It's true that Aeneas' wanderings in the beginning of the poem are reminiscent of the same perils that Odysseus faced on his journey home to Ithaca, such as Aeneas' encounter with the Harpies (3:245) and the Cyclopes (3:760). ... At first all of these similarities may appear to be a poorly veiled appropriation of Homer's epics, but that is far from the actual purpose of Virgil's epic. ... However, as Anchises describes "the glory that awaits the Trojan race," (6:896) it becomes clear that this poem is anything but a piracy of Homer's epic. ... A charact...

• Word Count: 707
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

Recent studies have begun to see the Homeric epics in the light of other epic traditions, notably epics from Mesopotamia, and have begun to look at striking similarities. ... Both of the main heroes share many similar characteristics, including a dynamic outlook on life and death centered on the death of their heroic comrades, Patroclus and Enkidu, respectively. The two semi-divine heroes have many corresponding life-events and characteristics, and are also both very concerned with their own mortalities, but not quite in the same way. ... Comparisons between various characters abound in near-e...

• Word Count: 4256
• Approx Pages: 17
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

Virgil condones war for the sake of his patron, Augustus Caesar, whose recent victory at Actium, three years before the creation of Virgil's epic, had quelled the rebellion of the Roman commander Marcus Antonius. ... " Aeneas cannot be portrayed as fully condoning war as warmongering is the chief characteristic of Turnus. ... But, in one of a few areas of the poem that lacks consistency (Virgil never lived to fully complete his epic), Juno declares that she wishes to "quit these battles which I so detest.... However, strength in war is a defining characteristic for Virgil's...

• Word Count: 2231
• Approx Pages: 9
• Grade Level: Undergraduate