The Aeneid-the Role of Fate - 2139 Words

Fate is the essential idea of The Aeneid, but more importantly, the underlying force throughout the text. Fate cannot be changed; it is the set of events with the inevitable result. Virgil uses the idea of fate to narrate and advance through his epic poem, but perhaps also to illustrate that the gods had originally intended for Rome to become a great and powerful empire. The king of gods, Jupiter, has chosen Aeneas and his preordained path to destiny, by leading the Trojans and creating the foundations for the Roman Empire. However, a variety of gods interfere with Aeneas’s direction of fate in order to satisfy their own desires, only to discover that Aeneas’s fate can be manipulated, but never overturned. Aeneas is born from the gods†¦show more content†¦Perhaps the most significant example of the importance of fate in The Aeneid happens in Book VI; the golden branch. Aeneas and his fleet arrive on the coast on Cumae in search of the Sibyl at the Temple of Apollo. Following his father’s instructions, Aeneas asks the Sibyl to gain him entrance to Dis so he may visit his father’s spirit. However, in order to enter Dis with any possibility of returning, Aeneas must first locate a sign to gain him access across the Acheron River. The Sibyl then explains to Aeneas that the sign is a golden branch in a nearby forest, if the branch breaks off the tree easily then fate awards Aeneas a pass into the underworld. If the branch does not break off then Aeneas is not destined to go. A bough is hidden in a shady tree; its leaves and pliant stem are golden, set aside as sacred to Proserpina. The grove serves as its screen, and shades enclose the bough in darkened valleys. Only he may pass beneath earth’s secret space who first plucks the golden-leaved fruit of that tree. Lovely Proserpina ordained that this be offered her as gift. And when the first bough is torn off, a second grows again – with leaves of gold, again of that same metal. So let your eyes search overhead; and when the bough is found, then pluck it down by hand as due: for if the Fates have summoned you, the bough will break off freely, easily; but otherwise, no power can overcome it, hard iron cannot helpShow MoreRelatedEssay The Role of the Gods and Fate in Virgils The Aeneid1513 Words   |  7 PagesThe Role of the Gods and Fate in Virgils The Aeneid Are the deeds of mortal characters in the Aeneid controlled by the gods or by fate? Aeneas must fulfill the will of the gods, while enduring the wrath of other gods, all the while being a worthy predecessor of Augustus and founder of the Roman people. Of course, the Trojan is successful because he gives himself up to these other obligations, while those who resist the will of the gods, Dido and Turnus, die sad deaths. Juno, the queen ofRead MoreThe Aeneid By Virgil Is An Epic War Poetry1472 Words   |  6 PagesThe Aeneid by Virgil is an epic war poetry written in the 19 B.C.E based on the Trojan War. The poem narrates a story of a Trojan who visited Italy where he came the Romans’ ancestor. In the context of the poem, gods have much quoted manipulating; plotting and working against humans they abhor (Virgil Ferry, n.d.). Despite the god s cunning behaviors, their actions end up putting destiny back on its proper course. Gods, future, and fate are essential aspects of Greek epic poetry .in most GreekRead MoreThe Aeneid By Virgil Aeneid1689 Words   |  7 PagesVirgil’s Aeneid was written in a time of political and social transition in Rome, which influenced the epic poem in a political way. Aeneid was written only a couple years after the civil war where a lot of people had started to lose faith in the greatness of Rome. Virgil’s intensely political poem concentrates on the theme of Rome’s greatness and particularly with the reign of the new emperor Augustus Caesar as the re-founder of glorious Rome. Throughout the poem Virgil used prophecies to makeRead MoreFate : Fate And Fate In Virgils Aeneid1637 Words   |  7 PagesVirgil’s Aeneid, tells the story of Aeneas, the hero and object of fate who is also well known for fitting every description of a classic epic hero. He is of noble and supernatural birth, he faces and successfully overcomes temptations, and he acts as the vessel the gods wish him to be. Although Aeneas frequently makes his own life decisions, it can still be argued that no single aspect of his life was untouched by fate, predictions, or prophecy. Fate directs the main course of action as theRead MoreMotives Of The Aeneid1371 Words   |  6 PagesObserving the Aeneid reveals that the gods played in an important role in interceding alongside Aeneas. There is a prevalent endeavor amongst the gods including the difficulty to accept a predestined fate, or the frustration with a fellow god. The endeavor of the gods is a consistent theme throughout the Aeneid, and presents the critical role that Romans believed the gods had in their assistance to found Rome. JUNO Motives of Juno Preceding the storyline of the Aeneid is the tensionRead MoreThe Origin Of Man s Relationship With The Divine Essay1420 Words   |  6 Pagescontrasting views of the infamous Trojan war through the Roman Aeneid and the Greek Iliad, both of which enjoyed immense popularity within each respective culture. While the Romans borrowed their gods from other cultures, they certainly held different conceptions of them. The Hellenistic gods were washed of their Greek odor and tailored to fit Roman ideals. In the Aeneid, gods are constrained by the notion of a divine plan, or Fate. After each thwarting, Juno often makes a comment alluding to thisRead MoreFitful and Changing: Femininity in Virgils Aeneid813 Words   |  4 Pagesmythologies could be representative of the cultural views and habits of the Greeks, specifically regarding gender roles. One such representaton is Virgils epic Aeneid, which contains depictions of women in positions of power, and also characterizes these women as irrational, emotional to the point of hysteria, and consequently, unfit rulers. Historically, much information about the role of women came out of Athens, where women were expected to center their life around oikos, or the home, where aRead More Destiny in the Aeneid Essay549 Words   |  3 PagesDestiny in The Aeneid   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Fate, in the Ancient Greek and Roman world, was one of the great unchangeable powers that stand above even the gods in the hierarchy of supernatural forces. The Greeks and Romans thought that the Fates were three ancient women who spun the web of destiny together. Each man’s life is a thread, and the fates would draw it out and cut it as they saw fit. The gods themselves had to obey the Fates, for even they had golden threads. Fate plays a very large role in Virgil’sRead More Promoting Morality in the Aeneid and Metamorphoses Essay1621 Words   |  7 PagesPromoting Morality in the Aeneid and Metamorphoses    Just as the authors of the Bible use an evocative, almost mythological vehicle to convey covenants and laws that set the moral tone for Hebrew and Christian societies, Latin poets Virgil and Ovid employ a similarly supernatural method to foster their own societal and moral goals in Roman society. Where Virgils Aeneid depicts Aeneas as the ideal, duty-bound Roman patriarch absent from the conflicted Rome of Virgils youth, Ovids MetamorphosesRead MoreVirgil s Aeneid And Homer s Odyssey1436 Words   |  6 PagesIn Virgil’s Aeneid and Homer’s Odyssey we observe two opposing views, the defeat of the Trojans and the victorious Greeks. Nevertheless, we get parallel plots in the form of the hero’s journey. Each hero faces many obstacles to reach their fate. With both heroes having the ultimate goal of reaching their homeland or in Aeneas’ case finding a new home. There are many similarities such as both Odysseus and Aeneas sailing the same sea, and visiting som e of the same location such as; the underworld