As Aeneas descends into the underworld, Virgil describes the entrance and the waiting souls.
Hinc via, Tartarei quae fert Acherontis ad undas. 295
Turbidus hic caeno vastaque voragine gurges
aestuat, atque omnem Cocyto eructat harenam.
Portitor has horrendus aquas et flumina servat
terribili squalore Charon, cui plurima mento
canities inculta iacet; stant lumina flamma, 300
sordidus ex umeris nodo dependet amictus.
Ipse ratem conto subigit, velisque ministrat,
et ferruginea subvectat corpora cymba,
iam senior, sed cruda deo viridisque senectus.
Huc omnis turba ad ripas effusa ruebat, 305
matres atque viri, defunctaque corpora vita
magnanimum heroum, pueri innuptaeque puellae,
impositique rogis iuuenes ante ora parentum:
quam multa in silvis autumni frigore primo
lapsa cadunt folia, aut ad terram gurgite ab alto 310
quam multae glomerantur aves, ubi frigidus annus
trans pontum fugat, et terris immittit apricis.
Stabant orantes primi transmittere cursum
tendebantque manus ripae ulterioris amore.
Navita sed tristis nunc hos nunc accipit illos, 315
ast alios longe summotos arcet harena.
Perseus Project text with Vocabulary Links (Tufts)
Mirror of Perseus text (Chicago, IL)
Mirror of Perseus text (Berlin, Germany)
A good English translation of the passage
Vocabulary/Grammar:
295 For beginners, you may be surprised by the criss-cross way Virgil positions relative pronouns, i.e. quae in this verse (antecedent via) comes after Tartarei (which modifies Acherontis). In English we naturally try to keep the relative "who, which" close to the antecedent, but Latin is much more flexible.
296 caenum, -i - "filth"; vorago, -inis (f.) - "whirlpool"
299 terribili squalore goes with Charon, while mento - "chin" goes with iacet. what sort of ablatives are these (they're not the same type)?
302 contus, -i - "pole"
303 cymba, -ae - "skiff," a kind of small boat.
304 crudus, -a, -um - here translate as "youthful"
309 quam multa = multa quam and repeated in 311.
310 gurges, -itis "gulf, whirlpool, abyss"
313 The grammar here is unusual; how do you interpret primi or the infinitive transmittere?
316 ast = at
Discussion:
Please feel free to comment on the mythological geography in 295-7.
Stant lumina flamma in 300 is a famous phrase; what, in your opinion, makes it so memorable?
What does the placement of words in 301 suggest?
crudus, -a, -um in 304 is an interesting word. Compare it to its Latin cognates, and comment on the choice.
How do you interpret ante ora parentum in 308? Why ora?
What is the effect of the two similes in 309-312, besides the obvious fact that the number of souls is large?
What is the effect of amore in line 314? Tragic? Humorous? Ironic?
why do you think Virgil placed alios and harena where he did in 316? Hint: harena is an ablative of...?
There is no need to limit discussion to these items; they are thought-provokers only. As always, comments on the overall feeling of the passage or the quality of the provided English translation are also welcome.
Habeatis ludum!
Hinc via, Tartarei quae fert Acherontis ad undas. 295
Turbidus hic caeno vastaque voragine gurges
aestuat, atque omnem Cocyto eructat harenam.
Portitor has horrendus aquas et flumina servat
terribili squalore Charon, cui plurima mento
canities inculta iacet; stant lumina flamma, 300
sordidus ex umeris nodo dependet amictus.
Ipse ratem conto subigit, velisque ministrat,
et ferruginea subvectat corpora cymba,
iam senior, sed cruda deo viridisque senectus.
Huc omnis turba ad ripas effusa ruebat, 305
matres atque viri, defunctaque corpora vita
magnanimum heroum, pueri innuptaeque puellae,
impositique rogis iuuenes ante ora parentum:
quam multa in silvis autumni frigore primo
lapsa cadunt folia, aut ad terram gurgite ab alto 310
quam multae glomerantur aves, ubi frigidus annus
trans pontum fugat, et terris immittit apricis.
Stabant orantes primi transmittere cursum
tendebantque manus ripae ulterioris amore.
Navita sed tristis nunc hos nunc accipit illos, 315
ast alios longe summotos arcet harena.
Perseus Project text with Vocabulary Links (Tufts)
Mirror of Perseus text (Chicago, IL)
Mirror of Perseus text (Berlin, Germany)
A good English translation of the passage
Vocabulary/Grammar:
295 For beginners, you may be surprised by the criss-cross way Virgil positions relative pronouns, i.e. quae in this verse (antecedent via) comes after Tartarei (which modifies Acherontis). In English we naturally try to keep the relative "who, which" close to the antecedent, but Latin is much more flexible.
296 caenum, -i - "filth"; vorago, -inis (f.) - "whirlpool"
299 terribili squalore goes with Charon, while mento - "chin" goes with iacet. what sort of ablatives are these (they're not the same type)?
302 contus, -i - "pole"
303 cymba, -ae - "skiff," a kind of small boat.
304 crudus, -a, -um - here translate as "youthful"
309 quam multa = multa quam and repeated in 311.
310 gurges, -itis "gulf, whirlpool, abyss"
313 The grammar here is unusual; how do you interpret primi or the infinitive transmittere?
316 ast = at
Discussion:
Please feel free to comment on the mythological geography in 295-7.
Stant lumina flamma in 300 is a famous phrase; what, in your opinion, makes it so memorable?
What does the placement of words in 301 suggest?
crudus, -a, -um in 304 is an interesting word. Compare it to its Latin cognates, and comment on the choice.
How do you interpret ante ora parentum in 308? Why ora?
What is the effect of the two similes in 309-312, besides the obvious fact that the number of souls is large?
What is the effect of amore in line 314? Tragic? Humorous? Ironic?
why do you think Virgil placed alios and harena where he did in 316? Hint: harena is an ablative of...?
There is no need to limit discussion to these items; they are thought-provokers only. As always, comments on the overall feeling of the passage or the quality of the provided English translation are also welcome.
Habeatis ludum!