Latinus and Amata

• book 7, book 11 and book 12
• Aeneas must marry into the family of Latinus to create the new race
• the king is of impeccable divine origin, as is appropriate for the ancestor of the Roman people
• he, at first, welcomes Aeneas into his kingdom
• despite knowing that Aeneas is the husband foretold for Lavinia, he cannot resist Amata, and allows war to be declared
• bk 12 - he attempts to persuade Turnus to give up Lavinia, but fails and withdraws
• the fault in Latinus lies in his lack of courage to pursue what he knows is required of Fate
• his lack of piety in ignoring the omen brings about his personal tragedy and the destruction of his city
• Amata wants her daughter to marry Turnus, the young fiancé who loves her, and not an unknown foreigner
• Juno exploits her anger, drives her into a frenzy and uses her to stir up war against the Trojans
• when she foresees that Aeneas will kill Turnus, she hangs herself in despair
• in portraying the family unit, rather than just Latinus, Virgil is better able to show the destructive force of war, as husband and wife are on opposing sides
• he emphasises that this Italian was is, in essence, a civil war