Before comparing the actual stories of The Aeneid and The Iliad, one must consider the remarkable success that the two respective stories have received since their origins in ancient Greece and Rome. Homer, author of The Iliad and its famous counterpart The Odyssey, is a legendary figure in history. Some question his actual existence and prefer to regard his two most famous works as stories of oral tradition that were constructed and refined with thousands of retellings by numerous poets over time. Others see Homer as a real man who entertained guests with his witty, complex stories and later had scribes write down his famous words. It will be assumed throughout this paper that Homer did exist for the sake of simplicity. On the other hand, …show more content…
His story, the Aeneid, was subsidized by Augustus during the Pax Romana and published by Augustus shortly following Vergil’s death. This was a controversial, yet essential decision by Augustus. Vergil had ordered his finest work to be destroyed upon his death because of his insistence that the work required almost three more years of editing before it would be ready. Nevertheless, Augustus saw the power of a legendary retelling of Rome’s ancient roots and published it with great success. Translations do not give these two immortal works justice in any sense. Both men wrote with dactylic hexameter which works fine in syllabic languages like Greek and Latin but does not when attempting to translate into English. Thus, modern translators have a predicament of trying to preserve the …show more content…
Despite the major differences between the overall plot of the two books, the final battle scenes are remarkably similar. As with anything, there is always a precursor to the end that informs the audience of the impending crisis that the protagonist will have to face. For the Iliad and the Aeneid, this precursor comes in the form of a shield given by divine powers. Both Achilles and Aeneas were in desperate need of a new shield that would not only offer protection against the strongest spear throwers but also provoke intimidation and wonder. Achilles had given his previous shield to Patrocles and subsequently lost it to looting due to Patrocles’s tragic death. Aeneas, meanwhile, was at the tail end of an epic journey across much of the ancient world. His people had lost almost everything in the sacking of Troy and although he had weapons they were not powerful enough and not worthy enough for the leader of the quest. Both receive shields from divine sponsers. Achilles entreats his mother for help and she convinces the blacksmith Hephaestus to craft a shield which he makes “…large and strong, adorning it with beautiful designs all over” (Iliad 225). The shield depicts all of creation with the sun, moon, and stars in the middle and complex designs of humans and cattle ringing the outside layers. In the Aeneid, Athena begs
Thucydides and Homer, though they lived a relatively short 300 years apart, wrote about very different Greek cultures. While the Greeks who Homer wrote about in The Iliad were, in many respects, dissimilar to the Greeks in Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian War, this stands in marked contrast to the profound similarities that exist between contemporary cultures and those that Thucydides wrote of. There are, however, similarities between modern cultures and those in Homer’s writing, as well as differences between modern ones and those in Thucydides’ writing. Thucydides’ history is, therefore, a relational bridge between the cultures of ancient Greece and modern ones.
This allows Achilles to both defeat him and to desecrate his body. In contrast, a different type of sin affects the Trojans in the Aeneid. Aeneas recounts when the Trojans on the beach scorned the persons who speak against the horse, saying: “And now another sign, more fearful still, / broke on our blind miserable people, / filling them [the Trojans] all with dread” (The Aeneid. 2. 75-77). In the case of the Trojan horse, however, the Trojans had been doomed by their conventional flaws such as greed and a lust for freedom even before the gods had sent signs to convince them. These two characteristics essentially doom the Trojans because they declare victory before they make sure the Greeks have left. A final flaw that nearly causes an irreplaceable death is the rage that Aeneas feels when Panthus speaks to him during the battle. Vowing with an unquenchable fury and passion “… into the flames I go, into the fight, / Where the harsh Fury, and the din and shouting, / Skyward rising, calls” (The Aeneid. Book 2. 250-252). The same fury that Aeneas believes to reside in the battle has seemingly affected him as well, causing him to lead troops on a near-suicidal charge against the Greek troops. This fury that fuels Aeneas throughout the battle is remarkably similar to the pride that is shown by Hector. Both are faults that cannot easily be forgotten, and both characters quickly become ashamed of them. These basic
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
The stories told in the Iliad and Odyssey are based on stories handed down over several generations, for they preserve (as we have seen) memories of an already quiet far distant past. The two pomes show clear connection in their language and style, in the manner in which their incidents presented, and in the combination of agreement with level, which distinguish their creation.
the gods; while he was fleeing from the Cyclops he yelled "If I could take
In both Homer’s Odyssey and Virgil’s Aeneid, the heroes make the dauntless adventure into the underworld. Both of theses visits occur around the middle of the stories, and they bring information about the lives of heroes ' loved ones. The heroes also get very important information from these loved ones; information that they require to continue on their journeys. However these are not the only things that are similar about the heroes visits. The influence of the Homeric writings of the Iliad and the Odyssey on Virgil’s writings is clear - especially in Book VI of the Aeneid. Throughout this paper we will talk about the similarities that occur throughout the two poems, and how the two authors beliefs shine through. These beliefs are two very different views on the idea of death. Homer’s Iliad depicts death as something that is something souls do not enjoy. Whereas Virgil’s Aeneid depict it more as a final rest for souls – something that relieves them of the troubles of life.
The Aeneid is a poem of Fate, which acts as an ever-present determinant, and as such Aeneas is entirely in the hands of destiny. The unerring and inexorable passage of fate, assisted by the Gods' intervention, is impossible to prevent and its path does create many victims along the way, who are expendable for Rome to be created. In the Aeneid, mortals suffer, no matter what they do or how good a life they lead and they are unable to rely on the Gods for assistance. However, the Odyssey is a poem of morality, where the good are exulted and the bad are punished ("The blessed gods don't like wicked acts. Justice and fair play are what they respect" O.14.84). It
Homer and Ovid are two of the oldest, most influential poets that have ever lived. Although they are both poets, they have several differences in their writings. Homer, a Greek poet, is most famous for his epic poems Iliad and Odyssey. Ovid, a Roman poet, is most famous for Metamorphoses a 15 book poem containing over 250 myths. To compare and contrast these two poets and their writing styles, I will use Achilles’ battle with Hector in Homer’s Iliad book 22 and compare it with Achilles’ battle with Cycnus in Ovid’s Metamorphoses book 12. The comparison of these battles will give us a better understanding of these poets different views on the Trojan War.
“The Aeneid” and “The Iliad” are relatively two different epics that were written decades apart. However, they have their similarities. These are two epics with the fate of two heroes. In the epic “The Aeneid,” the readers follow the journey of a man named Aeneas who is a Trojan refugee who journeys from his homeland of Troy to find Rome for the generations of the future. “The Iliad” is a story of the Trojan War and the hero of the story Achilles. Achilles was one of the bravest soldiers of the Greek army, but he was just as vain as he was brave. Both heroes showed a great amount of heroic actions throughout their perspective epics. Aeneas kills the Latin warrior Turnus and ventures away from his burning Troy to find Rome and prepare it for the future generations to come. Achilles fights for the Greeks which eventually results in him dying a hero’s death.
The Lord of the Rings and Odyssey are two very weird stories in my opinion. The two stories include several similarities. The most noteworthy similarity of the two that were in common was the use of themes. Both included similar themes such as, life, death,power, brotherly love, myth, temptation, and journey.
Both the Odyssey and the Aeneid describe the journeys of the two Greek heroes –Odysseus and Aeneas, as they struggle towards their goal through the crises and deadly situations caused by the wrath of the gods upon them. In the Odyssey, we see that Poseidon (god of the sea/earth shaker) has a grudge against Odysseus while Athena, god of wisdom, aids him throughout his journey. Similarly in the Aeneid, we see that goddess Juno dislikes Aeneas as he is destined to destroy the city of Carthage loved by Juno during his mission to find a new land- Rome, whereas Aeneas’ mother Venus aids him.
The Hero’s Journey is portrayed and widely known in many of the most popular films, songs, and novels. The Odyssey follows this format, and many of these entertainment pieces were inspired by this epic, such as The Chronicles of Narnia. In the Odyssey, Odysseus is led through many different adversities while trying to return home from the Trojan War. He finds himself and his crew in many situations that lead to death or put them in danger, before eventually making it home and being reunite with his family with the help of the goddess Athena. In the Chronicles of Narnia, three children are led into a strange new world in the wardrobe, where they face challenges with their enemies and have to eventually return home. They
This short essay will identify five traditional epic characteristics that are evident in both the Iliad and the Odyssey.
Long ago, there were two powerful nations located in southern Europe. First there were the Greeks, this nation was known for the first practice of democracy. Other than democracy, during the Greeks era there was a man by the name Homer who wrote a story called The Odyssey about a great legendary hero named Odysseus. After the Greeks, then came the Romans who ruled Greece for centuries. The Romans during their time were known to have practiced and used many of the Greeks cultures and theories. There was a Roman named Virgil who wrote about the beginning of the Romans. He created a story called The Aeneid; this story was about a Trojan who escaped a losing war to find a new home and peace. Even though these two stories may be hard to understand, Homer and Virgil are making statements about their nation after the Trojan War, because Odysseus was a legendary Greek king and Aeneas of Troy was known to be a beginning of the Romans.
In both the Aeneid and the Iliad their main characters were chosen by gods because they have gained favor. Aeneas and Achilles were chosen because they were destined to fulfill a journey. The gods in both works directed the lives of mortals, but, were also very specific on who they would help. The gods determined the destiny of the mortals. Achilles and Aeneas are similar in the sense that they have become favorable in the eyes of the gods, partially because of their divine nepotism but also because they stand out from ordinary men by having a great military and physical prowess.