In Virgil's Aeneid and Homer's Iliad, a picture of the supernatural and its workings was created. In both works, there is a concept of a fixed order of events which is called fate. Fate involves two parts. First, there are laws that govern certain parts of mens' lives, such as human mortality and an afterlife. Second, fate deals with the inevitable outcome of certain events, outcomes that cannot be changed by men or gods. Both Homer and Virgil allude to the existence of unchangeable laws, one of which is the mortality of human beings. This can be seen by the fact that character after character dies during war. In Virgil's Aeneid, Aeneas journeys to Hades to visit his father. During his stay, he talks to a large number of the warriors that have died in the Trojan War. The death of these warriors shows the mortality of human beings (Forman 2015). Another unchangeable law is the period of limbo that is said to await the souls of the unburied after death. Homer indicates this law by writing of Patroklos' spirit's return to remind Achilles that, until he has been properly buried, he must wander the earth. These events show Virgil's and Homer's belief in laws that cannot be changed (Strong 62). The second element of Fate deals with the
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According to Homer, the destruction of Troy was foretold in Hekuba's dream that her son, Paris, would be the cause. Jupiter calms her and reminds her of the many prophecies concerning her son and his progeny: how he will found the city of Lavinium in Latium and win a great war; how his son Acanius will build the city of Alba Longa; how the twins Romulus and Remus, his descendants, will be born in this town and how they will found the city of Rome (Milch 22). Both parts describe the existence of fate's unchangeable laws. One example of such an event is the fall of Troy. This can be seen in the Iliad when Homer writes about Achilles. Although Hekuba tried to avert the disaster by attempting to have Paris killed, fate overcame and Troy was destroyed as a result of Paris' judgment concerning the golden apple of discord (Strong 15-16). Although fate is not predominant in the writings of our modern world, in the works of the ancient world; especially in Homer and Virgil, fate must be present for the heroes to accomplish their destiny. It is a repetition of fate in which Dido represents Carthage and Aeneas represents Rome. The union of the Trojans and Latins to form a new race is another example of a predestined event found in the Aeneid. The works of Homer and Virgil show their belief in the reality of Fate being composed of two parts. at birth, his mother dipped him in the River Styx, rendering him immortal everywhere except in the heel, where she had held him. When Jupiter imperiously takes him to task, however, he remembers the duty fate has laid upon him and leaves Carthage and the delights of love, setting sail to the light of the funeral pyre in which the despairing Dido has thrown herself (Brisson 23-24).
Approximate Word count =
952
Approximate Pages =
4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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