Virgil's Aeneid is the epic tale charting the origins of Rome and the trials of Aeneas on his divinely-prescribed mission to escape Troy and found a new city. Describing the mythological beginnings of the future Roman Empire, this complex and compassionate poem explores themes of war, humanity, gods, exile and the dictates of fate. Robert Cowan's introduction to this most influential and elusive of poems is essential background reading for all who encounter or study the poem, whether in translation or in the original Latin. Including an overview of its poetic and historical background and a concise summary of its plot, the volume also discusses the genre of epic and the epic tradition, the relationship of the poem to Augustan ideology, the role of the supernatural, religion and philosophy, ideas of masculinity and femininity, narrative techniques and the afterlife and impact of the poem from Antiquity to the present day. There are also useful suggestions for further study and reading.