Reconstruction In The Aeneid

The Aeneid is an epic poem that is known for its telling of the story of the Trojans and their exodus from their city of Troy. After the sack of Troy by invading Greeks, the a fleet of surviving Trojans fled under the banner of a man named Aeneas. He is considered to be the protagonist of the epic and is the son of the god Venus. Under his command, the fleeing Trojans are to eventually colonize the land west of Greece called Latium (Italy) and eventually set the stage for the Roman Empire to rise centuries later. The passage in question is one that takes place during Aeneas’ journey from Troy to Latium on the high seas. After setting sail, Aeneas’ father, Anchises, interprets omens that he observed and ultimately decides that the island of …show more content…
In this passage, Apollo is the god that meets with Aeneas and is presenting him a message on behalf of the rest of the gods that support him. Statements such as, “we followed you [Aeneas] all when Troy was burnt to rubble.” (Virgil 3: 192) and “We are the gods, with you [Aeneas] at the helm, who crossed the billowing sea in ships” (Virgil 3: 193-194), all explicitly show to the reader that the gods have and will continue to guide the Trojans to their destiny. However, there is a significant nuance to note within these two lines. When writing these lines, Virgil makes use of the phrases, “we followed” and “with you [Aeneas] at the helm” (Virgil 3: 193). The word “followed” implies that the gods have observed Aeneas and the Trojans through their destruction rather than write out their fate. Much like an audience to a play, the gods payed close attention to Aeneas and his crew on their voyage. By doing so, Virgil is able to show that the gods aren’t exactly the playwrights of Aeneas’ destiny but rather his audience. This notion is further supported when Apollo states, “with you [Aeneas] at the helm” (Virgil 3: 193). By having a god concede the position of a leader to a mortal such as Aeneas, it further implies that the destiny of the Trojans is one that even the gods cannot control. In addition, this …show more content…
Virgil was alive during the rise of the Roman Empire. Augustus, who was the first Roman Emperor, wanted a work to be created that would chronicle his accomplishments and also serve as a work of propaganda to justify all of the actions of the Roman Empire. However, Virgil took it upon himself to create a work different from Augustus’ expectation. He instead wrote the Aeneid, which chronicles the tales of a different man with influences from the Homeric world. Yet, despite Virgil’s creation of an epic that was different from Augustus’ command, he still fulfills the goal of creating a work that would justify the history of the Romans, including all of its victories and defeats, albeit, in a much more subtle fashion. To do this, Virgil emphasizes the idea of destiny in the story of the Trojans as it allows for Virgil to attribute their losses and victories as the result of a much greater force beyond human and divine control. As such, this gives grants the Roman Empire with this notion of inevitability and essentially justifies the entire Roman history because he is simply saying that everything that has happened was meant to happen. Of course, this was easy for Virgil to say because he was alive after the events of the epic, but nonetheless, it helps him achieve his goal of warranting the rise of the Roman Empire. Essentially, this passage is used by Virgil to set the stage for a future