The Warden
Chapters 1-3

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[4-6]

Chapter 1
Hiram's Hospital

Personification of Scandal
Within the first few paragraphs of the novel, Trollope employs a very Classical technique: the personification of intangible forces.  Very much like Virgil's personification of Rumor (Aeneid 4.173), Trollope personifies Scandal in his description of the rumors about Mr. Harding's preferment.  [JC]

Elysium
In his presentation of the hospital, Trollope describes the portal "through which the more happy portion of the Barchester elite pass into the Elysium of Mr. Harding's dwelling."  Elysium, in Classical mythology, is the place where the blessed dead reside in Hades.  This helps not only to create an image of how peaceful and happy a place the hospital is, but also to strengthen the sense of Mr. Harding's holiness and his good luck in getting the wardenship.  [JC]

Chapter 2
The Barchester Reformer

Sacerdos
The Latin word for "priest" is used here as the pseudonym on a pamphlet written by Dr. Grantly. This term seems to claim a high degree of religious authority for him, since Dr. Grantly gave this name to himself. The use of a Latin word for the title of a Victorian pamphlet also seems to give him a high degree of cultural authority, because Latin was a language which was learned by educated citizens.  [MD]

Argus
Dr. Grantly is said to "have as many eyes as Argus." Argus was a giant in Greek mythology that was said to have at least a hundred eyes, and was ordered to be a sentinel for Hera, the wife of Zeus. Argus' duty was to watch over Io, whom Zeus had turned into a cow, and with whom he was committing adultery.  This allusion shows that Dr. Grantly's character is always vigilant and commanding in both his own and others' affairs. However, this reference could also be seen to be humorous, in that Argus is a monster with superhuman abilities and Dr. Grantly cannot be more watchful than humanly possible.  [MD]

Dignity of an ancient saint
This phrase is used to describe Dr. Grantly and his typical, respectable demeanor. It seems to be an allusion to the dutiful lives of Christian saints and clergymen, many of whom lived and worshipped during the time of the Roman Empire. The idea of the noble lives which these men lived is what Trollope seems to be evoking here. However, this phrase is followed by the words "with the sleekness of a modern bishop."  Together, these two descriptions seem to give Dr. Grantly the personality of one who knows how to work and survive in the modern church system, but who takes the job very seriously and has tremendous respect for his duties.  [MD]

Homer nodding
Dr. Grantly is directly contrasted with Homer in the phrase:  "unlike Homer, he never nods."  This is an allusion to the ancient Greek poet Homer, who is credited with composing the Iliad and the Odyssey. The phrase "even Homer nods" is attributed to the Roman poet Horace (bonus dormitat Homerus, Ars Poetica 359).  Horace was supposedly frustrated with errors in Homer and is said to have written this phrase to illustrate the point that even the famous Greek poet Homer must have slept, and therefore accidentally made mistakes when composing his poems. This description of Dr. Grantly as being very precise and not making mistakes seems to agree with his other character traits, through which he is presented as being very professional. This reference almost makes it seem, perhaps satirically, that Dr. Grantly is above the mistakes of mere humans, such as Homer, and is therefore placed in a more esteemed position than the rest of humankind. 
http://people.brandeis.edu/~rind/engl171/Horace_tags.html  [MD] 

St. Paul
St. Paul lived during and after the time of Jesus, although he never met him, and was greatly influenced by his teachings, thereby becoming a Christian. St. Paul was especially important for promoting the spread of Christianity among the Gentiles of the Roman Empire. This allusion compares Dr. Grantly to St. Paul, because St. Paul was well known for his "speaking sermons," and so too, apparently, is Dr. Grantly.  [MD]  

Chapter 3
The Bishop of Barchester

St. Cecilia
Warden Harding suggests that because of his musical skills and the bedesmen's attitude towards them his precinct might be especially appropriate for the worship of St. Cecilia, a patron saint of ecclesiastical music. Cecilia was a Roman Christian woman who had made a vow of chastity in her youth, but was forced to marry a nobleman when she came of age.  She managed to convert both her husband and his brother to Christianity and thereby preserve her virginity, but the trio of Christians were later martyred for their faith, some time in the second century.  The name of St. Cecilia is held in high esteem in by the Catholic Church, and she is included in the Canon of the Mass.   Because, at her marriage, she "sang in her heart to God" she was popularly represented in art singing or with an organ, and thus came to be related to church music over time.  Lives of the Saints.  Rev. Thomas J. Donaghy.  Totowa, NJ:  Catholic Book Publishing Co, 1998.  [JM] 

Halcyon
The word "halcyon" comes from an ancient myth in which a woman named Alcyone, at the death of her husband (Ceyx) at sea, throws herself into the ocean out of grief.  The gods, taking pity on them both, change them into sea birds.  The sea bird which takes her name, the halcyon, nests on the shores, and Aeolus, the king of the winds, compassionately calms the winds during the birds' nesting periods, giving rise to the phrase "halcyon days".  The word halcyon itself has come to mean "calm" or "restful."
OED
Ovid's Metamorphoses 11.844  [JM]

Patron
Trollope chooses to use the word "patron" here, perhaps implying that Bunce and the Warden have something similar to the patron/client relationship of antiquity.   Certainly, Harding considers himself Bunce's advocate and protector, and Bunce is clearly grateful to be so beneficently overseen.  [JM]

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