Lusiads Cantos IV-VI

In the Lusiads, Camoes also uses epic similes. There were several in this section which made me pause to consider their meaning. In Canto IV, the Portuguese are compared to “a fierce lioness” (stanza 36). On the surface, this does not appear to be too different: after all, Homer used many wild animals like lions, boars, and wolves in The Iliad to describe the warring factions. Yet this simile, introduces the female lion. She leaves her cubs in a safe haven to hunt for her children. The cubs “are stolen by a shepherd” (Canto 4, stanza 36). The mother’s instincts kick in; she releases a “furious roaring and rampaging” (Canto 4, stanza 37). The lioness will do everything to ensure her cubs are brought back to her safe keeping. The Portuguese are then invited to behave like the lioness to “defend your native soil” and protect their liberties and the lives of their families (canto 4, stanza 37). This is very empowering to the Portuguese until you realize that they are not on their home soil. They are traveling to take to the homes of others and spread imperialism. They are working to spread the glory of Portugal, not to guarantee life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.