Virgil s Aeneid, The Theme Of Piety - 963 Words

In Virgil s Aeneid, the theme of piety is one that arises on many different occasions and one that is ultimately central to the tale as it is told and the poem as a whole. Aeneas is indeed a very pious character, although he does not always come across exactly this way and accordingly many people would disagree. Throughout the poem, however, he is constantly fulfilling his duty to his family, his gods and his city. It is initially essential to understand the main character of Aeneas, and the role he plays in the story before one can truly understand and comprehend the question that is brought up about his piety. Aeneas is a Trojan hero, destined to eventually found Rome, although it won t be as easy as one might hope. The Trojans have to leave Troy of course, because of the Trojan War, which, as many people are familiar with, the Greeks won. The Greeks won the war deviously, by hiding inside a wooden horse and making it seem as if they had left, before leaving the horse in the night and attacking the city of Troy. That, however, is an entirely different story. While the few remaining Trojans fled on a ship with Aeneas, Troy burned. The survivors were headed to what is now Italy, where they were to found Rome, however a storm prevented them from making it there successfully and they ended up blown off course and in Carthage instead. Aeneas falls in love with a Phoenician princess in Carthage, by the name of Dido. They are together for some time, however Aeneas must leaveShow MoreRelatedComparing The Iliad And The Odyssey905 Words   |  4 Pagespresent in Vergil’s Aeneid. This short essay will cover five instances that justify this claim. First, Books I to VI of the Aeneid capture series of adventures taken by the main character and their homecoming, which is in fact the overall plot of the Odyssey. Additionally, Books VII to XII of the Aeneid is similar to the Iliad due to the theme of recounting a war to capture a city. Moreover, it can be observed that Aeneas’ affair with Dido covered in Books I and IV of the Aeneid mirrors Odysseus’Read MoreThe Aeneid And The Pax Romana1580 Words   |  7 Pages The epic poem The Aeneid; written by Virgil in the heights of the Pax Romana in AD 29. The poems give a summary of the history of the Trojans who has fled their home land Troy, after the invasion of the Greeks. Aeneas and his men must now travel to the land of Italy, were they will become founding fathers of the great Roman Empire. This is voyage is lead extremely by Aeneas fate in the gods and the notable characteristics of Aeneas which is piety and obedience to the will of the gods. TheRead MoreVirgil s The Iliad And The Odyssey1403 Words   |  6 PagesVirgil s Aeneid takes a character form Homer’s Odyssey and constructs a life for him beyond Homer’s ideas. It is quite obvious that Virgil was heavily influenced by both Homer’s writings, The Iliad and the Odyssey. Both stories tell of parallel journeys home from Troy at the end of the Trojan War. Homer’s Odysseus is returning to Greece and the family he left behind ten years ago. Virgil’s Aeneas, in contrast has been given a direct command by the God, Mercury to create a new Empire. Both menRead MoreVirgil Analysis of Dante Inferno Essay example2202 Words   |  9 PagesVirgil Virgil came to be regarded as one of Romes greatest poets. His Aeneid can be considered a national epic of Rome and has been extremely popular from its publication to the present day. Virgil- Beatrice sends Virgil to Earth to retrieve Dante and act as his guide through Hell and Purgatory.   Since the poet Virgil lived before Christianity, he dwells in Limbo (Ante-Inferno) with other righteous non-Christians.   As author, Dante chooses the character Virgil to act as his guide because he admired