DUST, WATER AND SWEAT: THE STATIAN PUER 211
and as yet unprepared for conflict. Immaturity, imprudence, confusing
war with play will be fatal to him in the end.
The tone and the language help to create an atmosphere of tender
homely lightheartedness quite unusual in the Thebaid, a poem con-
stantly pervaded with dramatic tension. In the first place, in initial
position in the line^38 we find two key words for the happy enthusiasm
of the puer’s wargames, gaudebat (9.319) and laetus (9.324);^39 more-
over tener (320 tener Crenaeus), blandus (329 blandior) and cu-
nabula (322) for the tender world of childhood, fidus (321 in gurgite
fido) and securus (323) for the child’s trust in his mother’s (320 ma-
ternis ... in undis) and grandfather’s care (325 auum). This same
lightheartedness remains in the aquatic comparisons that close the first
tender portrait of the puer: in fact the river’s loving cuddles are com-
pared to the sweetness (328–9 pontus blandior) with which seawater
‘embraces’ the belly of Glaucus, to the joy Triton shows when rising
from the waves of the sea in summer, and to Palemon’s running to be
kissed by his mother (330 ...carae festinus ad oscula matris).
Lightheartedness, affection, sweetness also characterize the de-
scription of the reliefs on Crenaeus’ shield (334–7), where Europa
furrows the waves of the sea on the white back of the blandus bull
(334 Sidonis hic blandi per candida terga iuuenci), her toe-tips play-
ing with the waves while she is no longer afraid of the sea (335–6 iam
secura maris, teneris iam cornua palmis / non tenet).
But in the Thebaid war is always round the corner; only the child-
heroes forget it. The caesura between the first part and the tragedy of
the second is anticipated by the presentation of the puer’s military
outfit, which, even if centred on the traditional rich splendour of the
child-hero (332–3 arma decent umeros, clipeus insignis et auro / lu-
cidus...), throws the first sad shadow on the carelessness of the water-
38 The words the poet places at the beginning of the line seem to sum up the har-
mony of Crenaeus’ family: gaudebat (319), maternis (320), Crenaeus (321), et natale
uadum 39 (322), ergo (323), laetus (324), transit auum (325).
Laetus acquires more strength in the happy assonant combination with the parti-
ciple adulantem (9.324 laetus adulantem). Enthusiasm and light-heartedness, often
deadly for an imprudent and naive puer, characterize the lives of other boy-heroes of
Flavian epic, such as Hylas himself, happy (V.Fl. 1.109 umeris gaudentibus) to be
able to follow and help Hercules, Parthenopaeus (Stat. Theb. 9.319, 694–9, 724–5),
thrilled by the idea of at last being able to go to war, delighted with the colours and
sounds of his armour and of battle, or Cinyps, pleased with his plumed helmet, a gift
of his commander (Sil. 12.225–6 ...puer illa gerebat / non paruo laetus ductoris
munere Cinyps).