Essay On The Aeneid

In the second book of the Aeneid, Virgil portrays his main character Aeneas as a saddened man as he begins to tell the story of how his beloved city Troy fell to the Greek army. Starting with how the Greek he explains how the Trojans were tricked by Sinon, the Greek captive and spy, and the goddess Minerva, into taking the Greek horse, full of Greek soldiers, behind Trojan lines. In this book, he also explains in detial how he fullfiled his pietas toward his father, his wife Creusa, and to the gods during his flee from the city of Troy. While everyone in Troy is asleep, including Aeneas and his family members, Sinon, the Greek captive who ends up deceiving and betraying the Trojans to the Greeks, opens up the belly of the Trojan horse, and releases all of the Greek fighters inside. The Greeks then cause chaos around the city, starting by killing the Trojan guards, and setting things on fire. As more and more Greeks flood into the city and cause destruction, King Priam's son Hector, who was slain by Achilles in an earlier part of the war between Troy and Greek, visits Aeneas in a dream. In the dream, Hector tells Aeneas that the Trojans have taken over the city and warns him about the immediate danger. Aeneas then gathers together a …show more content…
Anchises, however, fiercely states that he'd rather die in Troy than die fleeing from the enemy, which prompts Aeneas to ask, "Did you suppose, my father, that I could tear myself away and leave you? Unthinkable; how could a father say it? (lines 857 - 859)." Aeneas, as a good son should, is very dedicated to his father's well-being, which leads him to want Anchises to come away with him so that he can be away from the swiftly approaching danger. Aeneas demonstrates his pietas toward his family, which is the fuel the drives him to not only protecting his family, but also not leaving them behind, especially in situations of