Publius Vergilius Maro, usually referred to as Virgil, is recognized as the greatest of the Roman poets. His best-known work, the epic poem Aeneid, describes the adventures of Aeneas alongside his fellow survivors of the Trojan War. With many characters filling important moral and symbolic roles, Dido allows the protagonist to exercise an important Roman value, pietas. Dido’s character is present in the first half, books one through six, of the Aeneid. With all of this mention, she must be notable. Both character traits and personal decisions capture Dido’s strength, but, though admirable, failed under unjust divine intervention.
This question has been widely debated by literary experts everywhere. For this paper, the opinions of five scholars …show more content…
Sullivan, a professor and American theologian who studied all the way from Boston to Rome. The writers all offer critical and helpful insight utilizing their studies to do so. Though they sometimes agree, their are also points on which their opinions differ. Some say Dido was practically meaningless to Aeneas, while others argue that they were both madly in love. Some say that Dido’s story was merely a sidebar, while others emphasized the significance of her entire story in the grand plot. Some say Dido partly chose to love Aeneas, while others say her decision was entirely from the gods. Considering the height of regard to which Virgil is held for his writing, it seems that Dido must have great significance to the story for her to appear for so long, but to decide what that significance is, one must conduct research.
The first research finding is “The Dido-Aeneas Relationship: A Re-Examination,” written by T. R. Bryce. Bryce argues that Dido would not have loved Aeneas at all, had she not been shot by Cupid’s arrow. Her actions toward Aeneas before being influenced by Cupid, he says, were characteristic of any powerful ruler. The queen saw a potential …show more content…
Dido was the queen of Carthage with no king, due to the murder of her first husband. Desmond says that Dido was proposed marriage by Iarbas, king of a foreign land, but she denied his advances to continue devoting herself to her duties as ruler of her city. Upon meeting Aeneas, a Trojan soldier, she expressed her liking for him repeatedly. When she was shot by an arrow from Cupid; the god of desire, erotic love, and affection; it heightened her preexistent desires and drove her to become madly in love with Aeneas. Her choice of Aeneas instead of simply agreeing to Iarbus, our author explains, disrupted the typical social order of the time in which women were used for the benefit of men and had little say in their romantic affairs (Desmond 101). Because she did not have a male counterpart to rule with her, Dido was seen by foreigners as weak and unable to properly defend her city, so she was under constant threat. There were many suitors besides Iarbus that asked for Dido’s hand in marriage, but because she was so loyal to the promise she made to her deceased husband, she chose to remain single. Dido is seen by many as a bitter and irrational woman after the departure of Aeneas; however, her pursuit of Aeneas and disregard of her city put her and all of her people in grave danger. Choosing another man over her many suitors severed
This question has been widely debated by literary experts everywhere. For this paper, the opinions of five scholars …show more content…
Sullivan, a professor and American theologian who studied all the way from Boston to Rome. The writers all offer critical and helpful insight utilizing their studies to do so. Though they sometimes agree, their are also points on which their opinions differ. Some say Dido was practically meaningless to Aeneas, while others argue that they were both madly in love. Some say that Dido’s story was merely a sidebar, while others emphasized the significance of her entire story in the grand plot. Some say Dido partly chose to love Aeneas, while others say her decision was entirely from the gods. Considering the height of regard to which Virgil is held for his writing, it seems that Dido must have great significance to the story for her to appear for so long, but to decide what that significance is, one must conduct research.
The first research finding is “The Dido-Aeneas Relationship: A Re-Examination,” written by T. R. Bryce. Bryce argues that Dido would not have loved Aeneas at all, had she not been shot by Cupid’s arrow. Her actions toward Aeneas before being influenced by Cupid, he says, were characteristic of any powerful ruler. The queen saw a potential …show more content…
Dido was the queen of Carthage with no king, due to the murder of her first husband. Desmond says that Dido was proposed marriage by Iarbas, king of a foreign land, but she denied his advances to continue devoting herself to her duties as ruler of her city. Upon meeting Aeneas, a Trojan soldier, she expressed her liking for him repeatedly. When she was shot by an arrow from Cupid; the god of desire, erotic love, and affection; it heightened her preexistent desires and drove her to become madly in love with Aeneas. Her choice of Aeneas instead of simply agreeing to Iarbus, our author explains, disrupted the typical social order of the time in which women were used for the benefit of men and had little say in their romantic affairs (Desmond 101). Because she did not have a male counterpart to rule with her, Dido was seen by foreigners as weak and unable to properly defend her city, so she was under constant threat. There were many suitors besides Iarbus that asked for Dido’s hand in marriage, but because she was so loyal to the promise she made to her deceased husband, she chose to remain single. Dido is seen by many as a bitter and irrational woman after the departure of Aeneas; however, her pursuit of Aeneas and disregard of her city put her and all of her people in grave danger. Choosing another man over her many suitors severed