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Alcmaeo (Ennius)
Ennius's Alcmaeo
also: Alcmaeo, Alcmaeon, Ennii Alcmaeo, Ennius' Alcmaeon
A lost Roman tragedy by Quintus Ennius dramatizing Alcmaeon, who killed his mother Eriphyle and was driven mad and pursued by the Furies. Cicero quotes a line picturing the hero 'hemmed in by disease, by exile and by want' as the type of a good man crushed by misfortune.
Reading notes
- On the Ends of Good and Evil §4.62 like Ennius' Alcmaeon, \textit{hemmed in by disease,}
A quotation from the tragedy Alcmaeo by Ennius, whose hero is driven mad and pursued by the Furies for killing his mother. The line pictures a good man crushed by disease, exile, and want, to test whether such a life is no worse than a fortunate one.