Propoganda and the Aeneid

Certainly the answer to this question is no. America does not need an Aeneid to strengthen its citizens’ pride, especially one like Virgil’s, which has ambiguous qualities. On the surface the Aeneid is a form of pro-Rome imperial propaganda yet beneath the surface it subtly criticizes Rome. I am going to proceed by outlining exactly what Virgil is up to in the Aeneid, how the text is ambiguous, and finish by presenting a conclusion based on the evidence that I will put forth.

i) Aeneas Aeneas is meant to represent the hero that Rome desires as its founder. He has many qualities that exemplify that depiction− bravery, strength, valor, etc.− yet he also has shortcomings. For example, there are many instances where he is a victim of his emotion. He shows no mercy to his victims in battle because of his excessive anger. Book X has an especially grim tone as it tells of Aeneas’s rage and revenge for the death of Pallas. After Aeneas kills Tarquitus, Virgil tells of Aeneas:

Speaking above him from his pitiless heart: ‘Lie there now…No gentle Mother will ever hide you in the earth Or weight your body with a family

v) Aeneas, Turnus, and the Ending Virgil draws upon Homer’s Odyssey and Iliad in his portrayal of Aeneas. In books I through VI, the character of Aeneas is based on Odysseus. Aeneas goes on adventures similar to those Odysseus did, yet Aeneas is not quite as clever as Odysseus is and thus fails to live up to him. In books VII through XII, Aeneas’s character is based on Achilles. He is capable of living up to Achilles’ exploits in battle yet he still doesn’t measure up to Achilles the hero. Achilles is capable of mercy− at the end of the Iliad he shows compassion and gives the dead body of Hector to the begging Priam for burial. It is not his skills in war that make Achilles a hero− it is his capability to show mercy. Aeneas is unable to do as Achilles does. When Turnus begs Aeneas for mercy, Aeneas responds not with compassion but with brutality. Aeneas stabs Turnus: “Then all the body slackened in deaths chill, and with a groan for that indignity His spirit fled into the gloom below” (p. 402). Turnus would not have suffered indignity at the hands of a true hero. Aeneas fails to “spare the conquered,” as the true hero would. Virgil again uses Aeneas as a symbol of Rome− Aeneas fails to live up to Odysseus, Achilles, and the Roman “arts,” just as Virgil sees Rome as failing to live up to its ideals.

Aeneas’s rage and lack of pity are qualities that do not represent heroism. Also, there are times when Aeneas doesn’t appear to be as clever as he should be for someone of his heroic stature. An example is his speech to Queen Dido explaining why he his leaving her. He at first gives poor excuses such as, “I never…entered upon the pact of marriage” (p.107), and “Do not think I meant to be deceitful” (p.107). He follows by saying that Troy, not her, is the most important thing to him, and he finishes by making the excuse that fate is causing him to leave her. This poorly put together speech ultimately leads Dido to hate him even more and then kill herself.

tomb. Either you stay her

Some topics in this essay:
Immediately Anchises, VI Aeneas, Aeneas Speaking, Queen Dido, Achilles Turnus, Aeneas Aeneas, XII Aeneas’s, America America, King Jupiter, America Aeneid, carthage dido, america employ, pacify impose rule, odysseus aeneas, rome carthage, impose rule, ideals principles, virgil aeneid, sympathy carthage, answer question america, mercy aeneas, dream rome,