Troy Novant: An Examination of Aeneas as Depicted by Geoffrey Chaucer

Peter Steffensen

Abstract

This thesis examines the ways in which historical, cultural, and literary influences have changed the way that Chaucer portrayed Aeneas in the both The Legend of Good Women and The House of Fame. The primary texts looked at in comparison are Ovid's Heroides, Virgil's Aeneid, and the historical works of Dares and Dictys. This study concludes that this complex network of forces caused Chaucer to present Aeneas as an overall negative figure in his poetry.