Literary epics, the Aeneid being one of them, typically have a very poetic and lyrical sense of style in the writing as well as the other characteristics of supernatural forces, vast settings, actions of superhuman strength, and a hero or heroine. Authors of epics such as the Aeneid, the Iliad, and the Odyssey often include several different themes and lessons that the reader can learn from reading the stories. The themes and lessons can vary from simple moral beliefs to psychological behavior. In the Aeneid, one major theme that deals with human nature is the idea that emotions and feelings between people are able to override a person’s logical thinking and decision making.
During both books II and IV of Aeneid, Virgil expresses multiple
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In Book II, the Greeks, the enemy of Troy, gave a giant wooden horse to people of Troy as a “gift”. The people of Troy were surprised and confused at the gift and was not sure it was an actual gift. Then, the Trojans came upon Sinon who told them a very long, sad story about how the Greeks hated him and wanted to kill him. “with right I break the Greek’s solemn oaths, with right I hate them, and if things are hidden bring them to light: I’m bound by no laws of their country.” (Virgil, Trans. Kline 157-159) “they’ve set up this statue of a horse for the wounded goddess.” (Virgil, Trans. Kline 183-184) Sinon deceives the Trojans into thinking he is not on the Greeks side and that the Greeks made the horse as an offering to the gods. The Trojans believe him and completely disregard their previous assumptions about the horse and what could possibly be inside. The people of Troy felt sorry for Sinon because the Greeks hated him and his father figure had recently passed. Their sympathy caused them to act in a way they probably would not have if Sinon had not told his sad story. The Trojans may have even been able to prevent the whole situation with the Greeks coming out of the horse if they were thinking logically and stuck to their previous
11: Virgil, The Aeneid, trans. and ed. David West, Revised Edition; Penguin Books, published by the
Goldwyn, Adam J. "A Literary History of the Trojan War from Antiquity to the Middle Ages." Order No. 3426747 City University of New York, 2010. Ann Arbor: ProQuest. Web. 13 ‘May 2014.
Throughout the Odyssey there are many themes that Homer uses to portray different people and events. To name a few, there are the themes of Betrayal and Revenge,Greed and Glutony, Hospitality, Role of the Gods and Wealth (the amount of money one had determined the status he held in the greek society, and this explains Odysseus's love for plunder).
are followed and proper respect given the gods, it is possible for man to live
Two of the most influential books of ancient Roman and Grecian culture are the Odyssey and the Aeneid. The Odyssey is centered on the Greek hero Odysseus. It portrays Odysseus’ journey back home and the endeavors he has to go through. The Aeneid depicts the Roman hero Aeneas as he is sent on a journey to start the great Roman Empire. The books both have many similarities between them especially due to the fact that Virgil, the author of the Aeneid, was heavily influenced by Homer’s Odyssey. But like with any good story they are both unique in their own way. One of the major differences is in the setting. Some of the differences are in the choices that they make while some of the differences are even in the characters themselves. But the parts of the stories that have influenced much of modern day literature are the instances where the protagonists have to make a visit to the underworld. Virgil and Homer wanted to emphasize the underworld so much that they each dedicated an entire chapter in their epics to the underworld. But each underworld is blatantly different thus giving each hero a distinctly different journey to the underworld. Three of the main differences in their underworld journeys are their purpose for being there, visuals in the underworld, and the underworld itself.
Both the Odyssey and the Aeneid represent their cultures very well, but they express different ideas on what one should strive for in life. There are also different forces that pushed both epics to be written. The Aeneid expresses the Roman idea of pietas which means to show extreme respect for one’s ancestors. We see this in Aeneas when he is pictured caring his father away from burning Troy. He has pietas because he cared so much for his father that in fleeing from Troy he took up his father over his shoulder to save his from certain death. This is not the only major idea in the Aeneid. There is also a very political focus. The Roman were very interested in politics which comes through in the Aeneid. The Odyssey has the Greek idea of arete trapped somewhere among the many themes. Arete is a strive for perfection in both mind and body. It is a much more personal and individual idea than the Roman pietas. In the most basic seance the Aeneid and the Romans have a much more political focus and duty to the state ( republic ) than the Greeks who honor tradition , family , and arete.
After he says this, the Trojans give him their full trust and decide to take the horse into Troy. This quote also displays the deception of the Greeks, because what happens turns out to be the total opposite of what Sinon says. When Laocoon objects about allowing the giant wooden horse into the city, a serpent devours him; consequently, this causes the Trojans to believe that the Gods want the horse to be accepted into Troy. After all of the Trojans fall asleep, the Greek army exits the hollow stomach of the horse and destroy the city of Troy.The Aeneid depiction of the Greeks shows them as untrustworthy people who use trickery and lies to win a battle rather than using sheer intelligence. The Trojans are seen in a much better lighting than the Greeks in the Aeneid. While Sinon uses his lies to deceive the Trojans, the Trojans listen and believe what he
Although both epics justify a status quo, codify a national mythology, preserve cultural memories, and establish literary tropes, they are united by sensibility and are traditionally poetic. They both almost have the same exact core values such as in the end, but project influence into a number to areas of cultural identity. Once more, after analyzing both texts, it is possible to conclude that Aeneas is the better leader, and The Odyssey is the greater epic. Knowing that this is the proper proposition made, this affects the readers of both well-known stories.
We have read two myths of great heroes this semester, Virgil’s The Aeneid and Homer’s The Odyssey. In both of these tales we get to go along with two great heroes on their journey home and all of the troubles that they face. Although these stories tell us about two great heroes and their journey there are a lot of differences. In this paper I will compare and contrast scenes from both myths and suggest a reason that this borrowing was appropriate for what Vergil was trying to do with his version of the myth.
During the Trojan War the Greeks and Trojans were at a stalemate. The Greeks built a giant wooden horse and left it on the beach of Troy. However, there were soldiers inside that ransacked Troy when the Trojans brought the “gift” into their city. Priam is killed during the Sack of Troy by Achilles' son
The Legend of the Trojan horse started when the prince of Troy, Paris, visited the King of Sparta, Menelaus. Menelaus’s wife, Queen Helen, left Sparta to be with Paris. This angered Menelaus. So, Menelaus asked his brother, Agamemnon to siege Troy and retrieve Helen. Agamemnon was joined by the Greek heroes Achilles, Odysseus, Nestor, and Ajax.
"My lord who rule The lives of men and gods now and forever, And bring them all to heel with your bright bolt, What in the world could my Aeneas do, What could the Trojans do, to so offend you?
In Virgil’s The Aeneid, there are many parallels found in Homer’s The Odyssey. In each epic, the heroes, Aeneas and Odysseus, are on a journey “home.” Aeneas is on the search of a new home for he and his companions to settle since Troy has been destroyed, Odysseus on the other hand is attempting to return to his home he left years earlier to fight the Trojan War. They both have Gods against them and helping them, both Aeneas and Odysseus are both held back by women, both voluntary and involuntarily, and they both have experiences visiting the Underworld. Despite these similarities, there are differences between the two characters and it reflects their values and the society they live in. Aeneas relies on his strength as a warrior, where as Odysseus uses his deception to survive which reflects how Aeneas is truly Roman is versus Greek.
The Trojans take the horse back to Troy and while everyone sleeps, the Spartans (who have been hiding inside the horse) open the gates of Troy to let in their army and burn Troy to the ground. In the process, Prince Paris sees Achilles trying to get Briseis to safety and Paris kills Achilles. Though we do see some similarities between the Iliad and Troy, these similarities are very loosely based. I think the movie made the characters seem less barbaric and some of the sets, especially the city of Troy, seemed a bit too elaborate. The movie, though enjoyable, was definitely not a factual representation of Homers classic Iliad.
The Iliad and the Odyssey are two classic stories told by Homer. Within these two stories the roles of the gods are very important to the story line and how they affect the characters throughout. In the Iliad, more gods are involved with the characters whereas in the Odyssey there are only two major gods that affect two major characters. The roles of the gods in the Iliad are through two different stances of immortal versus immortal and mortal versus immortal. The roles of the gods in the Odyssey are through two major gods and they affect the plot as Poseidon versus Odysseus and Athena versus Telemachus.