What constitutes a hero? Is he someone who wears blue tights a red cape and has a big S on his chest? Is he faster than a speeding bullet, able to leap tall buildings in a single bound, more powerful than a locomotive? No its not a bird, and its not a plane, and guess what, its not superman either. A hero is someone who demonstrates faith, loyalty, courage, valor, strength, and above all truth; not in a comic book but in human events based upon reality. Virgil would have us believe that Aeneas in The Aeneid possess all of these heroic traits. Yet, we find out that our so-called hero's relationship with Dido lacks some very important characteristics of heroism, most importantly truth. First, here is the story of Dido and Aeneas.

After traveling for seven years, the Trojans sail towards Italy. At the request of Juno, Aeolus raises a storm that sinks one of the fleet and scatters the rest.

Neptune calms the sea while Aeneas and six other ships arrive somewhere in North Africa. Venus complains to Jupiter about her son's treatment and sends

Mercury to ensure that they are welcomed by the Carthaginians. Aeneas encounters his mother who i

In conclusion, Aeneas is not a hero because he is not honest with Queen Dido. The important concept to understand is that it is dishonesty in love that causes his major flaw. Love is connected with truth and to separate truth from love leaves you with something other than love. We may think it is love but it is not, we may call it love but it is not. Therefore we can not call Aeneas a hero, in truth he is a fraudulent hero because of his deceitful love.

s disguised as a huntress and who conveys him to Carthage in a cloud. She arranges for Dido to fall in love with him. We see at the very beginning of Book 4 that Venus' schemes are coming to fruition and Dido is rapidly becoming enamored of Aeneas. On the human level, this is her response to the stories of Books 2-3: his history and his sufferings fascinate her. Egged on by her sister Anna, Dido cultivates her passion; at the same time, she must give up the attachment to her former husband that she has cherished since his death. Yet more immortal manipulations occur: Juno and Venus, after a meeting of the minds, decide that everyone's problems could be solved if they could join Aeneas and Dido in some semblance of a marriage. Aeneas would have his city, Venus would not have to worry about his future wanderings, and Juno's beloved Carthage would not be at risk of future conflicts with Rome. The downside, of course, is that Aeneas will still not be settled in the land for

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Approximate Word count = 967
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)