General Instructions for Papers
1. Both Vergil (book 5) and Statius (Book 6) include Funeral Games in their epics. Compare and contrast the nature of the competitions and competitors in the Aeneid and Thebaid. What thematic connections do these athletic contests bear with the larger epic poems of which they are a sizeable part?
2. Compare Statius’ portrayal of Jupiter in his Thebaid with the depiction of the same god in Vergil's Aeneid. What aspects of Jupiter’s character does each poet emphasize? How is each poet’s portrayal of Jupiter consistent (or inconsistent) with the main themes and purposes of his work?
3. Vergil’s description of the shield of Aeneas (Aeneid 8) is based on the Homeric ekphrasis of the shield of Achilles (Iliad 18.478ff.). Identify and analyze in what ways these descriptions of the shields of each epic’s hero are different, i.e. in content, tone, organization, theme, as well as in the degree of their integration into the larger poem and its thematic preoccupations.
4. How are women represented differently in Vergil and Statius? Is one poet/poem more interested in the “psychology” of his/its female characters? Identify and analyze some of the significant distinctions between the representation of female characters in the Aeneid and Thebaid, and how these may affect a reader’s reception of the poems as a whole.
5. Statius’ account of Hopleus and Dymas (Thebaid 10) is modeled on Vergil’s narrative of the night raid carried out by Nisus and Euryalus (Aeneid 9). In what significant ways does Statius’ account of the night-raid depart from his Vergilian source, and what thematic relevance does each account seem to hold for the respective epics?