Schevill — Studies in Cervantes. 513 



seriousness and dignity, that it seems certain that he had the Aeneid 

 in mind when he described it. 



As was indicated above, another of the traditionally popular 

 experiences of Aeneas was his descent into the lower world; and 

 we have seen that it was a feature quite common with the type of 

 romance to which the Persiles belongs, to represent the hero as meet- 

 ing some one who prophesies to him of coming events. There is, to 

 be sure, no descent into Hades in Cervantes, but the hero and his 

 fellow wanderers are conducted by an old man through a dark cave 

 into a beautiful, secluded field. ^ Here the venerable man, a hermit, 

 resides in peace and plenty, with his mind wholly set on lofty 

 things ; the talk and the ways of the world are to him things of the 

 past, while his thoughts are devoted to the contemplation of the 

 heavens and future events. Among those who figure in his prophesy 

 is a young prince who dies an untimely death ; and this recalls the 

 well-known passage of Virgil which tells so pathetically of the death 



^ Eneida, Vol. I, p. 281: "Siguiendo su camino, en fin llegaron ] A los 

 lugares dulces, j vergeles | Amenos, de los bosques gloriosos, | Albergos j 

 moradas de los biienos. | Aqui el risueno y rutilante Cielo, \ Viste con hiz 

 purpurea el campo alegre." p. 284: "Ellos dejando la alta cumbre, bajan | 

 A un verde valle, donde el padre Anchises | Avia juntado en cierto aparta- 

 miento | Las almas de sus claros descendientes, etc." He explains, "Porque 

 parece claro desvarlo | Trocar en descontento j cierto duelo | De que abunda 

 el impuro y vil terreno, | La gloria eterna deste sitio ameno," and prophesies 

 to his son: "Contarte he extensamente | El gran linage y descension 

 Troyana." 



Persiles, p. 656, col. 1 : "Soldino con todo aquel escuadron de damas 

 y caballeros bajo por las gradas de la escura cueva, y 6. menos de ochenta 

 gradas se descubriO el cielo luciente y claro, y se vieron unos amenos y 

 tendidos prados que entretenian la vista y alegraban las almas; y haciendo 

 Soldino rueda de los que con el habian bajado, les dijo: . . . esta cueva 

 . . . no sirve sino de atajo para llegar desde alia arriba a este 

 valle . . .; aqui huyendo de la guerra, halle la paz; la hambre que en ese 

 mundo de alia arriba . . . tenia, hallo aqui a la hartura; aqui en lugar 

 de los principes y monarcas que mandaban en el mundo, & quien yo servia, 

 he hallado a estos arboles mudos, que aunque altos y pomposos son humildes; 

 . aqui tengo mi alma en mi palma, y aqui por via recta eneamino 

 mis pensamientos y mis deseos al cielo; aqui ... he contemplado el 

 curso de las estrellas y el movimiento del sol y de la luna; . . . agora 

 como presente veo quitar la cabeza fi im valiente pirata un valeroso mancebo 

 de la casa de Austria nacido, etc.," with other prophesies. For further 

 examples of this kind of prediction see Persiles, p. 645, col. 1 ; p. 669, col. 

 1 : for a description of "unos floridos campos" more beautiful than the 

 Elysian fields, cf. Don Quixote, T, chapter 50, p. 394, col. 2. 



