Comparing Dido And Turnus In The Aeneid

In Virgil’s "The Aeneid" there were two main tragic figures, Dido and Turnus. Even though these characters may seem vastly different they are also similar in many ways. For example, both characters are driven by emotional gains and self empowerment. Dido’s actions much like Turnus’s actions are derived from emotions towards/about Aeneas which ultimately lead to their demise (Fagles). Unlike Aeneas Dido and Turnus are crowded with the need to fulfill their own needs rather than duty, which clouds their vision between what is right and wrong. In addition, Dido plays a pivotal role as a female character and a tragic hero. She falls desperately in love with the protagonist Aeneas which quickly transforms into an unhealthy obsession to the point of no return (Fagles 620). Dido becomes so desperately in love with Aeneas and confesses to her sister Anna that “...if i were not as sick as Iam of the bridal bed and torch, this, perhaps, is my one …show more content…
Turnus is introduced in Book VII in which he is depicted as a prince of Rutulian whose warrior skills resemble those of Aeneas. Turnus plays the role of Dido in the second half of the story as an antagonist trying to deter Aeneas from his goals. Turnus allows the jealousy he feels from losing Lavinia to Aeneas cloud his ability to think rationally “Turnus stood there, staring speechless, churning with mighty shame, with grief and madness all aswirl in that fighting heart: with love spurred by rage and a sense of his own worth too.” allowing this to be his last thought before entering the battlefield against his enemy (Fagles 641). This allows his bitterness to take over his clarity rendering him handicap against a battle with rational and “dutiful” Aeneas whose only goal is to conquer Turnus and build a new