Which civic values are foregrounded by Vergil through Evander and Pallanteum?

• A. Evander represents military conquest alone; Pallanteum represents wealth.
• B. Evander represents divine intervention; Pallanteum anchors chaos.
• C. Evander represents early civic organization and kinship networks; Pallanteum anchors a lineage of urban virtue preceding Rome.
• D. Evander and Pallanteum symbolize isolation from urban life.

Answer: (C)

Vergil foregrounds civic life by showing how Evander’s Arcadian city and its founder’s lineage embody early forms of city organization and kinship that prefigure Rome. Evander represents the beginnings of shared governance, structured households, mutual obligations, and public life—foundations of a functioning polis. Pallanteum, the city Evander rules, anchors a lineage of urban virtue that predates Rome, presenting Rome as inheriting a long-standing tradition of civic excellence rather than starting from scratch. This framing ties Roman greatness to a venerable, trans-regional ancestry and emphasizes the social bonds and political order that sustain a city.