ON VIRGIL

In the let­ter to Lady Vio­let Lebas, the author delves into a per­son­al and reflec­tive dis­cus­sion on the appre­ci­a­tion of lit­er­a­ture, specif­i­cal­ly focus­ing on Vir­gil. Ini­tial­ly, the let­ter high­lights a resis­tance to con­form­ing tastes to crit­i­cal acclaim, using per­son­al dis­in­ter­est in renowned authors like Gib­bon, Racine, Wordsworth, and Amiel as exam­ples to argue for a more nat­ur­al, spon­ta­neous appre­ci­a­tion of art. This pre­lude serves as a foun­da­tion for the main sub­ject: Vir­gil, whose work, despite not evok­ing a pas­sion­ate admi­ra­tion in the author, is rec­og­nized for its endur­ing beau­ty and influ­ence.

Vir­gil is por­trayed as a fig­ure whose sweet­ness and moral seren­i­ty tra­verse the ages, endear­ing him to read­ers cen­turies after his time. The author describes a per­son­al con­nec­tion to Vir­gil that orig­i­nat­ed from a school expe­ri­ence, where a mar­ble bust of Vir­gil cap­tured the author’s affec­tion, over­shad­ow­ing even the tedi­um of study­ing his works. This affec­tion sus­tains despite acknowl­edg­ing the per­ceived lim­i­ta­tions of Vir­gil’s poet­ry, includ­ing its imi­ta­tive nature and occa­sion­al lack of orig­i­nal pas­sion. Yet, Vir­gil’s abil­i­ty to invoke the beau­ty of his home­land, his love for the nat­ur­al world, and his reflec­tions on peace and rur­al life are high­light­ed as ele­ments of gen­uine con­nec­tion between his work and the read­er.

Fur­ther, the let­ter explores Vir­gil’s com­men­tary on the trou­bles of his time—the inner tur­moil with­in the Roman state and exter­nal threats—drawing par­al­lels with con­tem­po­rary con­cerns of empire and soci­etal unrest. Through describ­ing Virgil’s yearn­ing for a sim­pler, past Gold­en Age, the author con­nects with the poet­’s escape into a pas­toral idyll free from con­tem­po­rary hor­rors, echo­ing a uni­ver­sal desire for peace amidst chaos.

In cri­tiquing the “Aeneid,” the author acknowl­edges its sta­tus as a com­mis­sioned piece, sug­gest­ing a lack of gen­uine enthu­si­asm from Vir­gil com­pared to the vivid, lived expe­ri­ences that fuel Home­r’s epics. Despite this, Vir­gil’s moments of per­son­al reflec­tion and descrip­tive bril­liance, notably in his por­tray­al of roman­tic love and mys­ti­cal under­pin­nings, are cel­e­brat­ed. The let­ter clos­es on a con­tem­pla­tive note, envi­sion­ing Vir­gil in a serene after­life, min­gling with past sages and poets, for­ev­er in the realm of his own making—a tes­ta­ment to the undy­ing lega­cy of his work and spir­it.