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Vicus Andicus
(Essay of Experimental Philology)
The Philologists are still debating questions concerning the Publius Vergilius Maro's life; the Philologists still hold proceedings, each trying to defend theories, ideas and fantasies, variously interpreting the mantuan Poets's works, words and ideals1; the Philologists have spent much of their time trying to answer the: «Where, the Vergil's native views»? question but the matters's problematicy is not yet satisfactorily cleared up. Scant, scarce and contradictory the testimonies quotable from the direct source: the «Poet's works», from the indirect source: the «Lives» and «Commentaries» of the Exegetes, from the «Conclusions» of the past and modern Scholars. We open the inquiry, quoting the Poet: 1. Mantua quod fuerat quodque Cremona priits1 2. Sive ManiuamlOpusforet volare sive Brixiam3', 3. Superet, modo, Mantua nobis*', 4. Mantua, vae miserae nimium vicina Cremonae*', 5. Infelix amisit Mantua campumh\
1 The Virgil's works, and ideals have been studied and explained variously: «ex uniuscuiuscjue ¡ngeniolo», hut the problems ofthe roman Poet's life have not had all the necessary and right answers. Wc don't know where Virgil was born; we know almost nothing of his family, of his father, of his mother, of his grand-father; we don't know why he was born roman citizen; we don't know nothing of his going to Cremona and which was the cause of the confiscation of his farm; we do not know why the Poet left Rome and went to NoIa etc. etc. 2 Katalepton 8, 6. 3 Katalepton, 10, 4-5.
4 Verg.,Edog.,9,27.
5 Verg.,Ecfo#.,3,28. 6 Verg., Georg., 2, 198.
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