Virgil's Aeneid On Roman Morale
The Contribution of Virgil’s Aeneid on Roman Morale
A leader is characteristically defined by their willingness to depart from selfish pleasures and act instead with the interests of the greater good in mind. As an epic hero, the son of the prince Anchises and the Greco-Roman “goddess Venus” (Hardie 4), Aeneas’s objectives are no less than greatness. Bound by the fate of building imperial Rome by “all-powerful [Jupiter], who sways the world… and heaven[s]” (Dryden 128), Aeneas faces many hardships along his course “to fruitful Italy” (Dryden 42). During his long journey, Aeneas struggles to decline his mortal hunger for the good of “his country” (Lewis 215). In Virgil’s Aeneid, a nationalistic epic depicting a man’s effort to appease the …show more content…
There is much evidence underlining the political intentions veiled within Virgil’s Aeneid. From a historical context, a period of constant civil strife plagued Rome for nearly half a century, bringing forth the need to establish stability and calm the hostile attitude of Rome’s grief-stricken people. Due to an influx of Greek influence, the progression of time led to an “emphasis on the individual” (Beall 60). Whereas “the glories of the Roman state” had, in the past, been celebrated by the Roman people, “a stoic philosophy” encroached upon society engaging them instead with individual triumphs and ambitions. Augustus, the founder and first Emperor of the Roman Empire, launched many attempts to reclaim a strong “Roman patriotism” (Beall 59), one of which being to employ the assistance of Virgil in launching his Augustan propaganda. Within his efforts, Emperor August “took it upon himself... [to restore] feelings of nationalisms” (Beall 62) within his people. Perhaps one of its most influential results came Virgil’s Aeneid. Its emphasis on the pious nature of the “national epic” (Hardie 4) hero worked to usher in a new “sentiments” (Beall 63) of a golden age of peace as Rome’s people followed in the footsteps of their devoted, sacrificing Aeneas whose presence very much mimicked that of
A leader is characteristically defined by their willingness to depart from selfish pleasures and act instead with the interests of the greater good in mind. As an epic hero, the son of the prince Anchises and the Greco-Roman “goddess Venus” (Hardie 4), Aeneas’s objectives are no less than greatness. Bound by the fate of building imperial Rome by “all-powerful [Jupiter], who sways the world… and heaven[s]” (Dryden 128), Aeneas faces many hardships along his course “to fruitful Italy” (Dryden 42). During his long journey, Aeneas struggles to decline his mortal hunger for the good of “his country” (Lewis 215). In Virgil’s Aeneid, a nationalistic epic depicting a man’s effort to appease the …show more content…
There is much evidence underlining the political intentions veiled within Virgil’s Aeneid. From a historical context, a period of constant civil strife plagued Rome for nearly half a century, bringing forth the need to establish stability and calm the hostile attitude of Rome’s grief-stricken people. Due to an influx of Greek influence, the progression of time led to an “emphasis on the individual” (Beall 60). Whereas “the glories of the Roman state” had, in the past, been celebrated by the Roman people, “a stoic philosophy” encroached upon society engaging them instead with individual triumphs and ambitions. Augustus, the founder and first Emperor of the Roman Empire, launched many attempts to reclaim a strong “Roman patriotism” (Beall 59), one of which being to employ the assistance of Virgil in launching his Augustan propaganda. Within his efforts, Emperor August “took it upon himself... [to restore] feelings of nationalisms” (Beall 62) within his people. Perhaps one of its most influential results came Virgil’s Aeneid. Its emphasis on the pious nature of the “national epic” (Hardie 4) hero worked to usher in a new “sentiments” (Beall 63) of a golden age of peace as Rome’s people followed in the footsteps of their devoted, sacrificing Aeneas whose presence very much mimicked that of