Virgils Epische Technik (1903) was a great pioneering work of abiding importance which has never been superseded. Richard Heinze provides a remarkable insight into the problems Virgil faced. He
identifies certain themes now accepted as central to Virgil’s epic vision, among them the subordination of event to emotion; the way in which the poet justifies Aeneas’ unheroic flight from
Troy; the role of prophecy; and the virtues that make Dido uniquely worthy of Aeneas’ love.
Heinze was a man of refined literary judgement who wrote in a clear and unpretentious style. This translation from the German is a basic text for students as well as for scholars: published for
the first time in paperback, it now includes a helpful Index of passages cited from the Aeneid.
