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Aeneas as hero in the aeneid
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Aeneas’ Underworld Experience Aeneas’ journey in the underworld was an experience in itself, Aeneas most of all learned that every sacrifice for good will be rewarded. . In The Aeneid Aeneas is told by his father to meet him in the underworld. Aeneas’ father Anchises tells Aeneas to go to a Roman island Eubian and there he will find a priest named Sibyl. Once Aeneas meets Sibyl, Sibyl makes Aeneas go into the forest and find the bough. The bough is a golden branch that is only able to be broken by the chosen one. Aeneas breaks the branch and is granted access into the underworld but as Virgil states even Aeneas needed help from the gods to find this rare branch: “O be my guides, if there’s a way. Wing on, into the woodland where the bough,
The priceless bough, shadows the fertile ground. My divine mother, do not fail your son IN a baffling time” (VI. p.166 277-282, Virgil). Aeneas goes through a lot of hard work to receive the bough, and eventually that hard work paid off. When Aeneas first goes with Sibyl outside the underworld there is a helmsman ferrying souls to the Underworld. There are many souls he cannot bring because they have not had a proper burial, and full formed bodies are not allowed to go to the underworld. When Sybil and Aeneas go to the Helmsman’s boat the Helmsman stops Aeneas and says that he cannot come into the underworld but Aeneas shows him the bough and the Helmsman sees that Aeneas is worthy. When Aeneas was passing through the Underworld he meets Dido, Greeks, and a Trojan who had to be sacrificed in order for the Trojans to get to Italy. After all of these encounters Aeneas finally meets his father and gets valuable information needed to continue his journey. Everything Aeneas did was hard to do, and it was hard for Aeneas to meet people Aeneas had bad ties with because it would have made Aeneas sad, but Aeneas being the strong man he is moved on from the past and finally found his father. Everything that Aeneas has been through was tough but Aeneas went through it knowing that it was for good, and he walked away from the Underworld knowing that every sacrifice will be rewarded, in this case the reward was finding his father and getting the information.
For a year, Aeneas delayed his destiny and departure to Italy by settling down with queen Dido in Carthage. The gods deliver a message to Aeneas and to his dismay he must leave “the land of his love” and resume his destiny (Aen. 4.). Though his parting from Dido is emotional, and he leaves her broken and suicidal, Aeneas remains level-headed and strong-willed, a noble quality known as gravitas to the Romans. By Aeneas having to leave Dido, he is overcoming a very emotional obstacle; he is leaving despite a chance of stability and love, the first since the death of his wife.
Aristotle argues that friendship is a vital part of life. It serves not only as a means to bond individuals together, but also a necessity in achieving overall happiness. Aristotle comments on the various types of friendships that exist, and the role they each play in society. He explains three overarching types; utility, pleasure, and complete friendship. Yet, with family, friendship is different than it is with companionship. As Aristotle states in his piece, Nicomachean Ethics on friendship in families, “they all seem to depend on paternal friendship” (Aristotle, 1161b18). In The Aeneid, Aeneas and Anchises’ relationship, perfectly embodies this. The father son bond does not distinctly resemble one of the three types, rather it is a friendship in of itself; a paternal friendship.
The dominant factor in an epic is the heroic main character. This character often is the son of a god or goddess and is favored by the gods. Heroic characters are also always hounded by constant tragedy which drives them to fulfill their fates. Most heroic characters are high in social status and share close contacts with the gods. All of these qualities of heroic characters show up in the characters of Aeneas from The Aeneid and Gilgamesh from the Epic of Gilgamesh.
Of all of the texts read in humanities classes, the one that is likely most comparable to the book of Exodus is Virgil’s the Aeneid. In Virgil’s the Aeneid, Aeneas finds himself on a journey to save his people, much like Moses finds himself in the book of Exodus. This is perhaps the most important comparison to make, however, this is not the only similarity between the two historic works. Moses and Aeneas both receive divine intervention at many points in their respective stories. In both cases, this allows them to continue on with their fated journey. These are just a few of the significant parallels between these characters and their journeys.
Thesis: Despite his accomplishments and the glory associated with his life, Aeneas only achieves the status of hero through divine intervention, and this god-given position causes him just as much grief as it does splendor.
Odysseus’ journey is one that features much emotional pain. Pain for being away from his home, wife and son, but in Aeneas’ journey he is a warrior, and he goes through physical pain. Unlike Odysseus, Aeneas begins his journey after the Greeks have burned his home to the ground. He does not have the pleasure of long comfortable “holdups” Odysseus has and he also has to deal with his father dying—the ultimate blow.
are followed and proper respect given the gods, it is possible for man to live
Half of the room had their faces painted orange and brown. Half of the room had their faces painted black and yellow. I sat and looked at the other side of the room with total disgust. How could they call themselves Clevelanders as they sat and cheered on the enemy?
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 has been much debate on who is the greatest hero of the ancient world. There has also been much dispute on which is the greatest epic poem of the ancient world. However, comparing The Aeneid to The Odyssey is entirely a difficult task itself. Odysseus' journeys, both physical and emotional, are essential in the overall work because it defines The Odyssey as an epic poem. Aeneas also shares a similar experience as Odysseus as well. Both stories are similar in countless ways because they both undergo comparable experiences on their travels and their life journeys. With that being said, they both demonstrated leadership in their own way. However, it is difficult to determine who the best leader actually is. Both men exhibit great leadership skills; therefore, causing a challenge for some in determining which the greater epic is. After analyzing both texts, it is possible to conclude that Aeneas is the better leader, but The Odyssey is the greater epic.
Book IV of the Aeneid can stand alone as Vergil's highest literary achievement, but centered in the epic, it provides a base for the entire work. The book describes Aeneas's trip through the underworld, where after passing through the depths of hell, he reaches his father Anchises in the land of Elysium. Elysium is where the "Soul[s] to which Fate owes Another flesh" lie (115). Here Anchises delivers the prophecy of Rome to Aeneis. He is shown the great souls that will one day occupy the bodies of Rome's leaders. Before the prophecy of Rome is delivered, Aeneis's journey through the underworld provides a definite ranking of souls according to their past lives on Earth. The Aeneid does not encompass a heaven, but the Underworld provides a punishment place where souls are purged of their evils and after one thousand years, regenerated to Earth. The ranking of souls in the Underworld warns of punishment for sin, and provides a moral framework for Roman life.
When discussing the fate of Aeneas, a thought provoking question is posed that is commonly debated. If Aeneas is commanded by fate, does he have free will? It is important to approach this question with a solid understand of fate. There are two common sides to the debate of whether Aeneas had free will or not. One view believes Aeneas had no choice but to follow his destiny because he was commanded by fate, and prophesied to found the race that will one day build Rome. The other side states Aeneas did indeed have free will, and even though his fate was set, room is available within his fate for events to change. One can argue Aeneas makes some of his own choices, but no particular detail of his life is untouched. Destiny determines that the Trojans will found a city in Italy, but it does not stipulate how that will happen. This is where room is left for free will. After much research and considering the views of many commentators and the proof they showed, the answer can simply be found by going back to the text of The Aeneid.
Henry Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas, thought to be composed around 1685, is based on book IV of Virgil’s Aeneid and was perhaps in response to John Blow’s Venus and Adonis (perhaps need a reference-wording quite similar). Instead of being performed for royalty, however, Dido and Aeneas’ only documented performance in Purcell’s lifetime was at a boarding school for girls in Chelsea, though some believe it was performed in court some years earlier (reference). He once stated, "as poetry is the harmony of words, so music is that of notes; and as poetry is a rise above prose and oratory, so is music the exaltation of poetry”(reference); he believed poetry and music went hand in hand, something which he demonstrates in Dido and Aeneas. Purcell transforms
Aeneas is often referred to as 'pious Aeneas', and this is also how even he...