Greek Gods In The Aeneid

Superior Essays
Greek and Roman societies were polytheistic communities who worshiped multiple gods at the same time. In ancient Greece stories about gods, goddesses, heroes, and monsters were an important part of everyday life. These figures helped explain everything from religious rituals to climate change. These figures and beliefs gave meaning of the world to the citizens in the Greek Culture. In part the Roman Culture often emulated the myths and legends that had originated in Greek culture. Through examining the similarities and differences between the gods and goddesses portrayed in each society enables reflection of the impacts these cultures have upon the modern. The oldest sources of Greek mythology are the two epic poems written by Homer: the …show more content…
Through these stories the creation of Rome and the natural world were explained to the citizens of Rome. In the Aeneid gods and goddesses determine the destiny of the mortal beings and hold supreme control. The Iliad was distributed 700 years prior to the civilization of Rome, and Roman works of mythology did not appear until 1000 years after the Greeks demise . Throughout the epic poems and stories there have been many gods and goddesses that have crossed the reader’s path in both the Greek and Roman versions. These gods and goddesses can compared between cultures enabling the reader to note the connection between the different …show more content…
Many of the Roman gods and goddesses were therefore the counterparts or equivalents of the Greek divinities and deities. The Romans also adopted the primordial deities from Greek mythology. Jupiter, the king of the Roman gods is sometimes referred to as Jove, and is the counterpart of Zeus. In ancient Rome, the pantheon of 12 major deities was called the 'Dei Consents ' meaning the Council of Gods. The names of the other principle Roman divinities and deities in Roman Mythology were Juno, Neptune, Ceres, Minerva, Bacchus, Apollo, Diana, Mars, Venus, Vulcan and Mercury. The gods and goddesses of Roman literature were depicted to be married. As the Roman Empire expanded they began to

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    The definition of the word religion is the belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, especially a personal God or gods. The Greeks and Romans, during the Trojan War, prayed, and made sacrifices to their gods, to better their chances of winning the war, or simply beating their opponent; in literature, the relationship between gods and devotees are portrayed much differently. Even though the stories contain different religions, Euripides’s the Bacchae, Homer’s the Odyssey, and Virgil’s the Aeneid discusses religion in terms of personal needs, or popularity, amongst the gods, rather than devotion and good deeds. The Bacchae by Euripides is an ancient Greek tragedy based on the myth of King Pentheus of Thebes and his mother, Agave,…

    • 1271 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Though there are many works from ancient Greece that survived, there are two authors that are the most well-known or frequently taught. Homer’s two epics, the Iliad and the Odyssey, are perhaps the most well-known, because of the heroes epic battles of strength and wit against those deemed as enemies. Hesiod’s Works and Days, however, may be the most pertinent to finding out how everyday citizens of ancient Greece went about their everyday lives. These epics detail the lives of both extraordinary and ordinary men’s lives in ancient Greece. When compared to one another, Homer’s heroic world and Hesiod’s more common world have many similarities, such as views towards religion and right and wrong, and a significant difference, the role of women.…

    • 814 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Role of Deities Deities throughout Greek, Egyptian and Roman texts have played a massive role in how stories should be told through the point of view of the deities. Humans have try to challenge the divine laws set by the deities and impose their human laws as superior to them. The stories of “The Epic of Gilgamesh” and “The Aeneid” have shown the consequences that may result if the divine laws of the deities are violated. Deities in the story of epic texts have roles which support the idea of divinity. These deities have the power to determine and change the destiny of people at their own will.…

    • 1061 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Greek mythology is the religion of the ancient Greeks. It was a group of myths and lessons that the ancient Greeks created. Roman mythology is a series of stories that represent ancient Rome’s creation. These two mythologies came about around the same time period, and were are parallel to each other religions and traditions. Each one have gods and goddesses, an afterlife, and a relationship with mortals, or humans.…

    • 1766 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Legions, myths, and fairy tales are all big parts of a places religion and culture. How are these a big part in Greek culture though. Legends are based on history but is embellished. Myths are are stories based on religion can include supernatural being and gods and demigods. Fairy tales are stories based on history and includes blatant mistruths but there are some truths.…

    • 935 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Twelve Major Greek Gods

    • 497 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Even though, he was married to Hephaestus, he still…

    • 497 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Abhiram Mulam Ms. Toney English I 23 January 2017 O. J. (2013, July 16). Ancient Troy: The City & the Legend. Retrieved January 28, 2017, from http://www.livescience.com/38191-ancient-troy.html Troy was an actual city located northwest Turkey which was identified by many as being the Troy in Homer’s Iliad. Whether the Trojan War was fought between the Greeks and the Trojans, and the city in northwest Turkey is the same Troy would be a debate.…

    • 439 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Romans enjoyed Greek literature such as the Iliad and the Odyssey, as well as literature from other Greek poets and authors. The Romans…

    • 196 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Decent Essays

    The greek name of the god is Eros. The roman counterpart of Eros is Amor or more commonly Cupid. His lineage varies throughout mythology. In certain stories he is told to be the child of Aphroditie and Ares while in other stories he is conidered of the original gods that came as a result of chaos.…

    • 218 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Zeus was the god of the heavens, sky, and the Earth. His symbol was a lightning bolt and an Eagle. When people displeased him, He threw his mighty thunderbolts at them. His Roman name was Jupiter. He ruled the world with Hades and Poseidon and was King of Olympus.…

    • 726 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Roman And Greek Mythology

    • 1693 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Roman and Greek Mythology What is mythology? According to Merriam-Webster, mythology is: “The myths dealing with the gods, demigods, and legendary heroes of a particular people” (Merriam Webster Dictionary). The Roman and Greek religions were a central part of the lives of the Roman and Greek peoples. These two vastly different cultures were unified through their similarities in the religions. Both cultures considered themselves as highly religious and thought being highly religious would help them become a world power.…

    • 1693 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Greek and Roman deities grew dramatically in number to include Jupiter and Zeus, Juno…

    • 1092 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In this quarter, we learned about Greek and Roman civilization, and we were told that the Roman adapted their gods and goddesses from the Greek mythology. For this report, we have decided to do a comparison between a deity in Greek mythology and Roman mythology. In this case, we chose to do a research about Athena, the goddess of wisdom and war, and her Roman counterpart, Minerva. They shared many similar aspects, though they are distinct from one another. The differences and similarities we have gathered from doing research are as follow: First of all, Athena was the goddess of wisdom and war, and was mostly emphasized in Greek mythology.…

    • 839 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Gods and goddesses are often pictured as greater, higher, and a perfect image of man. They are responsible for everything seen and experienced all around the world. They give life and meaning to everything humanity does and they believe in their gods’ influence on the world. Gods help humans understand their environment and their significance in the world as conscious beings in a world full of possibilities. Although the Olympians were gods, they had very human flaws and frailties such as jealousy, cunning, and manipulation.…

    • 819 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Ancient Rome and Greece cultures’ were known for incorporating their religious beliefs of polytheism, multiple gods, into their work. Gods and goddesses were the core dynamic for western literature. For example, book one is about the first creation, second creation as well the interaction between mythological figures, including Apollo and his lover Daphne. The god of love, Cupid, intervenes with Apollo’s love life with outrage, “and from his quiver drew two arrows out which operated at cross-purposes, for one engendered flight, the other, love” (650-651). Cupid struck Apollo with his first arrow causing him to fall in love with Daphne.…

    • 817 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays