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The conclusion of the "Thebaid" and the "Achilleid" fragment, July 14, 2004
This review is from: Statius: Thebaid, Books 8-12. Achilleid (Loeb Classical Library No. 498) (Bk. 8-12) (English and Latin Edition) (Hardcover)
Publius Papinius Statius is the sort of Latin writer who is known only to devout classical scholars and students of Dante. Born in Naples Statius (45?-96 A.D.) was one of the principle epic and lyric poets of the Silver Age of Latin literature during the reign of the Emperor Domitian. His reputation was high during both his lifetime and through the Middle Ages, and he was actually considered to be second only to Virgil among Latin writer (although later critics dismissed him as a imitator of Virgil). This is the third and final book in the Statius volumes of the Loeb Classical Library. Volume I contained the "Silvae," thirty-two occasional poems (circa 89-96 A.D.), Volume II had the first seven of twelve books of his masterpiece, "Thebaid," while Volume III has the final five books and the incomplete "Achilleid," a charming account of the life of the Greek hero Achilles. All of the volumes are edited and translated by D. R. Shackleton Bailey.
"Thebaid" is an epic poem recounting the conflict between Polynices and Eteocles, the two sons of Oedipus, for the throne of Thebes. The break after Book 7 is somewhat unfortunately simply because the twelve books divide neatly in half with the first six covering the events leading up to the war between the two brothers and the last six telling of the events of the war and its conclusion when Polynices kills his brother and then dies himself in the fratricidal war (events covered in the Aeschylus play "Sevean Against Thebes" and which provide the background for the Sophocles tragedy of "Antigone"). There is a nice touch when the brothers are placed on the same funeral pyre but the flame divides in two as a symbol of their undying enmity. The lesson is clearly about the destructiveness and futility of war and violence, but there is also a viewpont of humanity as being both powerless and ignorant.
The "Achilleid" is a most ambitious epic poem, intended to tell the story of the life of Achilles, but Statius died while writing it. What we have are the completed first book and the start of the second, telling how Thetis hid her son Achilles on the island of Scyros to have him avoid his fated death in the Trojan War. On Scyros Achilles falls in love with the beautiful Deidamia, but, of course, he loves the idea of fighting in a war even better, and when the Achean princes show up looking for him Ulysses (Odysseus) and Diomedes are easily able to see through his feminine disguise. The result is an interesting look at the nature of gender by Statius.
In terms of poetic style Statius is certainly more self-conscious that either Homer or Virgil, employing many of the same poetic devices associated with Homer (e.g., using epithets and describing works of art) but without working them in as naturally. To be fair, Silver Age writers were preoccupied with the conventions of literary form, but it does require some effort to follow the narrative. As always, the Loeb Classical Library provides both the original (Latin) text and Bailey's translation side-by-side. For those interested in the tragedy of the House of Laius "Thebaid" provides a new perspective on the tale.
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