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Both the Odyssey and the Aeneid share some similarities as epics; both
describe the trials of a heroic figure who is the ideal representative of a
particular culture. There are even individual scenes in the Aeneid are
borrowed from the Odyssey. Yet, why are Odysseus and Aeneas so unlike one
another? The answer is that the authors lived in two different worlds, whose
values and perceptions varied greatly of a fundamental level.
To illustrate, two common ideas woven into the Odyssey are custom and
recklessness. Customs were handed down by the gods, and were meant to keep
men safe by giving them civilization. When men were reckless (when they
flaunted custom and the gods), they invited retribution and chaos by placing
themselves outside the ordained scope of humanity. Moreover, if the customs
are followed and proper respect given the gods, it is possible for man to live
in harmony indefinitely.
In contrast, the Aeneid propounds upon furor and civitas. Furor is the
discord that lies at the heart of each person which engenders violence, and
this furor must be restrained in order for civilization to work. This gives
rise to the idea of civitas, the overwhelming devotion to the state above
selfish personal desire; this is the only way man can chain furor on a large
scale. Moreover, it is always possible for furor to surface; even after years
of sacrifice and constant vigilance, peace is never guaranteed.
These differences in ethos are most easily seen when Virgil borrows a
scene and transforms it to his own ends. For example, Virgil adopts the
episode where Odysseus washes up on the shore of Skheria and meets the
Phaiakians and uses it to form the core of Aeneid I and II.
In the Odyssey, the episode...
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