Aeneid- Book 1 Summary

Aeneid Book 1

Virgil opens his epic poem by declaring its subject, “I sing of arms and of the man, fated to be an exile”, and asking a muse, or goddess of inspiration, to explain the anger of Juno, queen of the gods. The man in question is Aeneas, who is fleeing the ruins of his native city, Troy, which has been ravaged in a war with Achilles and the Greeks. The surviving Trojans accompany Aeneas on a perilous journey to establish a new home in Italy, but they must contend with the vindictive Juno whom prolongs Aeneas arrival in Italy. Juno harbours anger towards Aeneas because Carthage is her favourite city for which she is patron of, furthermore there is a prophecy that the race descended from the Trojans will someday destroy Carthage. Juno holds a permanent grudge against Troy because another Trojan, Paris, judged Juno’s rival Venus fairest in a divine beauty contest.

Juno calls on Aeolus, the god of the winds, directing him to bring a great storm down upon Aeneas as he sails south of Sicily in search of a friendly harbour. Aeolus obeys, unleashing a fierce storm upon the battle-weary Trojans. Aeneas watches with horror as the storm approaches. Winds and waves buffet the ships, knocking them off course and scattering them. As the tempest intensifies, Neptune, the god of the sea, senses the presence of the storm in his dominion. He tells the winds that Aeolus has overstepped his bounds and calms the waters just as Aeneas’s fleet seems doomed. Seven ships remain, and they head for the nearest land in sight: the coast of Libya. When they reach the shore, before setting out to hunt for food, a weary and worried Aeneas reminds his companions of previous, more deadly adversities they have overcome and the fated end toward which they strive.

Meanwhile, on Mount Olympus, the home of the gods, Aeneas’s mother, Venus, observes…