The Lusiads

Luis Vaz de Camões

JESPER C. SILVABSEd III-A, English

Discover MeHangaroo

Asik Asik Falls1

Cape Melville Rainforest2

Mount Mabu Rainforest3

The LusiadsWhat’s with the title?

Why The Lusiads?

Lusitania Latin name of Portugal

Lususmythical & eponymous heroes of Lusitania

Why The Lusiads?

I am concerned

with Portuguese history and achieveme

nts!

The LusiadsIn the

Autobiographical and Historical Context

Luis Vaz de

CamõesPeriod: Portuguese RenaissanceGenre: Epic poetryLiterary Criticism: Classicism

Luis Vaz de

CamõesHe is considered Portugal’s and the Portuguese language’s greatest poet.

Sailing back to History

Reasons behind sea voyages of Portuguese:

1. Curiosity2. To find Prester John, a

mysterious Christian leader3. Economic considerations

Sailing back to History

Why India? It pulled commerce out of

the Mediterranean Sea to the Atlantic Ocean.

The Lusiads

The Lusiads

The Lusiads is so profound that Portuguese is called the “language of Camões.”

The Lusiads

Ten cantos with 1102 number of stanzas

Decasyllabic ottava rima in a total of 8816 lines of verse.

Definition of Terms

Canto part of

poem

Decasyllable poetic unit

with 10 syllables

Ottava rima a verse form

made up of eight lines in iambic pentameter with the rhyme scheme abababcc

ExampleOriginal

Ó caso grande, estranho e não cuidado,

Ó milagre claríssimo e evidente,Ó descoberto engano inopinado,Ó pérfida, inimiga e falsa gente!Quem poderá do mal aparelhadoLivrar-se sem perigo sabiamente,Se lá de cima a Guarda soberanaNão acudir à fraca força humana?

ExampleTranslationSir Richard Fanshawe (Canto II, stanza 30)1O great, undreampt of, strange deliverance!2O miracle most clear and evident!3O fraud discovered by blind Ignorance!4O faithless Foes, and Men devilishly bent!5What care, what Wisdom, is of sufficience6The stroke of Secret mischief to prevent,7Unless the Sov'raign Guardian from on high8Supply the strength of frail Humanity?

abababcc

Excerpt

O great, undreampt of, strange

deliverance!

Iambic pentameter

Reason behind the Meter

Why Decasyllabic Ottava Rima? It is a flowing meter that

allows the narrative to move smoothly, and the long, assonant rhymes have a kind of lulling quality.

The Characters

The Lusiads

Vasco da Gama

He is a Portuguese sailor and explorer who heads the expedition to India.

JupiterHe is the chief of the gods.

VenusShe is a goddess friendly to the Portuguese.

MarsHe is a war god who sides with Venus on the side of the Portuguese.

BacchusHe is the patron god of Asia.

AdamastorHe is the spirit

who appeared to da Gama.

MercuryHe is a god who guides the Portuguese to Mombassa.

NeptuneHe is the god of the sea who, at the request of Bacchus, sends storms to destroy the ships of the Portuguese.

The Epic Cycle

The Lusiads

The Epic Cycle

Status Quo

The epic begins with a dedication section with the poet paying homage to Virgil and Homer.

The Epic Cycle

Call to Adventure

The people of Lusus have gone on to discover new worlds and impose its law in the concert of the nations.

The Epic Cycle

Assistance

Venus + Mars + Zeus + Mercury

vs.Bacchus + Neptune

The Epic Cycle

Departure

The Roman gods and goddesses watch over the voyage lead by Vasco da Gama.

The Epic Cycle

Trials

Fake altar The Southern Cross, St.

Elmo’s Fire (maritime whirlwind)

The Epic Cycle

Approach

Neptune unleashes powerful winds to sink the armada.

The Epic Cycle

Crisis

Vasco da Gama sees the near destruction of his caravels.

The Epic Cycle

Treasure

The Portuguese reaches the Indian city of Calicut.

The Epic Cycle

Result

Bacchus appears in a vision to a Muslim priest in Samorin’s court and convinces him that the explorers are a threat.

The Epic Cycle

Return

Venus prepares the Isle of Love for them to rest on and asks her son Cupid to inspire the Nereids with desire for them.

The Epic Cycle

New Life

During a sumptuous feast on the Isle of love, Tethys, who is now the lover of da Gama, prophecies the future of Portuguese exploration and conquest.

The Epic Cycle

Resolution

The sailors again set sail for home.

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