Editing Virgil (section)

===''Georgics''===
{{Main article| Georgics}}
[[File:Horace, Virgil and Varius at the house of Maecenas.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|right|[[Quintus Horatius Flaccus|Horace]], Virgil and [[Lucius Varius Rufus|Varius]] at the house of [[Gaius Maecenas|Maecenas]], by [[Charles Jalabert]]]]
[[File:Przygotowanie narzędzi rolniczych.jpg|thumb|upright=1.9|Late 17th-century illustration of a passage from the ''Georgics'', by [[Jerzy Siemiginowski-Eleuter]]]]

The ostensible theme of the ''Georgics'' is instruction in the methods of running a farm. In handling this theme, Virgil follows in the [[didactic]] ("how to") tradition of the Greek poet [[Hesiod]]'s ''[[Works and Days]]'' and several works of the later Hellenistic poets.

The four books of the ''Georgics'' focus respectively on:
# raising crops;
# raising trees;
# livestock and horses;
# beekeeping and the qualities of bees.

Well-known passages include the beloved ''Laus Italiae'' of Book 2, the prologue description of the temple in Book 3, and the description of the plague at the end of Book 3. Book 4 concludes with a long mythological narrative, in the form of an ''[[epyllion]]'' which describes vividly the discovery of beekeeping by [[Aristaeus]] and the story of [[Orpheus]]' journey to the underworld.

Ancient scholars, such as Servius, conjectured that the Aristaeus episode replaced, at the emperor's request, a long section in praise of Virgil's friend, the poet Gallus, who was disgraced by [[Augustus]], and who committed suicide in 26 BC.

The tone of the ''Georgics'' wavers between optimism and pessimism, sparking critical debate on the poet's intentions,<ref name="Fowler, pg.1603" />{{Rp|1605}} but the work lays the foundations for later didactic poetry. Virgil and Maecenas are said to have taken turns reading the ''Georgics'' to Octavian upon his return from defeating Antony and [[Cleopatra]] at the [[Battle of Actium]] in 31 BC.