James Henry’s Poems and the Aeneidea

摘要

The poems—until lately ignored—of the Virgilian scholar James Henry enter into imaginative relation with many classical authors. So it is odd, given Henry’s dedication to the study of the Aeneid, that Virgil seems at first not to figure nearly so prominently as other authors (for instance, those in the satirical tradition, with whom Henry frequently and clearly signals his affinities). But reading Henry’s poems against his Virgilian commentary, the Aeneidea , reveals hidden links, and indicates that the Virgilian presence in Henry’s poems is both more pervasive and subtle than it seems. It is mediated by Henry’s scholarly prose, which in its themes, tone, energy and verbal nuances is strongly continuous with Henry’s poetry.