Cohortatio-topoi in the description of the battle of actium in Vergil's aeneid

Abstract

In his description of the naval battle of Actium depicted on Aeneas' new shield Vergil implicidy echoes the anticipated pre-battle rhetoric of Octavian. The epic poet seems to be in-fluenced by the relevant historiographical and rhetorical tradition and employs a number of topoi frequently found in the battle exhortations of ancient historiography (e.g. the suggestions that the action put forward was just, expedient, noble, feasible, and mindful of the potential consequences), which are efficiently combined with the relevant Augustan propaganda. This interpretation is further reinforced by the distinct similarities between Vergil's passage and Octavian's battle exhortation presented by Cassius Dio (50.24-30). © 2018 Universita degli Studi di Pavia Facolta di Lettere. All rights reserved.