is a '' romance'' of

Medieval French literature In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

, dating to . It is written in French octosyllabic couplets totaling a little over 10,000 lines. Its subject matter is the tale of

Aeneas In Greco-Roman mythology, Aeneas ( , ; from ) was a Troy, Trojan hero, the son of the Trojan prince Anchises and the Greek goddess Aphrodite (equivalent to the Roman Venus (mythology), Venus). His father was a first cousin of King Priam of Troy ...

, based on

Virgil Publius Vergilius Maro (; 15 October 70 BC21 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Rome, ancient Roman poet of the Augustan literature (ancient Rome), Augustan period. He composed three of the most fa ...

's ''

Aeneid The ''Aeneid'' ( ; or ) is a Latin Epic poetry, epic poem that tells the legendary story of Aeneas, a Troy, Trojan who fled the Trojan War#Sack of Troy, fall of Troy and travelled to Italy, where he became the ancestor of the Ancient Rome ...

''. It is one of the three important ''Romans d'Antiquité'' ("Romances of Antiquity") of this period; the other two are the '' Roman de Thèbes'' (anonymous) and the '' Roman de Troie'' of

Benoît de Sainte-Maure Benoît de Sainte-Maure (; died 1173) was a 12th-century French poet, most probably from Sainte-Maure-de-Touraine near Tours, France. The Plantagenets' administrative center was located in Chinon, west of Tours. ''Le Roman de Troie'' His 40,000 ...

Description

Virgil's poem emphasizes the hero's political role as founder of Rome, marked by the famous break in his wanderings when he hopes that he can settle down with the Queen of Carthage, Dido; instead, he must continue to Italy and marry the king's daughter (a character on whom Virgil wastes no interest or sentiment) in order to found a great lineage. The French author, writing "an idiosyncratic adaptation of Virgil's classic", is particularly interested in the hero's romantic relationships, both with Dido and with the princess Lavine, who becomes the central character of the later part of the romance. Lavine and Enéas fall in love at first sight, and it is important to her to know that this love transcends his merely lustful relationship with Dido. Moreover, this confirms his attraction to women, since in this version of the Aeneas legend he is alleged to be " a lover of boys", which is one reason why "Queen Amata vociferously opposes her daughter Lavinia's proposed marriage with Aeneas". For Enéas, this true love provides the strength and motive he needs to win the war against Lavine's former fiancé, Turnus. The vivid female characters of this romance discuss with each other and with themselves the meaning of love in a light but touching way that was new in vernacular literature, and modeled on

Ovid Publius Ovidius Naso (; 20 March 43 BC – AD 17/18), known in English as Ovid ( ), was a Augustan literature (ancient Rome), Roman poet who lived during the reign of Augustus. He was a younger contemporary of Virgil and Horace, with whom he i ...

rather than on Virgil. At about this time—or a little later—other authors, such as

Chrétien de Troyes Chrétien de Troyes (; ; 1160–1191) was a French poet and trouvère known for his writing on King Arthur, Arthurian subjects such as Gawain, Lancelot, Perceval and the Holy Grail. Chrétien's chivalric romances, including ''Erec and Enide'' ...

and Thomas of Britain, were also learning to pause their narratives to allow their characters to consider the nature and power of love. While the narrative mostly follows Virgil, there are differences. A minor one, for instance, concerns Turnus and Enéas: in Virgil, Aeneas kills Turnus, at the end of the epic, because he recognizes the swordbelt that Turnus took from Pallas. In the ''Roman'', it is a ring that Enéas recognizes, a motif that Michelle Freeman sees repeated in Marie de France's "Le Fresne".

Influence and legacy

The ''Roman d'Enéas'' is the basis for the

Limburgish Limburgish ( or ; ; also Limburgian, Limburgic or Limburgan) refers to a group of South Low Franconian Variety (linguistics), varieties spoken in Belgium and the Netherlands, characterized by their distance to, and limited participation ...

romance ''Eneas'' by Heinrich von Veldeke. Elements and motifs from the ''Roman'' are found throughout Marie de France's lais, including " Le Fresne" and " Guigemar". In the latter, the lengthy prologue to the love affair mirrors the courtship of Enéas and Lavinia, and the magic ship and the castle also recall the ''Roman'', according to Ernst Hoepffner.

References

External links

*http://faculty.washington.edu/miceal/lgw/dido/Eneas(trans).html *http://www.ac-nancy-metz.fr/enseign/Lettres/LanguesAnciennes/Textes/Virgile/eneas.htm {{DEFAULTSORT:Roman d'Eneas 12th-century books Medieval French romances Works based on the Aeneid Poetry based on works by Virgil

Description

Influence and legacy

See also

References

External links