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Compare and contrast Odyssey and Aeneid
Compare and contrast Odyssey and Aeneid
Compare and contrast Odyssey and Aeneid
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Additionally, the information that each hero receives is different. Odysseus learns from Tiresias that he will return home but "will find a world of pain at home" (11.132). Tiresias tells Odysseus of the obstacles that will be in his way on the way home and how to overcome them. Further, he is told how to get rid of his curse brought upon by Poseidon. Although Aeneas is also told the future by his father and "of glory in the years to come, wars that he must fight, [and] how he might avoid or bear each toil to come," (6.1207-1210) the type of information contrasts with the information given to Odysseus because Aeneas receives information relating to the rise of Rome and how he will achieve his goal, whereas Odysseus is given information that will purely suit himself. Aeneas also learns of the journeys and purging that a person's soul takes after death before being reincarnated. Anchises explains that when a body dies, "not all the scourges of the body pass from the poor souls," (6.990) so therefore they all "undergo the discipline of punishments and pay in penance for old sins: [they] suffer each his own shade" (6.994-999). This emphasizes the justice system of Virgil's Underworld because each soul receives the punishment it deserves. Furthermore, the information each hero receives from the spirits of the Underworld helps show the difference in beliefs between the Greeks and Romans. The Greeks believed that everyone ended up in the same place regardless of the life they lived as shown when "brides and unwed youths and old men and girls and great armies of battle dead and men of war" (11.43-46) came floating out of the trench all at once. There is no order involved, whereas in the Aeneid, each of the spirits Aeneas encounters is ... ... middle of paper ... ...or as a prize to the biggest and strongest warrior and Odysseus won. Achilles' armor symbolizes great honor and respect so Ajax is jealous and "blazing with anger" (11.621) at Odysseus for winning because he was "greatest in build [and] works of war," (11.629) and is upset that his glory was stripped away by someone weaker. However, in the Aeneid, Dido kills herself because Aeneas "left [her] land" when she loved him and so she is angry with him and refuses to speak to Aeneas when he calls but instead "savagely glar[es] back" (6.629) at him. This helps convey the difference in values because in Homer's Underworld, Ajax is mad at losing the glory for himself, showing that the Greeks believed in individuality and glory for the individual, whereas in Virgil's Underworld, Dido is upset that the love she had for Aeneas was not returned, conveying the devotion to love.
The Iliad is the story of hundreds of Ancient Greek heroes and kings seeking to take the fabled city of Troy. They embody the values that the Ancient Greeks valued. The charismatic Odysseus, the mighty Achilles, the wise Nestor, the royal Agamemnon all take part in the Iliad. The heroes pursue personal glory on the battlefield. Glory to them, is more valuable than their families, their lives, and form the very basis for their existence. The invincible Achilles, mightiest of the Achaeans, chooses to withdraw from the fight due to a loss of glory. Glory, the intangible, almost untouchable thing that even the mightiest of heroes sought. The idea of glory is the temptation of man, it leads them in an endless cycle of conflict and struggle, and for only in conflict can glory be found. Achilles willingly lets hundreds die due to an insult to his honor, and a loss of glory. The noble soldier Sarpedon, wishes for peace but fights for glory. Dolon marches off in a quest for glory, but is nowhere near ready.
Following his entrance into the Underworld, with his guide the Cumaean Sybil, Aeneas is thrust into the realm of Virgil’s Underworld, beginning first with primarily traditional elements. “Now from the Stygian water the boatman, seeing them in the silent wood and headed for the bank cried out to them (lines 516-518).” Upon reaching the River Styx, the traditional river shades must cross to enter the underworld; Charon the boatman serves as ferryman to transport the two across the river. Upon progressing further, the two come to a fork in the road leading to two separate traditional Underworld realms Tartarus and Elysium: “now of a sudden Aeneas looked and saw to the left, under a cliff, wide buildings girt by a triple wall round which a torrent rushed with scorching flames…they came to places of delight, to green park land, where souls take ease among the Blessed Groves (lines 548-678).” Tartarus, the realm of torment, was reserved for those to be eterna...
The Aeneid by Vergil is a long-standing epic poem with brief historical connections that was contributed to the Roman people’s beginnings. Of course, the main character, Aeneas has to have had some turning point within the poem that he became Roman rather than Trojan, at least within the eyes of the readers and listeners. This turning point is within Book IV when Aeneas has remembered his fate of creating a great city in Italy, and has to leave Dido and Carthage behind. This scene contributes to Aeneas now becoming a true Roman, at least in the ideals of one, because he has continued to be ‘Pious Aeneas’ and is securing his son’s future with following his fate. As an extra factor, Aeneas is also persisting as a heroic character by putting
Aeneas' dedication to following his prophesied path directly proves the significance of this fate depicted in the underworld. His katabasis to the underworld in book VI is a turning point in which he is able to begin to accept his upcoming fate. Aeneas proclaims that he is “Aeneas, duty-bound, and known above high air of Heaven" (I.519-20). The fate of his journey makes for Aeneas’ decent into the underworld as a human a possibility. With this decent comes complete knowledge of the future, thus altering his perception on the meaning of life and what to live for. This fate, specifically the idea of a new home, gave the wandering and confused Aeneas something to grasp on to. In turn, Aeneas’ transfiguration is able to set in. Finding himself in revelation of fate causes Aeneas to realize he must sacrifice his contentment and adjust his character in order to fully satisfy his fate. This fate is an absolute transporter of Aeneas into maturity and becoming a divine leader for Rome.
After his meeting with Achilles, Odysseus has a change of heart. His mission in life changes because he sees that glory will bring him nothing in the underworld, yet having memories of his loved ones will being him happiness. This dramatic change in perspective happened when Odysseus encounters Achilles in the underworld. Odysseus observes that Achilles “lop[es] with long strides—…as I had told him of his son” (11.116). Odysseus concludes that in order for him to be happy in the next life, he must reunite with his son so that he can know that a part of him will live on after he dies.
In one such case Hera speaks to Poseidon and tells him”come, let us ourselves get him away from death, for fear the son of Kronos may be angered if now Achilleus kills [Aeneas]. It is destined that he shall be the survivor, that the generations of Dardanians shall not die, without seed obliterated”.(XX:300-303) This interference is allowed because Aeneas's continued life holds the fate of many more in his hands and that his death is only nearly allowed to happen because of godly interference which allows the situation to arise. The gods are allowed to reveal certain parts of a mortal's fate, such as when Poseidon tells aeneas later on in when he reveals part of his fate when saying “take courage, and go on, and fight with their foremost, since there shall be no other Achaian able to kill you”.(XX: 337-338) This leads to the question of how terminal is
Homer's two central heroes, Odysseus and Achilles, are in many ways differing manifestations of the same themes. While Achilles' character is almost utterly consistent in his rage, pride, and near divinity, Odysseus' character is difficult to pin down to a single moral; though perhaps more human than Achilles, he remains more difficult to understand. Nevertheless, both heroes are defined not by their appearances, nor by the impressions they leave upon the minds of those around them, nor even so much by the words they speak, but almost entirely by their actions. Action is what drives the plot of both the Iliad and the Odyssey, and action is what holds the characters together. In this respect, the theme of humanity is revealed in both Odysseus and Achilles: man is a combination of his will, his actions, and his relationship to the divine. This blend allows Homer to divulge all that is human in his characters, and all that is a vehicle for the idyllic aspects of ancient Greek society. Accordingly, the apparent inconsistencies in the characterization of Odysseus can be accounted for by his spiritual distance from the god-like Achilles; Achilles is more coherent because he is the son of a god. This is not to say that Achilles is not at times petty or unimaginative, but that his standards of action are merely more continuous through time. Nevertheless, both of Homer's heroes embody important and admirable facets of ancient Greek culture, though they fracture in the ways they are represented.
The need of a proper burial in the underworld is essential in attaining some feelings of gratification for carrying out duty to his people and country. Aeneas can now realize what it means to be "Roman" and carry out his duties as destiny prescribed to avoid the chance of an overlooked and proper burial. Virgil uses Aeneas to personify the spirit of the Roman Empire by encompassing the scope of both Iliad and Odyssey. By allowing the underworld to open many aspects of Greek history, Aeneas is able to understand the importance of his family values, striving to fulfill his duty, or his mission, even though Dido almost prevented it. Because of the underworld, he has gained compassion for his lost men by always thinking about the welfare of his people.
The quote from above shows the reader that the people that Anchises’ is going to show Aeneas will be people that are owed a second life and that they will do great things. This is important to the plot of the Aeneid and to the reader as it helps them fully understand the Roman history that Virgil is currently creating. “So come, the glory that will follow the songs of Troy thr...
The protagonist, Odysseus, visits the underworld for a very short amount of time. The two literary works contain many common elements, such as characters being punished, the protagonists interacting with those in the underworld, repeating characters, and the misery of the underworlds. There are also differences between the two works including the types of interactions between the protagonists and those they encounter, the reasons for each protagonists visit to the underworlds, and how the underworld operates. These differences and similarities can be attributed to the Dante’s and Homer’s religion, the time period and culture in which they wrote their respective works, and the purpose for the visits to the underworlds in each work. Although there are many similarities between the underworlds in Dante’s Inferno and The Odyssey, the two works ultimately offer two different visions of the underworld due to the authors’ different religious beliefs and culture, as well as the role of the underworld in each literary work.
The Aeneid is an excellent example of the pressure of change since it exhibits a multitude of different changes; from location changes, Troy to Lavinia, to personal characteristic changes in Aeneas. After being out-witted by the Greeks and their city, Ilium, destroyed; the Trojans are forced to change to ensure the survival of their civilization and culture, for that they turn to Aeneas. Aeneas is tasked by, his father, Ascanuis, and his mother, Venus; to travel across the Mediterranean Sea to the land of Italy, where he is to found their new home. Initially, Aeneas is hesitant and shows disdain for the role the Fate has found him, he yells out to the heavens, “tell me why the Queen of Heaven was so aggrieved, her godhead so offended, that she forced a man of faultless devotion to endure so much hardship” (Aen. 1.12-15). This outrage, despite absolute belief in the Gods and undying patriotism, is in direct contrast to pride and sacrifice
The theme of fate and gods plays a significant role in Greek, and Roman poems like The Odyssey, and The Aeneid. In these poems, there is evidence that the role of the gods has an effect on the fates of the mortal characters. The deities often compete with one another in order to get their desired outcome to come into action. In The Aeneid, this vie causes Aeneas’ destined fate to have complication and to alter the fate of Dido. It is debatable of whether this poem depicts the divines as being a reassuring entity or as a disturbing entity. These mortals become linked with the vies that the gods have, permitting for the alteration of fates and the actions of deities trying to intervene portrays them as disturbing rather than reassuring entities.
In the Aeneid, Virgil has the Trojans, especially Aeneas, possess a strong sense of duty towards their fellow Trojans that outranks their own will and the wishes of their families, to show the civil war stricken Romans the importance of a solid community bond and putting the needs of the community above ones self in ensuring the stability and greatness of their society. The duty that exists between the Trojans can be likened to a devoted brotherly love, which is exemplified in the relationship between Nisus and Euryalus, as Nisus charged Euryalus’ killer, only to die himself, due to his deep emotional connection to his fellow Trojan. This event also possess parallels to Aeneas’ final battle, as it is his love for Pallas that spurns his fury.
Nonetheless, Virgil constructs a complex underworld where people were judged on their actions rather than suffering consequences one did not deserve. Comparable to the Odyssey the underworld in Aeneid spirits that have died from war, the loss of a loved one, murders, and people that have died in peace are not trapped in one place. Many of the elements described by Virgil are similar to what we believe what after life is to be. For example, purgatory in our current time people believe purgatory is to be a place where souls are unprepared to be placed in heaven or hell. This is portrayed by the souls that are unable to cross the river to the gates of the underworld because; they have yet to receive a proper burial. The fear of an improper burial is alluded in the Odyssey when a member of crew requesting a proper burial after his death. As Aeneid journeys further into the underworld the separation of heaven and hell is apparent in which a particular soul is placed after judgment. Aeneas is reunited with his mother who died from heart break she is placed in the fields of mourning where she and others continue to mourn the loss of loved on which contrast to Odysseus’s mother is wandering the underworld morning the loss of her son. The field of war heroes is where men who fought with bravery are set to live in peace for eternity. The field of gladness and blessed groves is modern Christianity’s equivalence to heaven; souls have passed on have the ability to live in peace and happiness for
A person's status in Greek society highly impacted the way people treated them. People of nobility would be held in a higher regard than just a free man. This hierarchy also carried onto the battlefield. Those who had proven themselves courageous in battle would have more sway over a group. Achilles achieved this, since others respected him as a member of the army. Thus, when Achilles died, he insists on receiving a sacrifice over his tomb, because the heroic code depends on giving individuals honor that they have earned. This is exemplified when he says, "Where, then, Danaans, do you think you're going, / leaving my tomb without a prize" (Euripides 84). This task was due Achilles, because he had triumphed on the battlefield at Troy by fighting nobly. Afterwards, when the army was tasked with deciding who would be Achilles' sacrifice, Odysseus swayed the people with his words. The people not only regarded Odysseus as a noble in society, but he also prove...