epic of the battles and wanderings of the Trojan hero, Aeneas, and his founding of the ruling line

for the Roman Empire was written by the great Latin poet Virgil. Or so it seems. When one is

reading the Aeneid and has also read both Homeric epics, one can almost instantly see many

parallels between Homer and Virgil. Not only are there parallels in the actual style of writing,

but the most prominent parallels come in the aspects of structure, events, and characterization.

The Aeneid is, in actuality, "... a structural and thematic reworking of both epics of Homer."2

The Aeneid is clearly modeled in the beginning after the Odyssey while in the end it is modeled

after the Iliad. The happenings and actions of Aeneas are very similar to both those of Odysseus

and later of Achilles. Many of the characters themselves are also modeled after Homer's

characters. There are also many little details here and there which show that Virgil certainly

modeled his epic after Homer, not to plagiarize, but for the style and the use of a model for

human insight and feeling. When reading the Aeneid, one can clearly see and hear the Homeric

other army's champion after a chase and fight. The character of Turnus is based on Hector from

characters such as Aeneas being both Achilles and Odysseus. The Aeneid, was written as a

Odysseus was battered by a storm and almost killed after leaving Calypso's island5, so too are

contests and games. While in the land of the Phaeacians, Odysseus participates in the contests

there9, while Aeneas holds similar contests to honor the death of his father Anchises10. Just as

perhaps the most obvious parallel between the Odyssey and the Aeneid, the visits to the

of the two champions to decide the war14. In the Iliad it is Paris and Menelaus who are to fight

examine the Homeric echoes that are present in the first half, or the Odyssean Aeneid. The first

Greeks of the Iliad as they are now seen as the invaders.

. Homer's Odyssey. Pennsylvania: Chelsea House Publishers, 1996.

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)