# Book II explained — The Aeneid

> Chapter companion for The Aeneid by Virgil.

## What happens

Aeneas recounts the fall of Troy, including the Greek stratagem of the wooden horse, the treachery of Sinon, the death of Laocoön, the night of destruction, the loss of his wife Creüsa, and his escape with his father Anchises and son Ascanius.

## Themes in this chapter

### Fate and Destiny

Aeneas is compelled by divine will to leave Troy and seek a new homeland, despite personal loss.

### Suffering and Sacrifice

The Trojans endure immense suffering during the sack of Troy; Aeneas sacrifices personal safety for family and destiny.

### Love and Loss

Aeneas loses his wife Creüsa and mourns deeply, yet must continue his mission.

### Divine Intervention

Gods such as Venus, Juno, and Minerva actively shape the events of Troy's fall and Aeneas's escape.

## Character check-ins

### Aeneas

Narrates the fall of Troy and his escape.

### Sinon

Greek captive who deceives the Trojans into bringing the wooden horse inside the city.

### Laocoön

Trojan priest who warns against the wooden horse and is killed by sea serpents.

### Creüsa

Aeneas's wife, lost during the escape; her ghost appears to him.

### Anchises

Aeneas's father, carried from Troy on Aeneas's shoulders.

### Ascanius

Aeneas's young son, led by the hand during the escape.

### Venus

Appears to Aeneas to reveal the gods' role in Troy's fall and urge his departure.

### Hector

Ghost appears to Aeneas in a dream, warning him to flee Troy.

## Key lines

> Great queen, what you command me to relate Renews the sad remembrance of our fate: An empire from its old foundations rent, And ev'ry woe the Trojans underwent; A peopled city made a desert place; All that I saw, and part of which I was

Aeneas tells Dido that recounting Troy's fall brings back painful memories of the city's destruction and his own experiences.

_Aeneas begins his narrative with reluctance, emphasizing the emotional weight of the story._

> Laocoon, follow'd by a num'rous crowd, Ran from the fort, and cried, from far, aloud: 'O wretched countrymen! what fury reigns? What more than madness has possess'd your brains? Think you the Grecians from your coasts are gone? And are Ulysses' arts no better known?'

Laocoön warns the Trojans not to trust the wooden horse, suspecting it is a Greek trick.

_Laocoön's warning highlights the Trojans' fatal blindness to deception._

> Then thus the ghost began to soothe my grief 'Nor tears, nor cries, can give the dead relief. Desist, my much-lov'd lord, t' indulge your pain; You bear no more than what the gods ordain.'

Creüsa's ghost tells Aeneas to stop mourning, as her death is fated, and he must accept the gods' will.

_The ghost's message reinforces the theme of fate and the need for Aeneas to move forward._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_aeneid_se/chapters/book-ii
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_aeneid_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_aeneid_se/chapters