Daedalus = Virgil? Both are cunning creators, manipulators of their respective materials with the purpose of causing unusual effects. Both are practitioners of the art of techne. Virgil must have enjoyed making the comparison with himself
---------- > From: Adrian Pay <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > To: '[EMAIL PROTECTED]' > Subject: RE: VIRGIL: VERGIL: ekphrasis in Book VI > Date: Monday, March 08, 1999 9:20 PM > > I've also been struck by this passage but never been able to come to a > suitable explanation. Looking at the passage again, the language reminds me > of Georgics IV "labor...et inextricabilis error" (quite a curious phrasing) > "magnum reginae sed enim miseratus amorem"; Daedalus in the labyrinth is a > similar situation to Aeneas in the Underworld but also Orpheus in the > Underworld (even more so, in the retracing steps); this passage finishes > with a sacrifice similar to the one at the end of the Georgics. > > Is there a Hellenistic treatment of the Daedalus story? We seem to be very > much in Hellenistic / Alexandrian territory here, with the daughters of > Cecrops (21), Ariadne (23) and Pasiphae (24). > > Daedalus = Vergil? V. interesting. > > What does Michael Punam have to say about this passage? The observation > about the doors relating to the ivory gates is a good one and must be > right. Maybe this passage casts some light on the meaning of the ivory > gates. > > This is a great topic - I'm surprised no-one replied to Clare earlier. > > And while we're at it, does anyone have any views on the 64 million dollar > question i.e. the golden bough and the ivory gates? I remember being quite > taken with West's article where the golden bough reflected the "aureos > ramos" of Plato's poetry in Meleager's garland. In that context, it's > notable that "poluchromatos" (cp. "discolor" 6.204) is a Greek hapax > legomenon, according to a Hellenistic lexicographer, appearing in ... you > guessed it ... Plato. > > More questions than answers! I apologise. > > Adrian > ----------------------------------------------------------------------- To leave the Mantovano mailing list at any time, do NOT hit reply. Instead, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the message "unsubscribe mantovano" in the body (omitting the quotation marks). You can also unsubscribe at http://virgil.org/mantovano/mantovano.htm#unsub
