Sunt Lacrimae Rerum: Aeneas' Pity in the Aeneid

This thesis examines significant moments in the Aeneid where Aeneas reacts to the sufferings of others, analyzing how his response to that suffering changes over the course of the epic. I argue that Aeneas passes through three stages in his response to the suffering of others. In stage one, during the fall of Troy, Aeneas exhibits a form of pity comparable to Aristotle’s definition, relating to the pain around him through anxiety for himself and his family; in addition, he feels not pity alone but horror as well. In stage two, during his interactions with Dido, Aeneas mirrors the distance and resistance to painful compassion enjoined by Lucretius’ philosophy, which encouraged its adherents to instead embody untroubled serenity. In stage three, during his interactions with Dido’s ghost, Lausus, and Evander, Aeneas develops a more mature and deeply compassionate response to suffering. In this stage, he imaginatively enters the experience of others, accepts responsibility when appropriate, and offers aid when possible. As Virgil develops Aeneas’ character, he moves him beyond the models of pity displayed in the first and second stages; at the same time, he reveals the futility of Aeneas’ newfound compassion within the tragic divine framework of the Aeneid.

本论文探析《埃涅阿斯纪》（Aeneid）中埃涅阿斯（Aeneas）对他人苦难作出回应的关键场景，并分析其在这部史诗叙事进程中，对苦难的回应方式如何发生演变。本文认为，埃涅阿斯在应对他人苦难的过程中，历经了三个阶段：第一阶段为特洛伊沦陷时期，埃涅阿斯展现出一种契合亚里士多德定义的怜悯形式——通过对自身与家人的焦虑，将自身与周遭的苦难产生联结；此外，他所感受到的并非仅有怜悯，亦混杂着惊惧。第二阶段为与狄多（Dido）的互动阶段，埃涅阿斯践行了卢克莱修（Lucretius）哲学所倡导的、与痛苦的怜悯保持距离并抗拒其裹挟的立场，该哲学勉励追随者秉持超脱无扰的宁静心境。第三阶段为与狄多之魂、劳苏斯（Lausus）以及埃万德（Evander）的互动过程中，埃涅阿斯对苦难形成了更为成熟且深切的共情回应：在此阶段，他能够以共情之姿代入他人的处境，在恰当之时承担责任，并在力所能及之际施以援手。随着维吉尔对埃涅阿斯人物弧光的塑造，其人物形象得以摆脱前两个阶段所呈现的怜悯模式；与此同时，维吉尔也在《埃涅阿斯纪》的悲剧性神性框架之下，揭示了埃涅阿斯此番新生的共情之举的徒劳无益。