The Odyssey and the Aeneid

Comparison. (Revised.)

Poems are a literary technology that have been used since ancient oral practices and became more developed as writing systems were created. Greeks practiced Poetics (ποιητικῆς), the study of the aesthetics of poetry, popularized by the Greek philosopher Aristotle. English ‘poem’ derives from Latin ‘poema’, further derived from Greek (поэ́ма) (pronounced ‘poēma’)¹; which is made of the Greek root word ‘ποιέω’(pronounced ‘poieo-’), whose definition is: “to do, make, practice, produce; a generic term of action or performance.”² So a ‘poem’ is something like a product or a composition, and a ‘poet’ is a producer or composer. In general, poems have been used to transcribe history across time, but Aristotle popularized three poetic subcategories: histories/epics, tragedies, and comedies. Reviewing Homer’s the Odyssey and Virgil’s the Aeneid, will provide understanding in the similarities and differences between these two popular epic poems and what they reveal about the cultures in which they were created.

To begin, Ὅμηρος (English: Homer, Latin: Hómēros) is the Greek poet accredited for the Odyssey. Ὅμηρος (Homer, Hómēros) roughly translates to 'associator' ‘same-er’ or ‘compan-er’.³⁴ There is controversy surrounding Homer’s identity and existence. Because Homer is hardly recorded, it’s difficult to confirm if Homer was male or female. Ideas of Homer being a group or lineage of people is suggested as well because a group of bards called the Homeridae established in the 6^th century B.C.⁵ This controversy probably contributes in the misunderstanding as to what the translated definition of Homer’s name is. The British Museum published the translation as 'hostage' or ‘blind’.⁶ Homer is also accredited to the Iliad. The language of the Iliad and the Odyssey has been described as ‘Homeric Greek’, Greek only used by Homer in poetry.⁷ The oral tradition of poetry is particularly significant in Homer’s works and exemplifies the intent of Homeric verse to be performed.

Homer’s the Odyssey is an epic poem that chronicles Odysseus’s, king of Ithaca, journey home after the fall of Troy. The poem is composed of twenty-four books of verse. The original Greek is arranged in what is described as Homeric hexameter, lines consisting of patterns of ‘long’ and ‘short’ dactyl, – υυ (– = long syllable, υ = short syllable). The lines consist of six of these dactyls, with the last in the line marking the end of a rhythmical unit by a slight variation to the dactyl, either long or short. Lines will exist at the minimum of twelve syllables (dactyls) or a maximum of seventeen syllables, the latter being the most common throughout the poem. In tradition of addressing the general public, the English translations of the Odyssey were rendered in verse that related more to the translation language’s audience. George Chapman sets the standard metre for narrative verse in English, with his 1616 translation of the Odyssey, as ‘heroic couplets’ rhyming pairs of iambic pentameters.⁸ The Odyssey is the primordial ‘hero’s journey’. The poem is set ten years after the Trojan Wars, and Odysseus needs to journey back to Ithaca to be with his wife Penelope. Through the conversation of the Greek gods, the audience learns that Odysseus is stranded on an island being tormented for blinding Poseidon's son, the Cyclops. Athena convinces Telemachus, the son of Odysseus, to journey out to find his father. Telemachus, now accompanied with Pisistratus, learns about Odysseus’s situation. By this moment in the narrative, the nobles (Suitors) at Ithaca learn that Telemachus has gone out to retrieve Odysseus and plan to kill Telemachus on his journey. Eventually, Telemachus and his party join up with Odysseus and make their way back to Ithaca. Odysseus and Telemachus end up killing all the suitors, and Odysseus is reunited with Penelope. Finally, Athena forms a peace covenant for Ithaca to prevent further bloodshed.⁹

The Odyssey reveals several aspects of Greek culture, particularly Greek religion, values, and perspective of the rest of the world. The Odyssey personifies the Greek gods and provides them human qualities. There are multiple instances in the poem where the Greek gods are conversing amongst themselves in an assembly, similarly as to how Greek governmental proceedings operate. The Odyssey also provides an outlook on how the relationship between the Greek gods, people and reality operates. For instance, Zeus and an assembly of the gods on Mount Olympus, have a discussion about how Odysseus and his men are prevented from returning home because they ate cattle from the sun god Hyperion. The gods also portray emotions. Such as how the gods began to pity Odysseus entrapment and Poseidon displayed angry at Odysseus for blinding his son (Cyclops).¹⁰ This depiction of the Greek gods in the Odyssey displays how the gods effect the events that happen in reality. For example, Odysseus is trapped for eating the cattle, and Poseidon encourages Calypso to keep Odysseus stranded and tormented. Then eventually pity from the gods convinces them to begin to provide ‘favor’ to Odysseus and he is allowed to make his way home. The Odyssey also provides insight into the Greek value system. With the role of Greek gods demonstrated, the Greeks operate in a way that appeases the gods. The Greek gods shape reality and guide their people in ways that are favorable to them. The Odyssey places importance on the idea of persevering in the face of adversity, when the adversity is the struggle to reclaim the home and family and restore order. Not only does Odysseus have to make his way home, but Athena (through the form of Mentor) assists Telemachus in going to save his father.¹¹ The Odyssey provides a narrative that focuses on the ‘hero’s journey’. Insight into the Grecian perspective is also provided in the Odyssey. Multiple locations throughout the Mediterranean, such as the areas of the world referred to today as parts of Africa, the Middle East, and Asia, are mentioned to provide for the setting of the poem. Mainly, the different areas of the world are provided to portray the expanse of the world and the domain in which the Greek gods operate in.

Later, Publius Vergilius Maro (English: Virgil) is the Roman poet that composed the Aeneid. It is difficult to accurately translate ‘Publius Vergilius Maro’, but we can deduce its translation by review words like ‘public’, ‘verge’, and ‘march’. Biographical information about Virgil is mainly provided by Vitae Vergilii (Life of Virgil). Virgil was born on the ides of October in the consulship of Pompey and Crassus (15 October 70 BC) in the village of Andes, near Mantua in Cisalpine Gaul (northern Italy).¹² Other than the Aeneid, Virgil’s other works are the Eclogues and Georgics. Virgil existed in a time period where record-keeping and writing systems had been established, and Virgil had the benefit of having a backlog of works available to read and be influenced by. Virgil provides an example of the evolution of written composition during the Roman empire, after an era of Greek dominance of the Mediterranean and the field of poetry.

Virgil’s the Aeneid is an epic historical recount of Aeneas’s journey to the Italian peninsula after the fall of Troy. The poem is a composition of twelve books of verse. The Aeneid is composed in dactylic hexameter, influenced by Homer’s Odyssey.¹³ In summary, the Aeneid is another ‘hero’s journey’. The poem begins seven years after the Trojan Wars and Aeneas is setting out towards the Italian peninsula. Aeneas meets Dido and provides a recount of his journey from escaping the siege of Troy to her and to the benefit of the audience. Dido wants to marry Aeneas, but Jupiter reminds Aeneas of his duty of finding a new home. Aeneas leaves Carthage and an upset Dido who curses Aeneas, then commits suicide. Then, Sibyl foretells Aeneas’s future on the Italian peninsula and guides Aeneas to ‘hell’ and to allow Aenaes the opportunity to converse with his father (Anchises), who provides him insight into his legacy. Next, Aeneas ends up on the Italian peninsula and is offered Lavinia, the daughter of King Latinus. Lavinia was originally promised to Turnus and because Turnus loved Lavinia waring between him and Aeneas began. King Evander becomes Aeneas’s ally and provides him with troops. After the recounts of the battles between Aeneas and Turnus, the war ends with Aeneas defeating Turnus. Venus saved Aeneas from dying, despite Jupiter forbidding interference from the gods, which allowed him his victory over Turnus. The poem ends with Turnus lamenting his death.¹⁴

The Aeneid reveals several aspects of Roman culture, religion, values and political views. Virgil also personifies the Roman gods and provides them human qualities; presumably to demonstrate the role of the Roman gods and humans and the relationships between them and reality are demonstrated. The Aeneid not only provides conversations the Roman gods have with each other throughout the poem but also explains how Venus influences Dido’s love by utilizing the force of mythological figures like Cupid and Juno.¹⁵ Venus also exerts control over the weather in a final attempt to get Aeneas and Dido together. This contrast the will of the god Jupiter who encourages Aeneas to continue his journey for finding a new home (and kingdom).¹⁶ With the role of the gods explained in the world, further reflections of the Roman cultural value system are presented in the Aeneid. With encouragement from the Roman gods and prophecies, Aeneas continues his journey and finally ends up on the Italian peninsula. With persistence and faith, Aeneas makes allies on the Italian peninsula and defeats adversaries which sets up the foundation of what will end to be the Roman empire. The Aeneid provides insight into Roman political views on the governance of the world. The narrative provided about Aeneas’s Trojan conquest and integration on the Italian peninsula provides divine justification for the Roman conquest of the world and suggests that the Roman gods favor the Roman empire. The Aeneid was composed at a time when the Roman empire had been established across a span of the Mediterranean and sets the standard for how a culture can provide values and justification for the ruling government by integrating its religion with its political beliefs.

Now, comparing the Odyssey and the Aeneid, similarities between the two epic poems can be observed. These poems are both epics, composed similarly, and provide reflections of the Greek and Roman culture. The Odyssey was written first and the poem’s influence on the Aeneid is apparent; and accounts for the main similarities between the Odyssey and the Aeneid. Both epic poems are composed in dactylic hexameter; presumably Virgil, in tradition of oral poetry, composed the Aeneid to replicate the cultural effect of the Odyssey. The poems both focus on what occurs after the Trojan Wars and the fall of Troy with both poems providing a narrative surrounding a ‘hero’s journey’, reflecting an importance of the ‘hero’ archetype in their respective cultures. Virgil includes some of the gods mentioned in the Odyssey in the Aeneid with the Roman names. For example: Athena/Minerva, Poseidon/Neptune, and Zeus/Jupiter. Reflecting that the Greek and Roman cultures both set importance and the same regard towards the same mythological figures. After reviewing these two poems, some notable similarities can be observed.

Also, further comparison between the Odyssey and the Aeneid will provide some differences between the two poems. As previously mentioned, Virgil had the opportunity to contemplate the Odyssey before composing the Aeneid. Virgil did compose the Aeneid in hexameter, but unlike the Odyssey, the Aeneid is condensed into twelve books instead of twenty-four. It can be assumed that, because Virgil was afforded the opportunity to contemplate the Odyssey, the Aeneid was strategically composed to be similar to the Odyssey, but more effective in its reception. Both poems provide narratives for what occurs after the fall of Troy, but the Odyssey focuses on a hero who is stranded in the area of Troy needing to get back to his position in the hierarchy in Ithaca fleeing the fall of Troy rather than the hero Virgil focuses on a Trojan fleeing the fall of Troy and goes on to set the foundation for Roman culture and empire on the Italian peninsula. Virgil presents the duality of the opposing factions of the Trojan Wars. Both compositions utilize the same gods, albeit with different names, as personified components (characters) to the narratives of the poems. Virgil’s focus on the same gods further implies the duality of the religious divinity of major events. The poems are similar in their composition but the alternative journeys present different narratives. Again, in the Odyssey, the hero (Odysseus) is returning to his homeland to rescue it and in the Aeneid, the hero (Aeneas) is fleeing his destroyed homeland to build a new home elsewhere. Presumably, as an epic poet, Virgil presents to his audience the Greek presence in Roman culture and politics. Even though these two poems share similarities in composition and themes, obvious differences can be observed, but the most notable difference is in their message.

The Odyssey and the Aeneid are epic poems that are both substantially impactful. Both poems exemplify the ability a poet has in composing effects on its audience and suggest the importance of poets in society. Homer’s the Odyssey and Virgil’s the Aeneid set the foundation for poetry and has significantly influenced how the subject, and language in general, is perceived and developed in the modern era. In conclusion, reviewing the Odyssey and the Aeneid provides understanding in the similarities and differences between these two epic poems and what they reveal about the cultures in which they were created.

1. "Poem." Etymology Online. Accessed October 19, 2024. https://www.etymonline.com/word/poem.

2. Mounce, Bill. "Poieo." Bill Mounce's Greek Dictionary. Accessed October 19, 2024. https://www.billmounce.com/greek-dictionary/poieo

3. "Homou," in Strong's Greek 3674, Bible Hub, accessed November 2, 2024, https://biblehub.com/greek/3674.htm.

4. "Homilia" In Strong's Greek 3657. Bible Hub. Accessed November 2, 2024. https://biblehub.com/greek/3657.htm.

5. "Who Was Homer?" British Museum. Accessed October 19, 2024. https://www.britishmuseum.org/blog/who-was-homer.

6. "Who Was Homer?" British Museum. Accessed October 19, 2024. https://www.britishmuseum.org/blog/who-was-homer. (Same Article.)

7. Power, Henry. Chapter 4: Contexts for reading. Homer’s Odyssey : A Reading Guide. Reading Guides to Long Poems. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2011. https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=ip,shib&db=nlebk&AN=1280645&site=eds-live&scope=site.

8. Jasper Griffin. Chapter 1: The making of the Odyssey. Homer: The Odyssey. Vol. 2nd ed. Landmarks of World Literature. Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press, 2004. https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=ip,shib&db=nlebk&AN=165073&site=eds-live&scope=site.

9. Homer. The Odyssey. Translated by Samuel Butler. Project Gutenberg, April 1999. Updated December 1, 2023. https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/1727

10. Homer. Book I The Odyssey. Translated by Samuel Butler. Project Gutenberg, April 1999. Updated December 1, 2023. https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/1727

11. Homer. Book II The Odyssey. Translated by Samuel Butler. Project Gutenberg, April 1999. Updated December 1, 2023. https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/1727

12. "Vitae Vergilii." Virgil.org. Accessed October 19, 2024. http://virgil.org/vitae/

13. Duckworth, George E. “Variety and Repetition in Vergil’s Hexameters.” Transactions and Proceedings of the American Philological Association 95 (1964): 9–65. https://doi.org/10.2307/283782.

14. Virgil. The Aeneid of Virgil. Translated into English Verse by Edward Fairfax Taylor. Edited by Ernest Rhys. Project Gutenberg, May 28, 2006. Updated November 10, 2021. https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/18466.

15. Virgil. The Aeneid of Virgil. Book I Translated into English Verse by Edward Fairfax Taylor. Edited by Ernest Rhys. Project Gutenberg, May 28, 2006. Updated November 10, 2021. https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/18466.

16. Virgil. The Aeneid of Virgil. Book V Translated into English Verse by Edward Fairfax Taylor. Edited by Ernest Rhys. Project Gutenberg, May 28, 2006. Updated November 10, 2021. https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/18466.

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Bibliography

1. "Poem." Etymology Online. Accessed October 19, 2024. https://www.etymonline.com/word/poem.

2. Mounce, Bill. "Poieo." Bill Mounce's Greek Dictionary. Accessed October 19, 2024. https://www.billmounce.com/greek-dictionary/poieo

3. "Who Was Homer?" British Museum. Accessed October 19, 2024. https://www.britishmuseum.org/blog/who-was-homer.

4. Power, Henry. Homer’s Odyssey : A Reading Guide. Reading Guides to Long Poems. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2011. https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=ip,shib&db=nlebk&AN=1280645&site=eds-live&scope=site.

5. Jasper Griffin. Homer: The Odyssey. Vol. 2nd ed. Landmarks of World Literature. Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press, 2004. https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=ip,shib&db=nlebk&AN=165073&site=eds-live&scope=site.

6. "Vitae Vergilii." Virgil.org. Accessed October 19, 2024. http://virgil.org/vitae/

7. Duckworth, George E. “Variety and Repetition in Vergil’s Hexameters.” Transactions and Proceedings of the American Philological Association 95 (1964): 9–65. https://doi.org/10.2307/283782.

8. Homer. The Odyssey. Translated by Samuel Butler. Project Gutenberg, April 1999. Updated December 1, 2023. https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/1727

9. "Homou." In Strong's Greek 3674. Bible Hub. Accessed November 2, 2024. https://biblehub.com/greek/3674.htm.

10. "Homilia" In Strong's Greek 3657. Bible Hub. Accessed November 2, 2024. https://biblehub.com/greek/3657.htm.

11. Virgil. The Aeneid of Virgil. Translated into English Verse by Edward Fairfax Taylor. Edited by Ernest Rhys. Project Gutenberg, May 28, 2006. Updated November 10, 2021. https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/18466.