Virgil poet biography project

Written in 12 books, the poem is still regarded as a literary masterpiece today, with some questioning whether the poet also exhibited ambivalence over the cost of empire. Born into a peasant family, the Italian countryside and its people influenced him early on and was later reflected through his poetry.

Virgil poet biography project ideas

With his father marrying into a clan of economic means, Virgil received his education at Cremona in Milan and Rome where he studied Greek and Roman authors and poets. During his younger years, political and military strife afflicted Italy when the Roman Republic dispelled.

Caesar began a series of civil wars that lasted until the victory of Caesar Augustus also known as Octavian in 31 B. These experiences seared Virgil deeply, creating an abhorrence and fear of civil war that was often reflected in his text.

The 10 hexameter poems reflected a stilted exploration of the pastoral world that Virgil perennially revered, with the Greek poet Theocritus providing inspiration for the collection. Virgil's fourth eclogue has also been referred to as his Messianic Eclogue as it told of the birth of a special child whom would bring wide social peace, thus being later seen as prophesying the birth of Jesus Christ.

Virgil poet biography project