Publius Virgilius Maro Essay

excursus from Christianity there is no different force that approach patternd Western cultivatedization other than the authoritative culture. And there is no ruin representation of that period in explanation other than capital of Italy and Publius Viirgilius Maro, alike know as Virgil. A nestled examination of Virgil and his working made many to realize that Virgil was a by-product of events and it is the twin forces of the Roman Empire and classic invoice that prompted Virgil to write. This paper volition look into the cardinal factors that temptd the sham-up of Publius Virgilius Maro.This merchant ship be d star by looking first at the events that transpired before Virgil began writing and this means fanny back classical and Roman history. The second representation of knowing the old(prenominal)ity between history and Virgils writings is to dig into his works and of manikin this means analyzing the Aeneid. It forget be sh make later that it is Roman histor y and home run that shaped Virgil to become the writer that he was destined to be. capital of Italy after more(prenominal) than two thousand years the humanity is relieve hyp nonized by capital of Italy. It is because of its legacy, it military machine prowess, and form of government. Rome was without fit when it comes to how it help shape Western history. merely in the early days of Roman history there is not much to see. There is no liaison that could make an foreigner ascertain its potential to be a dominant ruler of known world in antiquity. Ting Morris traced its early development in humbleness and he remarked, Rome began around 2,800 years ago as a few sm e real last(predicate)-scale settlements on wooded hills overlooking the Tiber River (4). scarcely therefore Rome began to distance itself from the Latin communities from which it was supposed to be a touch off of. What happens next began a series of development that will catapult this small community into the wo rld map, the roman Republic conquered first Latium, then all of Italy.The Romans annexed much foreign territory to their own state, notwithstanding they also take a leak a system of alliances with all other states. This gave the Romans a vast bear of manpower that allowed them to overthrow every major power in the Mediterranean (Mackay, 40). A new age has come and a new military superpower was born. barely when the Romans began to assimilate remnants of Alexanders Empire, the new European power came face to face with an antediluvian patriarch civilization whose insight into religion, politics, and school of thought was far ahead of its cartridge holder. In short the Romans, recognized something in Greek culture that was more impressive than anything Rome itself achieved, in spite of Romes unprecedented military success (Cox). At this point Rome was all brute force. Yes the soldiers led by the Caesars were brave, strong and are very eager to make their mark in the conflictf ield but when it comes to culture, the Romans were barbarians compared to the Greeks. The Romans detect an effective methodology in fighting wars and they even had the distinct favour of knowing how to build an imperium out of disparate tribes and nations.They were experts in campaigns that take in traveling far from home and except they lack nonpareil more thing. They did not have a good system that can be put in place after victory. This is similar to the idea that it is booming to start a war but the more difficult thing to do is how to end it. So when Rome began to feel the success of imperium building the more that they felt the take on for a route of liveness that will enhance their reputation in Europe while at the same meter offer them an probability to enjoy life more. They bring the answer from the sophisticated Greeks.Virgil The Romans had to learn from the Greeks and their history can be characterized not only by empire building but also by the why they me rgedd Greek thought and the Greeks way of life into their own unique system. Now there is n nonpareil better who understood the need for assimilating Greek culture than the Roman intellectuals of that time. In fact, Among the adaptors of Greek culture, nvirtuoso was more brilliant than the poet Virgil. He faced a formid equal to(p) challenge. Everyone who encountered Greek culture recognized how much it was shaped by bell ringer (Cox).This means that there is a expectant need to beat homer and if this is not possible then at least equal kors champ. If this can be achieved then the Romans had done something which other Greek imitators failed to do and that is to provide a wide explanation for their existence. A myth has to be created, a legend has to be made and the habit for such an endeavor is obvious. There is a need for something that will clutch pedal the empire unneurotic. At the time of writing the Aeneid, Rome was again in the cusp of revolution.Julius Caesar was de feated by Augustus Caesar and so steps must be made to consolidate his power and to strengthen the arm of the new emperor. For a brilliant man like Virgil, clock like this one is an opportunity that must be grabbed by both hands. Virgil proceeded to hit two birds with one stone. First he would write an epic that will explain the origins of Rome. He will do so by using stories that are already familiar among the the great unwashed that he wants to see united under Augustus Caesar and during that time there was no other story quite like the one weaved by Homer centuries before.Virgil saw that epic struggle for good and infernal battles between heroes and the self-sacrificial behavior of some heroes simply because they believe in something higher(prenominal) than themselves proved to be a formula hard to resist. Virgil was ready to own the challenge. But it is clear from the beginning that it would not be an easy task. Aside from that Homer is a world unto itself. And as they say t here is no way one can improve on perfection, the Iliad and the Odyssey are the blueprints for creating great epics and so what else can be done to make it better.Virgil was able to break up this problem by being inventive and by starting where Homer ended his story. When Troy fell, one of her sons went on to build another kingdom. But then again Virgil cannot escape the past. Virgil could not resist using a successful formula. As they say there is no need to darn what was broken. Judging from the power of the Iliad and the Odyssey to move people it is approximately impossible not to use the same method and technique of telling a great story. And so Virgil copied many ideas from Homer. In the introduction to the Aeneid Levi Robert pointed out thatVirgil borrowed from Homer a great many items his verse form, the division into twelve books, mythology, many episodes and similes. In the Aeneid Venus doubles for Nausicaa, Dido for Calypso and Circe, and Drances for Thersites. The fune ral games the desecent into Hades, where Aeneas meets Dido as Odysseus met Ajax, the prophecy of Anchises, the catalogue of ships, Turnus endeavour to burn them, a broken truce a quarrel of two Italian leaders and a final single combat (Robert, xiii). Aeneid The Aeneid is fundamentally the story of Aeneas, the god-like leader of a band of Trojan refugees fleeing to Italy after the autumn of Troy.In the beginning, Aeneas built a fleet with the goal in foreland of settling in a foreign land and to finally establish a new nation of Trojans. In Virgils mind, he precious the world to understand the basis for the establishment of the Roman Empire. And there is cipher as perfect as that. Hornstein, Percy and Browns book, The Readers chap to World literary productions, was very helpful in understanding the background from which Virgils Aeneid was written, and they said that it was written at a time of conflict. Italy was ruin by more than fifty years of revolution and civil war.Wh en the long-sought recreation came, a new form of government was fashioned from a battle weary nation. And with the new set-up, ultimate power was in the hands of one man- Augustus Caesar. It was during this time that the Roman Virgil began working on the Aeneid. Hornstein, Brown and Percy wrote Vergil began the poem in 29 B. C. , two years after the battle of Actium brought this period of civil war to an end. He had long been preparing for the task. His purpose was national he craved to glorify the Roman people by his theme and exalt the emperor butterfly in the person of his hero. (5)Homer Putnam acknowledge that Virgil is under the towering shadow of Homer when he made this judgment, Homer himself, against whose essential insights into humanity, Virgils own achievement will always be measured. Homers success allowed him to set the standard upon which others who will come after him will be forced to measure up. Allen Mandelbaum tells of how his previous study prevented him from fully appreciating Virgils works and he said, One was a tag line of mark new wave Doren that echoed through my youth with tenacious resonance Homer is a world Virgil, a style. It also did not help that the critics saw Virgil as copying Homer, Gaskell said, The overall plan of Virgils epic was plainly Homeric, with its important elements reversed now the odyssey of the man comes first and the armed fighting follows it but the Homeric parallels are many and obvious. (161). The only major difference was that Homer was illiterate and therefore had to express the beauty of his poetry in oral reform. On the other hand Virgil was literate and he could study Homers Iliad and Odyssey in written form as well as compose his own epic and was able to write it down.This explains the difference in style but all the more strengthens the view that Virgil was strongly influenced by Homer. Conclusion Now the pieces of the puzzle begin to fall down into its comme il faut places and one can now see the bigger picture. It was mentioned earlier that it was in 168 BC when the Romans began to conquer the remnants of Alexanders Empire and it is through the success of former Greek states that the Romans saw first hand the beauty that was Greece. In short the highly militaristic Romans lacked the cultural refinements that one can run across in abundance in Greek societies.It is through the process of incorporating Greek culture into the Romans way of life that they rediscovered the power of Homeric poetry. It took the genius of Virgil to use Homers works and use it as the foundation for his own epic. And so in 29 BC Virgil began writing the Aeneid with the purpose of emulating what Homer has achieved in Greece. Homers Iliad and Odyssey provided a sentiency of identity for all Greeks and Virgil was hoping to achieve the same results. But the desire to incorporate Greek life into Roman life is easier said than done.But everyone who will try to copy from someone begins by copying al most everything that one can see and the eye can appreciate. For instance the Romans copied the design of their temples and they also described their gods using the same attributes found in Greek society. But there is no need to worry because the Roman changed the Greek sounding names of their gods into Roman names for their statues. Virgil attempted to accomplish two major things when he wrote the Aeneid.He wanted to impress the new emperor (Augustus Caesar) and secondly he wanted to have a unique Roman epic that will help unite the people. Virgil was successful in achieving both. The hero of the Aeneid was behaving in much the same way as Augustus Caesar especially with regards to his conquest and the subsequent creation of a new nation out of that sheer finis to succeed. Now for the second part, Virgil was also able to create an epic that can be comparable to Homer. It is true that he copied many things from Homer and yet at the same time his stories were never simply a recycl e of what Homer did.Virgil simply needed an inspiration to get going and he found it in the character of Aeneas whom Homer briefly mentioned in his work. From this comminuted known character, Aeneid began to build a story that made the peoples pulse to race. It was hence an epic story of battles, of struggle between good and evil, of heroes who most of the time failed to achieve their potential and sometimes die a tragic death. The Aeneid is essentially an explanation as to the existence of Rome. For many there is a need to have that kind of idea, that kind of emotional anchor in times of trouble.And there is no way to fully understand the impact of Aeneid towards the people of Rome. But one thing is sure Virgils work was able to unite the whole of the empire and is instrumental as to why the empire endured for so long. It is now very clear that that Virgil was influenced by historical events and the dowry that surrounded his life. If there were two streams where these influence s came from then Homer is a right source of inspiration while the politics and warfare in ancient Rome provided Virgil with more materials to use.In Romes struggle to compartmentalise out a nation in Europe was evident in Aeneid where the hero had to travel and faced with numerous risks just so he can establish a new nation. It was Homer who provided much influence for Virgil. If Homer did not produce the Iliad and Odyssey it is hard to imagine Virgil able to make his own. This is not to take away anything form the accomplishments of Virgil but it would be almost impossible for him to write beautifully without Homer as guide. Homer did not only provide the seed from which Virgil will grow a goodish story, Homer also provided the correct format.And so putting it all together it is now very clear that Virgil was a byproduct of the events that surrounded him. Yet even before he was born, Homers influence and genius was already felt in many parts of the Western world. When Virgil was still very young it is easy to imagine that he was already familiar with the Iliad and Odyssey and no doubt the stories found in those epics help to shape the way he thinks.Works CitedAppelbaum, Stanley. Ed. The Aeneid by Vergil Trans. Charles J. Billson. Canada Dover Publications, 1995. Cox, John. Introduction to Virgil, The Aeneid. 2008. General bringing up at Hope College. 03 April 2008. http//www. hope. edu/academic/ids/171/Aeneid. html Gaskell, Philip. Ed. Landmarks in Classical Literature Chicago Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, 1999. Hemminger, Bill. Exploring Ancient World Cultures Rome. 1997. EAWC at University of Evansville. 02 April 2008. http//eawc. evansville. edu/ropage. htm Hornstein, L. H. , G. D. Percy, and Calvin S. Brown. Eds. The Readers Companion to WorldLiterature New York Penguin Putnam, Inc. , 1973. Knight, G. R. Wilson. Trans. The Aeneid by Virgil New York Penguin Putnam, Inc. , 1956. Mackay, Christopher. Ancient Rome A Military and Political History. New Y ork Cambridge University Press, 2004. Mandelbaum, Allen. Trans. The Aeneid by Virgil atomic number 20 University of California Press, 1971. Morford, Mark P. O. and Robert J. Lenardon. Classical Mythology 7th ed. New York Oxford University Press, 2003. Morris, Ting. Ancient Rome. MN refreshed Apple Media, 2007.