Cicero's Aeneid And The Rise Of The Roman Empire

Roman ideology has consisted of dominance and pride blended with diligence and assiduousness. Literary figures of the middle ages suggest that Rome is the strongest empire that has ever existed, as the Roman attitude toward law and empire comprises of sheer reverence and precision. The Roman Empire models a Neo-Platonic society, where the law embedded incorporate nature, reason, and religion. The texts, Virgil’s Aeneid, Cicero’s The Laws, and Polybius’ The Rise of the Roman Empire substantiate the mindset of the Romans during the middle ages. Virgil emphasizes Rome’s historical vision by displaying it in its ‘Golden Age’ while Polybius highlights the importance of Rome as the beginning of true history. Finally, Cicero examines the ideal dynamics

Virgil’s Aeneid reflects the historical vision of Rome. Virgil, through Aeneid, strives to portray the origins of Rome, a grand empire that conquered almost half of the living world. To achieve his purpose, Virgil connects the political and social situation of his own day with the inherited tradition of the Greek gods and heroes. Virgil describes Roman historical vision as the rebirth of a civilization: one that exemplifies fortitude and regression. For example, in the Aeneid Venus’s father says, “Your son will wage a great war in Italy, crush barbarous nations, and set up laws and city walls for his own people” (Virgil, 9). At this point in the poem, Virgil portrays his conquest to show us that Roman civilization will triumph. He believes this will lead to ultimate control and development of Roman society. Virgil continues this idea in “the Shield of Aeneas”. Before going to war, Aeneas is gifted this shield by his mother, Venus. The shield has on it Vulcan, which depicts the story of the Roman glory that awaits Italy. The rich description of Aeneas’s shield parallels Homer’s description, in the Iliad, of the shield that Vulcan makes for Achilles. Virgil

While Augustine focuses on the relationship of the individual and God, Augustus presents the actions of himself under the rule of the Romans. Augustus presents us with deeds that he has completed. These “deeds” are considered to be the “pillars” of Rome. Differing form Augustine, Augustus focuses on the external connections rather that the spiritual and internal connection with God. By doing this, Augustus describes his accomplishments in order to glorify himself. For example, he says, “In the temples of all the cities of the province of Asia, as victor, I replaced the ornaments which he with whom I fought the war had possessed privately after he despoiled the temples” (Augustus, 5). As Augustine looked towards attributing success to the perfection and divinity of God, Augustus focused on attributing success to materialistic objects. Augutus lackluster attitude toward God and his divinity can be further shown in The Deeds of the Divine. Although Augutus does acknowledge the need for temples of Mar, Jupiter, and Apollo, his values and actions show a very enervated link with