Similarities and Differences in the Aeneid and the Odyssey.

Both the Odyssey and the Aeneid describe the journeys of the two Greek heroes –Odysseus and Aeneas, as they struggle towards their goal through the crises and deadly situations caused by the wrath of the gods upon them. In the Odyssey, we see that Poseidon (god of the sea/earth shaker) has a grudge against Odysseus while Athena, god of wisdom, aids him throughout his journey. Similarly in the Aeneid, we see that goddess Juno dislikes Aeneas as he is destined to destroy the city of Carthage loved by Juno during his mission to find a new land- Rome, whereas Aeneas’ mother Venus aids him. In these epics, many points of similarity and differences arise such as the characters of the heroes, how their journeys are delayed by women obsessed with†¦show more content†¦In some serious and important situations, Odysseus is more cunning and intellect than Aeneas. Something common in the two epics about their journey is that both Odysseus and Aeneas are distracted from what they are destined for; by the lust and arousal of women obsessed by love. In the Odyssey, Odysseus is first encountered by Circe’s love and then by the over obsession of Calypso. Circe is an immortal goddess and enchantress who is extremely beautiful and sexy. In the Aeneid, Aeneas after reaching Carthage meets Dido who is a mortal woman and queen of Carthage. She is foreign, exotic, mysterious, sexually and politically potent. Talking about Odysseus, we see that Odysseus is approached by Hermes who warns him against Circe. She offers Odysseus to have sex with her and it happens. Odysseus now distracted, lives with her on her island for a year until his comrades remind him of Ithaca. The longest delay in Odysseus’ journey is at the island of Calypso. Calypso lives alone on an exotic and beautiful island. After Odysseus crash lands here, he is rescued by her an d held captive for seven years. Calypso loves Odysseus unconditionally and offers him immortality. Calypso could never impress Odysseus like Circe did. But in the Aeneid, we see that Aeneas loses sight of his mission of founding Rome in Italy. Dido makes Aeneas forget about what he is destined for as they fall in love. Both Dido and Circe keep men away from theirShow MoreRelatedOdysseus And Aeneas Similarities922 Words   |  4 PagesOctober 2017 The Differences and Similarities between Odysseus and Aeneas â€Å"Sing in me, Muse, and through me tell the story of that man †¦ the wanderer (Lawall and Mack 225). This is from the first stanza of book one of The Odyssey by Homer; it is an epic Greek poem written in the eighth century B.C. Hundreds of years later, Virgil wrote The Aeneid, the Roman epic, around 19 B.C. It was inspired by Homer’s works. 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