Analysis of the Aeneid

Analysis of the Aeneid

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Introduction

Aeneid is an epic poem that was written by Virgil to tell a legendary story of a Trojan who had travelled to Italy. Aeneas wanders from Troy as he heads to Italy. Aeneid was written during a time of great social and political changes in Rome. The Final War of the Roman Republic had torn the society and faltered the once powerful republic. The first part of this paper explores the role do women play in the Roman Epic. The second part highlights how the depiction of women relates to Aeneas and his function as Epic Hero. The final part explores how Virgil's description of women reflects Roman concepts of gender role.

1. What role do women play in the Roman Epic?

In Aeneid, women play a very critical role in the development of the plot and the new Roman identity and ideology. Unlike in other epics in which women did not have main role in the development of the plot, Aeneid portrays women as people with significant contributions to make in various matters. A very good example is the case of Dido. In this Roman Epic, Dido undertakes the roles that were traditionally preserved for the male characters (Panouss, 2010). She is the ruler in charge of the newly formed Carthage. She works to ensure that all people in the city are kept safe. Although she experiences significant success as a ruler, her leadership skills are still put to questions when he decides to abandon her role to be together with Aeneas. Women are also performers of various religious rituals in the Roman Epic. There is no single woman in the epic that is not associated with a ritual. When Aeneas met Andromache, she was pouring libation to the cenotaph. Dido also performed sacrifices to find out if the gods would favor her union with Aeneas. Lavina also made sacrifices at the altar while Amata preformed a bacchic revel (Panouss, 2010). Further examination of the actions of women in the epic also reveals that they are involved in...