Bromantic Tragedy

            The idea of a romantic tragedy is very prevalent in the world of literature and cinema. Whether the work is Romeo and Juliet or Titanic, we have all heard of a romantic tragedy at least once in our life. A romantic tragedy that you may or may not have heard of is that of Nisus and Euryalus in Virgil’s epic poem, The Aeneid. The romantic involvement of Nisus and Euryalus is a debated topic, partly because the majority of readers is convinced that Nisus and Euryalus simply had a passionate bromance. However, it is evident to me that Nisus and Euryalus were, indeed, lovers.

            Nisus demonstrates his love for Euryalus by cheating so Euryalus can win the foot race. Referencing Nisus’ act of affection, the text says, “But he won’t forget Euryalus, / his great love, never, up from the slime he struggles, / flings himself in Salius’ path to send him spinning, /…as Euryalus flashes past, thanks to his friend / he takes the lead…” (164). It is a known fact that when we love another, we want the other person to succeed in all that he or she does. Also, love tends to blind us, and it is in that state when we tend to act immorally or irrationally. It was certainly immoral for Nisus to trip Salius in order for Euryalus to succeed; notwithstanding, the reader understands that he did it out of love. On the basis of those truths, Nisus and Euryalus are clearly very infatuated with each other.

            Nisus continues to expose the love that he shares with Euryalus when Nisus risks his life for Euryalus. In a desperate attempt to save Euryalus, Nisus leaps out of safety and says to the Rutulians, “The crime’s all mine, he never dared, / …All he did was love his unlucky friend too well” (280). When we deeply love someone, we want to do everything in our power to keep our significant other safe. Also, Nisus states that Euryalus’ only default was loving Nisus too well. This level of affection is too powerful to be replicated in anything other than a romantic relationship. The proof of their profound adoration for each other does not disappear there.

            To top the great romantic tale off, Nisus succumbs to a blind rage of fury after Euryalus dies and ends up at death’s door himself. Nevertheless, his death was not in vain. Nisus “in the still of death / found peace at last” (281). The reader can conclude that Nisus found more contentment in dying with Euryalus by his side than living life without him. There is an old truism that says something along the lines of how the hardest part of losing a loved one is not their departure but learning to live without them. It seems that Nisus could not take that realization. This piece of evidence serves as the greatest validation of Nisus’ and Euryalus’ romantic involvement because the unfortunate ending is analogous to a classic romantic tragedy.

          Cheating. Risks. Death. These words are considerably reminiscent of a trailer to a romantic movie or a synopsis to a romantic novel, but they are actually just a boiled-down summary of the narrative of Nisus and Euryalus. With that observation, it is blatant that Virgil depicted Nisus and Euryalus as lovers. The question that might cross your mind now is not whether Nisus and Euryalus were romantically involved. Rather, how is there even a valid claim that Nisus and Euryalus were not? With all that said, I think that Virgil should be credited with a new literary genre. We shall call it the… BROMANTIC TRAGEDY.