Fate In The Aeneid

Virgil was an ancient Roman poet, who is especially famous for his writings of the poem The Aeneid. His writings have deeply influenced the world, particularly with the theme of fate and destiny apparent in the Aeneid. The role of fate in the Aeneid is like an all-powerful force. It is good for the Roman people as a tool to guide the course of their lives, but not as an omnipotent force to decide choices rather than the individual deciding. This role of fate and destiny is manifested multiple times throughout the poem. First, in that it is Aeneis’s destiny, to found the city of Rome; he will encounter countless obstacles, but that will not stop destiny. Second, resistance to fate and destiny is useless, this is increasingly obvious throughout each event in the legend. Third, for Virgil’s Roman audience, Fate and Destiny are seen as a divine principle, which determines the course of history. In this essay, I’m going to review these examples of the role of Fate …show more content…
The various delays which occur throughout the poem, such as the battles, storms, meeting people such as Dido, and more bad weather, are only events which postpone Aeneis’s destiny. At one point in the story, a storm causes their ship to land at Carthage, where Aeneis meets, and eventually falls in love with Dido, the leader of the city. Aeneis remains in Carthage for some time, ignoring his “destiny” to reach and found the city of Rome. When he decides to leave, Aeneas says to Dido, "I sail for Italy not of my own free will.” When he said this, he did not mean that the Fates are forcing him to leave Dido and fulfil his destiny of reaching Rome. Instead, he means that it is his duty to found Rome and he is choosing to fulfil his important duty. The role of fate in the Aeneid seems similar to an all-powerful force, since it is Aeneis’s destiny to found the city of Rome, the various things which occur that delay him reaching Rome, are just that, only