Virgil’s The Aeneid and Ovid’s the Heroides both portray love as a destructive force through the story of Queen Dido and Aeneas. In The Aeneid, Queen Dido’s consuming love for Aeneas leads to her destruction. Originally portrayed as a strong, powerful political leader who “moved / Amid her people, cheering on the toil / Of a kingdom in the making,” (Virgil, Aeneid 21:685-687) love reduced her into a “maddened lover” who “roamed through all the city, like a doe / hit by an arrow.” (Virgil, Aeneid 97-98:96-97) On the other hand, in the Heroides, Aeneas’ absence of passion and love is the cause of Queen Dido’s downfall. Ovid also portrays Queen Dido engulfed in love, but Aeneas’ blatant rejection to accept or feel this emotion is worse than her
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He states, “What good are shrines and vows to maddened lovers? / The inward fire eats the soft marrow away, / And the internal wound bleeds on in silence.” (Virgil, Aeneid 97:92-94) According to Virgil, the union “was the first cause of death, and first / Of sorrow.” (Virgil, Aeneid 101:233) In Virgil’s portrayal, this marriage is symbolic of Queen Dido’s submissiveness to the flames of love. She is then rapidly consumed and destroyed little by little. Virgil depicts this through the neglect of her people and Carthage as well as the loss of Queen Dido’s power of independence and strength. As Queen Dido falls more in love, she abandons what was hers with “Towers, half-built, rose / No farther; men no longer trained in arms / Or toiled to make harbors and battlements / Impregnable.” (Virgil, Aeneid 98:121-124) No longer does she reign as the respectable, strong, independent ruler, but love rendered her powerless. When Aeneas leaves Queen Dido in order to fulfill his destiny, Queen Dido’s doom is ensured. Trapped in a world without Aeneas, the love of her people, and honor as a ruler, Queen Dido’s own powerlessness as a result of her love is what ultimately destroys and manifests into literal flames on her funeral …show more content…
Ovid gives agency to Queen Dido when she is abandoned by Aeneas and through her speech, subverts Virgil’s portrayal of love as a ravaging fire. In The Aeneid, Aeneas states to Queen Dido, “‘I sail for Italy not of my own free will.’” (Virgil, Aeneid 108:499) To Virgil, Aeneas’ abandonment was considered to be selfless and not the cause of Queen Dido’s destruction but her own catalyst. In Ovid’s portrayal however, Aeneas’ abandonment is a result of ignoring the love other people have for him. This leads to his rejection to feel love and pursue a selfish path that leads to the destruction of others. Ovid, through Queen Dido’s speech, specifically mentions not only Queen Dido’s death but his wife’s death due to his apathy. According to Queen Dido, “If you ask, where is the mother of lovely Iulus-- / She died, left alone by her harsh husband.” (Ovid, Heroides 82-83) She also condemns his actions as selfish ones, stating “It is not good for an impious hand to honor the gods. / If you were to be a worshipper of gods who escaped from the fires, / Then the gods regret that they escaped the fires.” (Ovid, Heroides 129-131) Throughout the Heroides and these specific quotes, Queen Dido explains that it is Aeneas’ uncompassionate, unrighteous, deceptive, and selfish behavior that causes him to reject love and wreak destruction. She professes that even though love consumed her,
He states, “What good are shrines and vows to maddened lovers? / The inward fire eats the soft marrow away, / And the internal wound bleeds on in silence.” (Virgil, Aeneid 97:92-94) According to Virgil, the union “was the first cause of death, and first / Of sorrow.” (Virgil, Aeneid 101:233) In Virgil’s portrayal, this marriage is symbolic of Queen Dido’s submissiveness to the flames of love. She is then rapidly consumed and destroyed little by little. Virgil depicts this through the neglect of her people and Carthage as well as the loss of Queen Dido’s power of independence and strength. As Queen Dido falls more in love, she abandons what was hers with “Towers, half-built, rose / No farther; men no longer trained in arms / Or toiled to make harbors and battlements / Impregnable.” (Virgil, Aeneid 98:121-124) No longer does she reign as the respectable, strong, independent ruler, but love rendered her powerless. When Aeneas leaves Queen Dido in order to fulfill his destiny, Queen Dido’s doom is ensured. Trapped in a world without Aeneas, the love of her people, and honor as a ruler, Queen Dido’s own powerlessness as a result of her love is what ultimately destroys and manifests into literal flames on her funeral …show more content…
Ovid gives agency to Queen Dido when she is abandoned by Aeneas and through her speech, subverts Virgil’s portrayal of love as a ravaging fire. In The Aeneid, Aeneas states to Queen Dido, “‘I sail for Italy not of my own free will.’” (Virgil, Aeneid 108:499) To Virgil, Aeneas’ abandonment was considered to be selfless and not the cause of Queen Dido’s destruction but her own catalyst. In Ovid’s portrayal however, Aeneas’ abandonment is a result of ignoring the love other people have for him. This leads to his rejection to feel love and pursue a selfish path that leads to the destruction of others. Ovid, through Queen Dido’s speech, specifically mentions not only Queen Dido’s death but his wife’s death due to his apathy. According to Queen Dido, “If you ask, where is the mother of lovely Iulus-- / She died, left alone by her harsh husband.” (Ovid, Heroides 82-83) She also condemns his actions as selfish ones, stating “It is not good for an impious hand to honor the gods. / If you were to be a worshipper of gods who escaped from the fires, / Then the gods regret that they escaped the fires.” (Ovid, Heroides 129-131) Throughout the Heroides and these specific quotes, Queen Dido explains that it is Aeneas’ uncompassionate, unrighteous, deceptive, and selfish behavior that causes him to reject love and wreak destruction. She professes that even though love consumed her,