The Presence of Virgil’s Aeneid in Contemporary Western Literature

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Abstract:

From the very beginning the Aeneid has been highly esteemed and regarded as the greatest national epic of ancient Rome and a monument of Latin Literature. Virgil’s poem invented a foundation myth for Rome and was one of the central pillars of the education for Roman people. It was firmly believed that despite being a pagan, he had a “Christian soul” (anima naturaliter Christian). The work of Vergil was not only the epitome of Roman Empire continuity (translatio imperii), but also the continuity of its culture (translatio studii). For two millennia the Aeneid was one of the most influential works in Western culture and the text that has stirred the imagination of the greatest writers, artists and thinkers. Because of the fact that Virgil has exerted so strong an influence on Western culture, his work was canonised and reproduced through countless translations, emulations and domestications, providing a foundation for education and an indispensable tool enabling the transfer of virtues, qualities and moral standards of the Roman imperial tradition. The awareness of continuing the tradition of Rome has become one of the most important determinants of civic life and political evolution of many European countries and enabled implementation of bold projects, resulting in strong, lasting identity, deeply rooted in Western civilisation. The paper is an attempt to briefly outline the problem of spiritual heritage of Virgil’s epic in the literature of the 20th century. Although the work of Virgil is an undeniable part of European identity, is it still possible to call Virgil “the Classic of all Europe” (T.S. Eliot) and “Father of the West” (Th. Haecker)? The author seeks to establish how views of Virgil’s poetry have changed in contemporary Western literature; how the Aeneid was translated and rewritten by Josif Brodsky (Enei i Didona) and Hermann Broch (Der Tod des Vergil). The paper will take advantage of the concept of “refraction” introduced by André Lefevere, by which he meant “the adaptation of a work of literature to a different audience, with the intention of influencing the way in which that audience reads the work”. The article discusses the problem of how fundamental values of Mediterranean culture epitomized in Vergil’s poem are translated by abovementioned writers and if they are looking up to or turning against the classical Mediterranean form of being.

Keywords:

Aeneid, contemporary Western literature, Yosif Brodsky, Hermann Broch

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