family. In the text we see that family is so important to Aeneas that he is willing to give up his own life rather that leave his father behind for certain death, with this, Aeneas is seen as a model of true virtue.

[Othy · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Aeneid, of course, gets five stars, without a doubt. The problem is the edition. The notes were almost completely unhelpful, commenting on plot and referencing words as if I already knew Latin fluently. Perhaps this would be more useful a text if I weren't in a third year Latin course, and instead were studying the Latin as an academic, but I didn't find the notes in here worth much.

[Zoe · Rating 4 out of 5]

The commentary is a life saver for one's first real encounter with Vergil. Sometimes a little too helpful, but nevertheless and excellently laid out book, and the Latin to English section in the back is very helpful with some of the obscure meanings of words Vergil is so fond of. As a first foray (or even additional adventures) into Vergil's text this is definitely a book I recommend.

[Jonathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good supplementary commentary for a Latin poetry course, with detailed notes on both grammar and style. Very good appendices on meter and stylistic terms, as well as an up-to-date works cited and useful vocabulary. I used this in coordination with a photocopy from Pharr (my mark-up-copy), which has a running vocabulary and grammar notes.

[Sara (Sbarbine_che_leggono)]

L'esame di letteratura latina all'università di Bologna è terribilmente difficile, ma l'Eneide resta meravigliosa e devo ammettere che provo una certa soddisfazione a leggerla in latino (quando non sto bestemmiando in preda al male di vivere, che solo gli esami di latino sanno provocarmi così bene).

[Paula · Rating 4 out of 5]

Buena traducción en verso, hexámetros castellanos, respeta la esencia de la épica con sus cadencias melódicas.
Está edición solo incluye el segundo libro de la Eneida. El libro II es el más autónomo de toda la obra y desde luego el más narrativo. Eneas cuenta retrospectivamente a Dido la destrucción de Troya.
Muy recomendable está edición.

[Pablo Csm · Rating 5 out of 5]

Espléndida traducción, una pena que solo sea del 2º libro de la Eneida. Aun así muy recomendable