Nisus and Euryalus

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Nisus and Euryalus are characters in Virgil's Aeneid. They are often described as a prime example of the erastes-eromenos pederastic relationship emblematic of the Greek world and employed by a Roman poet.

The sexual relationship between the two is not spelled out. Instead, a deep emotional and romantic connection between Nisus (the "lover") and the younger Euryalus (the "beloved") is depicted. Relationships such as this ideally had a pedagogic dynamic, and the poem shows many of the intended benefits as well as dangers of such pairings.

When the Trojans are holding funeral games for Aeneas' father, it is his love for Euryalus that drives Nisus to perform in the foot race. When Nisus slips in the blood where the animals were sacrificed, he trips another runner to allow Euryalus to win the race.

Euryalus and Nisus are unflinchingly loyal to one another, and go on a daring raid against the Latins while Aeneas is away. However, Euryalus' confidence gets the better of him and he is captured. In an example of Virgil's ability to create emotional situations, Nisus watches from a hiding spot as the Rutuli capture his beloved. Nisus tries in vain to distract the Rutuli, throwing spears and even announcing his presence, but he watches as Euryalus is killed by Volcens. After this, Nisus drives into the band of Rutuli and kills Volcens, and is cut down by the rest of the Rutuli.

[edit] The Nature of Nisus and Euryalus' Relationship

It has been argued that it is unlikely that Virgil intended this pair to be seen to be in a pederastic relationship due to the Roman feeling that sexual relationships between free males were taboo. If homosexuality was viewed with any suspicion during Vergil's period, it was because it compromised the honor of the free boys, not any religious moral reason; relations with slaves were widely practiced.

Also, If we compare Virgil with other poets roughly contemporary, such as Catullus and Ovid, we find that homophobia is not present in the extant literature of this period. (One might try to discount Ovid as an appropriate moral standard in the Augustan era because of his exile, but Ovid’s exile cannot be seen as brought about by the sexual, including homosexual, themes in his poetry. He was exiled because of the politically subversive themes in his poetry as well another unrelated political indiscretion.) While there may be some confusing places in the text, it is generally accepted that Nisus and Euryalus were lovers.

In fact, Virgil himself wrote of homoerotic themes in his Eclogues. Therefore we must conclude that the idea that the Romans, or at least Virgil, would have found a homosexual relationship, such as that between Nisus and Euryalus, to be distasteful is unfounded, since comparison with contemporary literature offers no such interpretation. If we read an example of Virgil's own words on the matter, we also find a straightforward answer: "his unus amor erat" (this was one love). Throughout the passages in Books V and IX, Virgil uses the language employed for love poetry. It should be remembered that widespread homophobia was a feature of the later Roman society brought about mainly by Judeo-Christian thought; in Greece and the early Roman Empire bisexuality was the norm. For more information see Homosexuality in ancient Greece.

[edit] References

• Vergil Aeneid V, 294; IX, 182, 199, 234
• Makowski, John F. "Nisus and Euryalus: A Platonic Relationship." The Classical Journal, Vol. 85, No 1. (Oct.-Nov. 1989)
• MacMullen, Ramsay. "Roman Attitudes to Greek Love." Homosexuality Vol. 1: Homosexuality in the Ancient World, Eds. Wayne R. Dynes and Stephen Donaldson. (1992).