Aeneas and Creusa
Retelling from Book 2 of the Aeneid
The Downfall of Troy
In Book 2 of the Aeneid describes the downfall of Troy. The Greeks have gifted them with a huge wooden horse, and the Trojans argue over what to do with it. They almost decide to burn it or destroy it in some other way. Laocoon even attacks it with his spear!
But then Greek Sinon is brought in by some shepherds from the countryside. His hands are bound, because he has managed to escape being killed as a sacrifice for the Greeks’ safe passage home. The Greeks have gone home to regroup and check with the gods, whose favor they have lost. And poor Sinon is the victim of the enmity of Ulysses. The Trojans and King Priam buy the story, which is a total fabrication, pity Sinon, and free him.
Even then, they might not have brought the horse into the city, but the gods themselves intervene against them. Two huge serpents swim in from the sea, come up on the shore, kill the two sons of Laocoon, and then the man himself. Well, that’s clear enough! He’s been punished for attacking the wooden horse with his spear.
And to underline that the Trojans never had a chance, the horse was jarred a few times getting through the gates into the city, and the sound of the arms of the men inside clanking together could be heard outside of the horse! And still, no one paid attention.
So the downfall of Troy was caused by the compassion of the Trojans and the will of the gods.
The next part of the book describes how Aeneas fights, and what he sees, after awakening to battle in the night.
Aeneas and the Loss of Creusa
Next is the story of Aeneas fleeing Troy with his family. For this, I will give you something between a translation and a retelling in prose / poetry.
Troy is lost, burning, and I am fleeing. My father is on my back, My small son holds my hand, My wife follows behind. Blood have I spilt, much more have seen spilt. Priam have I seen covered in the blood of his dying son, Polites, In the sanctuary, In the inmost spaces of his palace, At the altars of his gods. Almost through the gates. Have we made it? “Flee, son, flee!” my father cries. “I see shining shields and the flashing bronze of arms.” I step off the familiar road, onto unmarked paths. Father on my back, Son holding tight to my hand. But alas! Creusa, beloved wife! Torn from me! Perhaps she stopped. Or wandered from the road. Or sat down, weary. I didn’t look back or even think of her Until we reached the rendezvous, Ceres’ temple. My companions, my household servants met us there. Myself, my father, my son. Only one was missing, my Creusa. I left them there And went back to look for her. Back to the dark gate of the city. Looking, scanning, retracing our footsteps. Her footsteps. Horror fills my soul. The silence is terrible. Did she go back home? I return there. The Greeks have been there. Fire devours it, Heat from the flames rage to the sky. Back to the citadel, and Priam’s bloody sanctuary. Greek guards, Phoenix and terrible Ulysses, Watch the booty rescued from burning shrines. Tables of the gods, solid gold bowls, rich garments. Women and children, trembling, standing in a line. Back in the streets, I raise my voice. “Creusa,” I call, over and over again, grief-stricken. And then it appears. Her shade, larger than life. I am struck dumb. My hair sticks up. My voice sticks in my throat. She speaks, and dispels my fears. “Dear, sweet husband. Such mad grief.” She tells me my fate: wandering, restoration, A new kingdom, a new bride. “You need not weep for your beloved Creusa,” she says. “Neither the proud seats of the Myrmidons nor the Dolopians shall I behold, Nor shall I, a Trojan and daughter-in-law to Venus, be a slave. Yet Juno decrees that I must stay on these shores. I cannot come with you.” And yet, still I weep. There is so much I want to say. “Farewell,” she says. “Keep loving our son.” Three times, I try to throw my arms around her. Three times, the shade escapes my hands. And then she vanishes into thin air. And so I return to the temple of Ceres and my companions. And my fate.