A Commentary on Virgil, Aeneid XI (Collection Latomus)

This commentary considers Book XI of Virgil’s Aeneid as the key book in which the poet explicates his great themes: the ascendancy of Italy over Troy, the ultimate triumph of Diana over Venus, and the beginning of the process by which Aeneas prepares to assume the wrath of Juno, as he is foiled in his plan to win the war in Latium at one stroke by seizing the city by secret infantry assault. The commentary both expands on and complements the coverage of other works on the book; in particular, it provides a new appraisal of Virgil’s Camilla, in which the speculation is raised that the character may reflect pre-existing folklore traditions about female lycanthropy. The close connections between Books 11 and 5 of the epic are also explored in detail, as are the links between Camilla and Pallas.