To understand how Virgil depicts the Roman hero Hercules through his battle with Cacus
Success Criteria
By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:
1
Understand the prescribed source
I can explain the key events in Virgil's account of Hercules and Cacus from the Aeneid, Book 8
2
Analyse Hercules' characterisation
I am able to identify how Virgil presents Hercules as a Roman hero through his actions, emotions and values
3
Understand religious significance
I can explain why this myth links Hercules to Rome as protector and why Romans worshipped him
4
Compare Greek and Roman heroes
I am able to explain key differences between the Greek Heracles and the Roman Hercules
From Greek Hero to Roman Protector
The Romans adopted many Greek gods and heroes, but they didn't simply copy them - they transformed them to reflect Roman values. Heracles became Hercules, still the mighty monster-slayer, but now also a founder of Roman civilisation and protector of the city.
The story of Hercules and Cacus explains why Romans worshipped Hercules at the Ara Maxima (Greatest Altar) in the Forum Boarium. This wasn't just mythology - it was religious aetiology (origin story) that connected Rome's present worship to its legendary past.
Prescribed Source
Work
The Aeneid
Book & Lines
Book 8, 175-279
Author
Virgil
Date
19 BC
Why is this significant? Virgil's Aeneid was written to glorify Rome and connect it to the heroic age. By including Hercules' battle with Cacus, Virgil shows that even before Rome's founding, the greatest Greek hero was destined to protect this sacred site.
Context: Aeneas at Pallanteum
In Book 8 of the Aeneid, the Trojan hero Aeneas visits King Evander at Pallanteum (the future site of Rome). Evander is holding a festival to honour Hercules, and he tells Aeneas the story of why Hercules is worshipped there - the defeat of the monster Cacus.
Read King Evander's complete account of Hercules and Cacus from Virgil's Aeneid. The text is colour-coded to help you understand what's happening. Click on any highlighted section to see an explanation.
Hercules' Characterisation
Cacus as Monster
Context & Explanation
How Virgil Characterises Hercules
Virgil doesn't just tell us what happens - he carefully constructs Hercules' character through description, action and emotion. Let's examine the key aspects of how Hercules is presented.
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Physical Power
"the greatest of avengers" - establishes his reputation
Tears out an entire rock pinnacle from the mountain
"the highest heavens thundered" - his strength affects nature itself
Wrestles Cacus in a "knot-like clasp" and chokes him to death
Superhuman endurance - circles the hill three times in rage
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Righteous Anger
"indignation truly blazed, with a venomous dark rage"
"Hot with rage" - passion drives his heroism
"gnashing his teeth" - animalistic fury
"in a tearing passion" - uncontrolled emotion
His anger is justified - responding to theft and deception
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Strategic Thinking
"turning his head this way and that, scanning every approach"
Recognises he cannot enter through the blocked doorway
Identifies the rock pinnacle as the weak point
Uses leverage - "straining at it from the right"
Destroys Cacus's advantage (darkness) by opening the cave
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Fearless Courage
"could not endure it" - refuses to be deterred
"threw himself, with a headlong leap, through the flames"
Enters the smoke-filled cave despite fire and darkness
Pursues Cacus into the monster's element (fire)
Completes the task despite supernatural obstacles
The Roman Hero
Virgil presents Hercules with distinctly Roman virtues: virtus (courage and martial excellence), ira (righteous anger against wrongdoing), pietas (duty to restore order), and gloria (achievement of lasting fame through great deeds). This isn't just brute strength - it's heroism with purpose.
Cacus: The Monster Villain
To make Hercules heroic, Virgil must make Cacus monstrous. The villain is characterised through vivid, horrifying details that emphasise his evil nature and justify his destruction.
"There was a cave here, receding to vast depths, untouched by the sun's rays, inhabited by the fell shape of Cacus, the half-human, and the ground was always warm with fresh blood, and the heads of men, insolently nailed to the doors, hung there pallid with sad decay. Vulcan was father to this monster: and, as he moved his massive bulk, he belched out his dark fires."
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Physical Monstrosity
"the fell shape" - unnatural appearance
"half-human" - neither fully human nor beast
"massive bulk" - unnaturally large
"belched out his dark fires" - inhuman abilities
"shapeless carcass" - formless horror in death
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Evil Actions
"ground always warm with fresh blood" - constant murder
Displays victims' heads as trophies
"insolently" - arrogant pride in cruelty
Steals Hercules' cattle through deception
Reverses their tracks - cunning evil
The Function of Monstrosity
Cacus represents chaos and lawlessness that must be destroyed to allow civilisation to flourish. His defeat by Hercules symbolically prepares the site for Rome's founding - civilisation triumphing over barbarism, order over chaos, Roman values over monstrous evil.
Heracles vs Hercules: Greek and Roman Heroes
Though the Romans adopted the Greek hero Heracles, they transformed him to reflect Roman values and needs. Understanding these differences reveals what each culture valued in their heroes.
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Greek Heracles
Focus: Individual Excellence
Achieves personal glory through superhuman feats
Struggles with his own flaws (rage, madness)
Atones for his own crime (killing his family)
Twelve labours serve Eurystheus, not Greece
Becomes a god after death - personal apotheosis
Often acts alone, sometimes with help (Iolaus)
Represents human struggle against fate
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Roman Hercules
Focus: Civilisation Builder
Protects communities and establishes cities
Defends civilisation against chaos (Cacus)
Defeats monsters to make lands safe for settlement
Actions benefit Rome specifically
Worshipped as protector of Roman state
Acts for the collective good, not personal glory
Represents Roman virtues: duty, strength, order
Why Did Romans Transform Heracles?
The Romans needed heroes who served the state, not just themselves. By transforming Heracles into Hercules, they created a model of heroism that supported Roman ideology - individual excellence serving collective benefit, strength used to establish civilisation, and divine favour rewarding those who protect the community.
Religious Significance: The Ara Maxima
The myth of Hercules and Cacus wasn't just an entertaining story - it explained why Romans worshipped Hercules at the Ara Maxima (Greatest Altar) in the Forum Boarium (cattle market). This was aetiological myth: a story explaining the origin of religious practice.
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Why Worship Hercules?
He saved the future site of Rome from a monster
Made the land safe for Evander's settlement
Established precedent for heroic protection of Rome
Showed that divine strength could defend civilisation
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The Annual Festival
Celebrated with sacrifices and feasting
Established by the Potitii and Pinarii families
Reinforced Hercules as protector of Rome
Connected present-day Romans to heroic past
"Because of that this rite is celebrated, and happy posterity remembers the day: and Potitius, the first, the founder, with the Pinarian House as guardians of the worship of Hercules, set up this altar in the grove, which shall be spoken of for ever by us as 'The Mightiest', and the mightiest it shall be for ever."
For Romans, this wasn't ancient history - it was living religion. Every time they worshipped at the Ara Maxima, they re-enacted Hercules' victory and asked for his continued protection of their city.
Exit Questions
Test your understanding of Hercules and Cacus, characterisation, and the differences between Greek and Roman heroes.