abicit exceptamque avidis circumligat ulnis,
iam gravis amplexu iamque aequus vertice matri.
Insequitur magno iam tunc conexus amore
Patroclus tantisque extenditur aemulus actis,
par studiis aevique modis, sed robore longe,
et tamen aequali visurus Pergama fato.
--Statius, Achilleid I.172-177
As soon as his mother [Thetis] appeared in the doorway, Achilles tossed aside what he was doing and threw his arms around her excitedly, revealing to her with his embrace that he already matched her in height.
Soon thereafter Patroclus followed suit. Already they were joined in deep love for each other. Paris strove to rival his love in whatever he did, and he nearly could: they were equal in training, equal in habits, but Patroclus remained nowhere near as strong as Achilles. Despite this, he would join Achilles on his quest to Troy, and together both would meet their doom.
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STATIUS
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MAP:
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Name: Publius Papinius
Statius
Date: 45 – 96 CE
Works: Achilleid*
Silvae
Thebaid
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REGION 1
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BIO:
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Timeline:
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One of the most influential epic poets of the Silver Age, Statius
spent most of his life in Naples, Italy. His most famous work, the Thebaid,
is an epic poem that describes the civil war between the descendants of
Oedipus; he also wrote the Achilleid, a short epic on the boyhood of
Achilles.
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SILVER AGE LATIN
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