The poem “Aeneid” by I. P. Kotlyarevsky (1769–1838) has firmly entered the golden fund of Ukrainian classical literature.
It is a comic burlesque poem based on the plot of the poem of the same name by the Roman poet Virgil. The first work of fiction in the spoken Ukrainian language.
The main features of the author’s distinctive creative work appear in the sincere folk flavor across the entire piece and in its humorous tone. Based on Virgil’s ancient work, I. P. Kotlyarevsky created vivid images of contemporary to him Ukrainian everyday life and living conditions—bringing the plot onto Ukrainian soil.
Aeneas and his companions present themselves to readers like a kosh ataman and his Zaporozhian Cossacks…