The Aeneid

by Virgil

The Aeneid: Flashbacks 1 key example

Book 11
Explanation and Analysis—Camilla's Life and Death:

Camilla, a Volscian warrior and virgin devotee of Diana plays a central role in Book 11 of the Aeneid. In this book, Virgil employs flashback and foreshadowing to recount both Camilla's backstory and death in close succession.

When Camilla appears in the action of the poem for the first time, Virgil underlines the character's importance by immediately highlighting the goddess Diana's concern for her. Addressing her sentinel Opis, Diana speaks out in tears: "Camilla’s moving out to a brutal war, dear girl, strapping on our armor all for nothing. I love her like no one else!" Reminding Opis that this is "no new love," Diana proceeds to describe Camilla's birth and upbringing in detail. With this, Virgil makes Diana the narrator of the flashback:

Once,

when that tyrant, Metabus, loathed by people

for his abuse of power, was drummed from his kingdom,

leaving Privernum’s ancient town, he took his daughter,

a baby, with him, fleeing the thick-and-fast of battle,

a friend to share his exile.