Lusiads Canto I

Camoes’ familiarity with the great epids like Virgil’s Aeneid and Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey is apparent. He seems to reference them very quickly, but he also states that his epic will be different from others. His work references “a loftier code of honor” (stanza 3).
Camoes also employs many of the same devices as Homer and Virgil—specifically the epic simile. The debate on Mount Olympus is compared to the wind (stanza 35). The battle between the Christians and the Muslims is likened to a bullring (stanza 88).
Although Camoes is writing a Christian epic which seems to celebrate “the Son of David” as a creator who underwent “disgrace and insult…[and] descended from the heavens to earth to raise us mortals to our heavenly worth” (stanzas 71, 65), he incorporates many of the gods used in previous epics. The Portugese travelers seem to be devouted Christians, yet Camoes still utilizes the gods and the role of fate in this work. The gods argue between themselves and still seem to aid or hinder the progression of the Portugese.
The depiction of Muslims expecially intrigues me. Their portrayal is not in any way favorable. The Sheik is described as “malevolent” (stanza 69). Further degradation is revealed in the comparision between the Muslims and “dogs baring their teeth” (stanza 87). The Muslims fight by “flinging rocks and sticks and pebbles, the very weapons of desperation” (stanze 91). The Christians fight with “lead balls” (stanza 89). Camoes points out that these two groups are not on the same playing field. The Muslims fight like children on the playground, the Portugese fight like men in war. It’s been a while since I’ve read my Edward Said, but I smell the traps of Orientalism.
Though I do love how Camoes closes this canto “O the vicissitudes of life’s journey! That wherever a people place their trust, The little they rely on turns to dust” (stanza 105). Each life will have its struggles, but individuals need to place their trust upon an internal power in order to persevere. Anything else will fade into oblivion.