The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language defines duty as "An act or a course of action that is required of one by position, social custom, law, or religion: Do your duty to your country." Each of these texts illustrate and exemplify duty in the highest sense of the word. The two heroes in the works, Aeneas and Arjuna both are quite aware of the duties that are entrusted to them, and the weight of these duties on their personal lives. They sacrifice themselves and

Later in the book, Evander tells Aeneas his duty also lies in passing his wisdom and bravery on to other. He states, "You, Aeneas, / Possess the proper strength, the proper lineage, / The summons of the gods. / Take up the burden! / My Pallas will go with you, my hope and comfort. / You are the one to teach him a soldier's duty, / How to endure; let him learn from you in action, / Behold your deeds, and, in his youth, admire them" (Humphries, and Virgil 225). Thus, his duty is to pass his knowledge on to others and to create the Roman Empire in Italy, and that is a weighty duty for any man - one that Aeneas cannot ignore.

Early in the book, Krishna spells out the path to a life that pleases God. He tells Arjuna, "(31) Recognizing your inherent duty, you must not shrink from it. For there is nothing better for a warrior than a duty-bound war. (32) It is a door to heaven, opened fortuitously. Fortunate are the warriors, Partha, who are presented with such a war. (33) But if, careless of your inherent duty and renown, you will not undertake this duty-bound conflict, you shall transgress" (Unknown 9). It is interesting to note that both of these texts concern the duties of warriors, and expressly state how important those duties are to both society and the warriors themselves. They are heroes because they do not shirk their duties, and society tends to place those same principles on soldiers who complete their duties heroically today.

Both of these works indicate duty is not an easy burden. Aeneas loses his love and many of his followers as he leads them always onward toward Italy. Krishna lays out the principles of Hindu life to Arjuna before he engages in a major battle. Arjuna fights because it is his duty to uphold the ideals of Hinduism, as told to him by Krishna, the Hindu God. Aeneas upholds his duty because the Gods have decreed it. Both these men carry heavy burdens, and if the truth were told, they would rather follow their hearts than their duty. However, their sense of duty is so great, and so instilled in them by larger than life beings, that they will do anything to obey - even though it is a difficult burden to bear.

In contras

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1467
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)