The Aeneid
The Aeneid begins and ends with parallels to the Iliad, inviting the reader to consider Virgil's poetry in light of Homer's. The Aeneid is both a
tribute to the Homeric style--by imitating it--and an attempt to better
it. It is the story of a man who is destined to succeed, and its strength lies more in its secondary characters than in the person of Aeneas. From the very beginning of the poem, when Aeneas flees Troy, there is a sense that he has left part of himself behind there. It may be that he will go on to eventually find a new home in Italy, but he is not so much moving from one place to another as he is being stretched across the poem and across the seas. He does not have the vitality of other mythical heroes, such as Odysseus, because he is more or less been reluctantly dragged along towards his destiny, rather than single-mindedly pursuing it. This is why he is so willing to find diversions or temporary homes along the way, in Crete, Carthage and Sicily--that is, until the gods force him to continue on.
As Aeneas is stretched further, his character becomes less consistent
and prone to fits of anger, cruelty, sadness and kindness, but not in a
particularly coherent fashion--that is, these powerful expressions of emotion, however well Virgil puts them into words, do not really define a personality. This is where the personalities of more powerful characters take over: Juno, Dido, and Turnus. They all have their homes in the play, and their characters are well-defined, powerful, and consistent -- with the exception of the turnabout in Book XII, which prevents Juno and Turnus from taking over the poem entirely. They are personalities in their own right, all strong-willed. Aeneas, on the other hand, is obligated everywhere he turns. He always has one foot back in Troy, but he must fulfill the will of the gods, while enduring
the wrath of other gods, all the while being a worthy predecessor of Augustus and founder of the Roman people.
All of these necessities pull at Aeneas' character and prevent Virgil
from creating him for his own sake. Of course, the Trojan is successful
because he gives himself up to these other obligations, while those who
resist the will of the gods--Dido, Turnus-- die sad deaths. However, in
their failure they are in fact the most interesting and attractive
The roles of Aneas and Turnus are reversed as the Aeneid progresses. The erasure of Aneas' free will accounts for his triumph and success. Time and time again, Aneas' courage, loyalty, and will are tested in the Aeneid. Through seemingly endless journeys by sea, through love left to wither, and through war and death, Aneas exhibits his anchored principals and his unwavering character. "Of arms I sing and the hero, destiny's exile... Who in the grip of immortal powers was pounded By land and sea to sate the implacable hatred of Juno; who suffered bitterly in his battles As he strove for the site of his city, and safe harboring For his Gods in Latium" (Virgil 7).
We also see in the story what someone must sacrifice in order to fulfill their goals. Though Aeneas's destiny was much more grand than many of our own, we still must make choices that can sometimes hurt others. I really thought that Vergil captured our inner emotions with the affair between Dido and Aeneas.
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.
... wife and home as well as his place in Carthage in the name of the gods, in the name of a quest that does not directly benefit him. From this pursuit, he does not stand to gain spoils, and the most that could be said of his fame would be drawn from his descendents. It is this moral stance, this understanding of universal placement, of purpose, that sets Aeneas apart from other heroes.
There are two reasons why The Aeneid is associated with the Shakespearean play Antony and Cleopatra. First, The Aeneid was written by a Roman named Virgil who, among many other reasons, wrote it as a tribute for Augustus Caesar, the leader of the Roman Empire. Augustus Caesar was formally named Octavian and is a character in Shakespeare's play. Secondly, both The Aeneid and Antony and Cleopatra share a common theme of a patriotic, heroic man having to choose between duty to his country and the passionate love of a beautiful, foreign and strong queen. In The Aeneid, the lovers are Aeneas and Dido and Antony and Cleopatra are the lovers in Shakespeare's play.
The Odyssey and The Aeneid are both classic pieces of literature that have impacted the modern academic world. These two stories have compelling similarities, however, they also have copious differences. Both stories follow a hero after the Trojan War, one searching for the comfort of his wife and son, another determined to establish an empire and fulfill his destiny.
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.
Aeneas feels great pride and energy regarding his role in history and is anxious to continue on his journey. The gods are trying to convince Aeneas to value duty to his city and family, a kind of affiliation or relation by virtue of descent as-if from a parent, above duty to a lover by mere affiliation, or arbitrary association. This perspective on an appeal to authority still hinges on a relationship between Aeneas' desire for affiliation and public authority as the authority of filial priority. We learn early on in this epic that Aeneas is a very important character because of his divine parentage. After all, his mother is the Goddess Venus and his father's brother was the King of Troy.
... between Aeneas and the Homeric heroes, given an account of the historical and mythological background of Rome and demonstrated that the Roman way of life is necessarily more structured and community oriented than the Homeric Greek way of life. Virgil wrote The Aeneid as an ode to the greatness of Rome, we could imagine that as he wrote it he was in constant competition with Homer because The Aeneid was a proclamation of greatness for the Romans as the Homeric epics were for the Greeks. But Virgil took advantage of the flaws that the Homeric Heroes had and gave the corresponding virtues to Aeneas thus ensuring Aeneas' superiority and consequently Rome's superiority.
...rvival. However, Aeneas becomes the Virgilian leader, his concern is always for the people and they are the most important thing to him. The reason that the endings of the books are so dissimilar and the Aenied is far less satisfying than the Odyssey is a result of this point. Odysseus' accomplished aim can be viewed within his lifetime, and listened to within a short time. His short-term goal of going to bed with Penelope, and sorting out the situation in his country is all seen within the borders of the story. Aeneas' ending merely means that his journey is at an end but the rest of the story lies with his people. The emphasis is on the people he is leading and not what he individually has accomplished.
Virgil has an interesting narrative within the Aeneid, and creates a hidden subtext that the reader doesn’t necessarily always pick up on unless he is looking for. I also feel that book six, where the majority of the political foreshadowing is done, is a political tool instead of a needed book for the plot of the poem. One of the more prominent examples that is both interesting and important to the Aeneid and its plot is the political propaganda and atmosphere within the opening half of the poem. This is an important part of the Aeneid as it subtly explains the political atmosphere to the reader of the poem.
In Virgil’s poem, The Aeneid, the ideal Roman hero is depicted in the form of Aeneas. Not only does Aeneas represent the Roman hero, but he also represents what every Roman citizen is called to be. Each Roman citizen must posses two major virtues, he must remain pious, and he must remain loyal to the Roman race. In the poem, Aeneas encompasses both of these virtues, and must deal with both the rewards and costs of them.
The textbook of Aeneid Virgil is an interesting book when it comes to explaining the stories of the protagonist Aeneas and the antagonist Juno and Prince Turnas. The fact that Aeneas was willing to submit to the gods was significant to his purposefulness in life. In addition, it comes hand in hand with the different key characters that helped Aeneas achieve his destiny. So, Aeneas character shows as being a religious warrior with a mission to fulfil his destiny, but only to have Juno as his obstacle with her rage (I.1-12). Virgil explains how the gods helped to create Rome and how meaningful the Gods were to the Romans. Finally, Virgil's poem helped clarify how strongly Romans believed in Gods, how each great Romans were only great because
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.
In addition, the overall theme of the poem highlighted morality, which was a definitive tenet of Greco Roman civilization. In many ways, Virgil wrote the poem as a means of lauding the moral virtues of Roman society and as a personal challenge to outdo Homer’s epic compositions, The Illiad and The Odyssey. Virgil was successful because he had incorporated many of the same tales shared in the works of Homer into one epic poem which presented a linear storyline in the books that detailed the life and times of Aeneas and the Trojans. That being said, Virgil did not stray far from the approach that many writers had used before him; his primary focus throughout the Aeneid was placed squarely upon the back of idealized Greek and Roman moral principles, which were the dedication to ones’ honor, family, and country. By no means is there anything wrong with this approach, but in many ways, the entire poem could be viewed as a “propaganda” piece; while it might have served to enlighten, educate, and create a cohesive and uplifting story for the Roman populace, the poem lacked depth and a more profound exploration of human intricacies. While Virgil’s epic poem has stood the test of time and remains one of the greatest pieces