Degree Date
2021
Degree
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Department
Greek, Latin, and Classical Studies
Abstract
In this dissertation, I examine the Neo-Latin supplements to Virgil’s Aeneid (1400–1700), in particular, Pier Candido Decembrio’s Liber Decimus-Tertius Eneidos (1419), Maffeo Vegio’s Supplementum (1428), Jan van Foreest’s Exequiae Turni (1651), and the Supplementum ad Aeneida (1698) of Simonet de Villeneuve. This thesis is a contribution to the ongoing discussion surrounding the nature of classical supplementation in Neo-Latin texts. While advancing new readings of each of the supplements, I argue that previous definitions of supplementation and previous scholarly approaches to each of the Virgilian supplements are insufficient. In addition, I make available several of the supplements for the first time in English translation. ● In the Introduction, I argue for new subcategorizations of supplementation (reconstruction, correction, completion, and continuation) and I provide a methodological overview. In Chapter One, I argue that the Supplementum of Vegius attempts to allow the reader to recognize the sanctity of the entire Aeneid as a Christian poem worthy of Paul and Augustine. It is thus a completion of the Aeneid, but one that does not insist on the textual incompleteness of the Aeneid. In Chapter Two, I reinterpret the Exequiae Turni of Forestus as a true continuation of Virgil’s complete masterwork—one that extends Virgil’s plotline, challenges Virgil’s characters, and invents new narrative episodes, but does not offer any substantial resolution to the work it continues. In Chapter Three, I demonstrate how Villanova attempts a correction of Virgil’s Aeneid, organizing the plot-points of his Supplementum ad Aeneida along the lines of the prophecies in the Aeneid and systematically justifying each according to Aristotelian norms of composition. Appendix One reviews the incomplete Liber Decimus-Tertius Eneidos of Decembrius and attempts to resolve the question of its influence on Vegius’ Supplementum. I suggest that Decembrius’ poem may be another completion of the Aeneid, but one that lacks Vegius’ theological motivations. I include a fresh translation of the fragment in Appendix Two. Appendix Three offers the first translation of Forestus’ Exequiae Turni in English. Appendix Four provides the first English translation of Villanova’s Supplementum ad Aeneida.
Citation
D'Anselmi, Luca A. 2021. "The Neo-Latin Supplements to Virgil’s Aeneid, 1400–1700." Ph.D. diss., Bryn Mawr College.