Statius creates in the Thebaid a mythic cosmos that reflects his contemporary Rome. The despairing portrait of the divine powers, institutional monarchy, the great war, and the human condition evidenced in the Thebaid necessarily invites a comparison with events and personalities in Rome during the turbulent reigns of the Julio-Claudian and Flavian emperors, most of whom were portrayed as inflicting long-standing suffering upon the citizenry during and after the civil wars. The Zeitgeist of the Julio-Claudian and Flavian periods, which were alleged by ancient writers to be gloomy and violent, pervades and infects the Thebaid. In the Thebaid the abuse of power on the supernatural and human levels and the condemnation of the violation of justice are applicable to the contemporary political situation under the Julio-Claudians and Flavians. The Thebaid reflects not only the heart of Statius’ pessimistic world view but also his concern and that of his contemporaries about the harsh and oppressive atmosphere and terrible political uncertainties of his age.
Since the Thebaid was not pure allegory, correspondences between contemporary personalities and events in Rome and the characters and incidents in the Thebaid are not clear-cut. In his composition Statius set about expressing the concerns of his age through general rather than specific reminiscences of events and characters. Nevertheless numerous scenes and figures in the Thebaid invite a comparison with the contemporary political situation at Rome and to specific historical figures under the Principate. During the Middle Ages commentators and glossators frequently commented on the contemporary relevance of the Thebaid from a sociopolitical perspective. One of the most compelling identifications made in medieval accessus (introductions to the poets and their works) was between the sons of Oedipus and those of Vespasian. In the eyes of these medieval scholars, the Thebaid was a serious study on kingship and its responsibilities. Accordingly, Statius was viewed as providing a message and a lesson on the pursuit and abuse of power for the Roman public and emperors through the theme of fraternas acies (‘‘fraternal strife’’).
Attention is directed immediately toward this theme and comparison between the Theban and imperial brothers in the opening line of the Thebaid (cf. Theb. 1.184). This analogy is based mainly on the antipathy between the Theban brothers and their mutual fratricide, which not only recall the rumored hostility between the sons of Vespasian and the alleged poisoning of Titus by Domitian (Suet. Dom. 2.3; cf. Tit. 9.3) but also the long-standing feud between Jupiter and his brothers (cf. Theb. 8.34-79). The similarity in circumstances between all three sets of brothers (Theban, imperial, and Olympian) serves to identify Domitian all the more closely with his Theban and Olympian counterparts. The suggested parallel between Eteocles and Domitian, who is described in an accessus (Bern, cod. 528, and London, BL, Burney 258) to the Thebaid as nequissimus imperator (‘‘a most wicked emperor’’), is strengthened by the reference to Eteocles as princeps (‘‘first citizen,’’ Theb. 1.169). Indeed the theme of fraternas acies in the imperial house was a political locus communis in the first century CE. Although represented as flesh and blood characters in the Thebaid, Eteocles and Polynices exemplify the type of leaders who have driven Rome to political ruin and intellectual despair. The enmity and fratricide of the brothers could easily invite a comparison with any number of other examples of familial discord and bloodshed among the Julio-Claudians.
Other links between the Theban and imperial courts are suggested in the speech of the anonymous Theban (Theb. 1.173-96), the exile of Polynices (1.312-89), and the treacherous ambush of Tydeus and its aftermath (2.482-3.217). Numerous scenes of terror and brutality in the Thebaid reflect the atmosphere of despair, fear, and violence that marked the anarchy of 68-9 ce. The sentiments of the anonymous Theban concerning the political uncertainties and vagaries of quickly changing rulers surely would have struck a sympathetic chord with Statius’ audience (cf. Tac. Hist. 1.85). Many in it would have suffered through the quick succession of five emperors - Nero, Galba, Otho, Vitellius, and Vespasian - during this chaotic period and experienced the reigns of three emperors - Vespasian, Titus, and Domitian - from 79 to 81. Especially compelling to an audience of the late first century would have been Statius’ suggestion that the destruction arising from the sowing of the serpent’s teeth by Cadmus had destined Thebes to endure civil discord forever (Theb. 1.180-5). In mythological terms the obvious Roman parallel is Romulus and Remus, for the founding of Rome upon Romulus’ slaying of Remus seemed to later Romans to foredoom her to eternal civil strife (cf. Liv. 1.6.4-2.7.3, Hor. Epod. 7.17-20,
Luc. BC 1.95-7). The recent civil wars would only have served to confirm this political parallel between Thebes and Rome. The exile of Polynices and instigation of the ambush by Eteocles naturally bring to mind the many cases involving exile or violent elimination of imagined, potential, or actual political opposition under the Julio-Claudian and Flavian emperors. This connection between the Theban and imperial courts is further stressed when Maeon, the sole Theban survivor of the ambush, takes his own life in the presence of the Theban monarch (Theb. 3.81-91). The reaction can be said reasonably to reflect the type of response one would expect of an imperial audience under similar circumstances: the leading citizens are unnerved (92) and the shaken councilors can only raise a murmur (92-3).
The Achilleid
In the prologue to the Achilleid, Statius recuses himself fTom writing an epic on Domi-tian’s life and instead begs the emperor’s indulgence to write an epic on Achilles (Achil. 1.14-19). Unfortunately Statius completed only 1,100 lines before he died, probably earlier in the same year (96 ce) as the emperor Domitian’s death. The accessus to the Achilleid in the Liber Catonianus, a medieval schoolbook, maintains that the poem had an ethical purpose, which was shown in Thetis’ concern for her son and Achilles’ obedience to his mother.
Outline of the Achilleid
Statius declares that the subject matter and scope of the Achilleid is the whole life of Achilles from his upbringing in Scyros, whereas Homer had told only of Achilles’ confrontation with Hector in the Iliad (Achil. 1.3-7). In the narrative Thetis, Achilles’ divine mother, fearing that Achilles will be persuaded to join the expedition to Troy, hides Achilles at the house of Lycomedes in Scyros (1.198-282). She persuades him to wear feminine clothing and instructs him how to impersonate a maiden to avoid detection (318-48). As the Greeks prepare for war, Calchas divulges where Thetis has concealed Achilles, whereupon Ulysses and Diomedes depart for Scyros to find him (397-559). Achilles, who has fallen in love with Deidamia, forces himself upon her (560-674). Achilles is discovered when he selects armor from an array of gifts offered to the maidens of the court by Ulysses and Diomedes (841-84). After Deidamia bemoans Achilles’ impending departure (1.927-60), he leaves with Ulysses and Diomedes for Troy (2.1-22). Ulysses diverts Achilles’ thoughts from Deidamia by reciting the origins of the Trojan War (2.23-85), after which Achilles relates the story of his youth (2.86-167). The manuscript breaks off at this point.
Themes and allusions in the Achilleid
The Achilleid seems to be an attempt at a new type of epic. In comparison with the dark and somber mood of the Thebaid, the Achilleid is lighthearted, even romantic in tone. The hero Achilles is portrayed in an untraditional manner by Statius, who in contrast to the Homeric presentation of Achilles as an intrepid, warlike, and pitiless hero, depicts him as a complex and subtle figure. Statius combines the idyllic-pathetic and sexual elements of elegy with traditional heroic elements in a subtle play of ambiguity and sentimental chiaroscuro. The epic has erotic and clearly Ovidian overtones in the sexual ambiguity of Achilles. The tension between the masculine and feminine is evident in an emergent masculinity that struggles to be kept under control by the androgynous qualities of boyhood (e. g., Achil. 1.335-7). Thetis shows both the foreknowledge of a goddess and the love and solicitude of a human mother for her son. While the youthful appearance of Achilles makes it possible for him to impersonate a daughter of King Lycomedes, his underlying masculinity constantly threatens to expose his real identity, as shown by the maidens’ attraction to him (Achil. 1.366-78, 566-7), his love for and rape of Deidamia (1.560-636), and his instinctive longing to pursue his heroic destiny on the battlefield of Troy (1.852-66). In the end Achilles’ discovery and departure for Troy proves inevitable. Deidamia is portrayed as a pathetic and tragic victim of fate (1.929-55, 2.23-6), reminiscent of the tragic circumstances of Dido in Virgil’s Aeneid. Although he loves Deidamia and regrets his departure, these feelings are not enough to override his impulsive desire to meet his destiny on the battlefields of Troy.
As in the Thebaid, Statius frequently alludes in the Achilleid to numerous other poetic predecessors, including Homer, Euripides, Horace, Propertius, Catullus, Virgil, and especially Ovid. Possible allusions in the Achilleid to the contemporary political situation at Rome are not as easy to establish as they are for the Thebaid. Benker (1987: 87-9) has attempted to draw a connection between Achilles and Domitian by suggesting, for example, that Achilles’ concealment in female dress among the daughters of King Lycomedes is reminiscent of Domitian’s flight from the Capitol in 69 ce when he disguised himself as a priestess of Isis in order to escape from the fighting against the Vitellians. Given the unfinished state and the very different nature of the Achilleid, however, a case for its political allusiveness cannot be made with the same degree of plausibility as for the Thebaid. Medieval commentators themselves did not suggest it.
World History
