Heroic Paradigms from Iliad to Aeneid - Essay Example

Philosophy 1o May Heroic Paradigms from Iliad to Aeneid “The Iliad” is a tale of Greeks who sailed across the sea to besiege theTrojans in their walled fortress in the city of Troy, which is also known as Ilium (hence name “The Iliad”). The story revolve around Achilles, who was the greatest of the Greek warriors at Troy, however when Agamemnon, insults and angers him, he refuses to fight, which turns out to be a devastating blow to the mission. Achilles anger at Agamemnon acts as an integral theme of this epic, hence a short yet explosive outburst nearly undermines the Greeks struggle and desire to conquer Troy. The Aeneid does not explicitly deal with Roman politics in fact it is a story about a mythological figure Aeneas who lead Trojans to Italy after the Greeks destroy their homeland. Unlike Homer’s Aeneas who is portrayed as a warrior who boasts about his prowess on the battlefield and then proceeds to lose in every one of them since he was a bad warrior Vergil projects him as a tragic figure who is in search of a rational explication about the actions of God who destroy human beings and make them suffer, The same Gods who love and protect him. Some of the major heroic paradigms that are explored in “The Iliad” include the ideals of heroism: bravery, courage, super-strength, intelligence and nobility. The Homeric Hero is a man of action who is never incapacitated because he survives on his instinct. Unhindered by doubts he soars above humanity and performs action that ensures his ever lasting fame and glory. Achilles fits this description of Homeric Hero although it is observed that his character develops gradually through out the text. The readers realize that Achilles of Iliad 22 is a man with a higher mission, who is ready to stake everything, including his own life in order to fulfill his mission. Hence he acts totally differently from the man of Iliad 1 who acts as a petulant child with a short temper and has the tendency of making irrational decisions. Therefore it can be inferred that the glory associated with Homeric Hero lives up to the definition of a hero of the Greek times. So it is perceived that the audience of the time believed that a hero should be an individual above all other human beings with special qualities of bravery, strength and intelligence. On contrary Aeneas is introduced in the poem as, “And suddenly Aeneas felt his limbs go numb with cold …I envy your fate…Why didnt you kill me on the plains of Troy When you had the chance and free my soul with your strong hand?” (Vergil 3). In the very beginning the protagonist has surrendered his will to fate and desires death. This explication is in complete contrast to the heroic paradigms set by the Greeks. Hence from this it can be inferred that Vergil’s Aeneid enlightens the readers about the cultural trend during the Vergil’s time had shifted from hero worship to a character more closely related to a common man who suffers pain and is not above the rest of mankind. Western Thought According to Plato and Aristotle the best way of learning is through communicating with others or collectivization. Socrates ‘Dialectic Method’ is a common technique that is employed in most of the classes. According to which he sat in the market place, started of a conversation on a certain topic and then picked up their flaws out of the ensuing argument and then brought each conversation to a proper ending or conclusion. A similar style of discussion and study is also implemented in this course of philosophy. This method helps the students to not only think about and share their personal ideas but also it enlightens them about the thoughts and feelings of their fellow students as well hence providing them with an opportunity to learn from the experiences or the point of views of other individuals. The Early Western thought processes of each writer vastly differ from one another. For example although Homer and Vergil in their respective epic poems deal with same mythological figures yet there is a marked difference between their interpretation of their society and their understanding of the audiences’ interest at the time. Homer glorifies Achilles and extensively deals with the political scenario during the War of Trojan and glorifies Achilles as a warrior and a hero. On the other hand Vergil keeps his work completely separate from politics and depicts a tale about a tragic figure Aeneas who had been formerly used by Homer in his epic poem as a warrior though a failed one. Hence students are able to draw this conclusion because of the discussions conducted in class and thorough analysis of the works of the two poets. The diversity of the Aristotle’s writing style and his ability to be able to write about various subjects such as philosophy, science and human behaviors and psychology is another example of collectivization. One of the explications of Aristotle’s diverse talents can be because he was very observant and thorough in his observation of his surroundings he was able to mull over and hence draw his conclusions about various realities of this world. Hence providing the world with food for thought i.e. giving the readers freedom to agree or disagree with his perspective. Similarly the Bible also provides his followers with a similar choice to accept or reject the God’s commandments. Hence it is observed that discussion is an integral part of any learning process for human beings because engaging in conversation with other people helps in broadening one’s own horizon of knowledge and imagination. The professor also employed this technique and successfully followed the theory of Aristotle and Plato and helped the student to be able to formulate their own opinions based on the philosophical musings of the famous philosophers and writers. Man’s Place in the World Literature has always been used as a tool to capture history, record human behaviors and analyze their actions and reactions. It has also acted as a method to leave the world with the memories and accounts of cultural heritage of each century, nation and race. Therefore it is observed that literature facilitates the people of every era about the history of their ancestors, their custom and behaviors and evolution of man as a being endowed with superior intellect and reasoning. Hence the writers and philosophers of every age hold a lot of importance in preserving a culture and the history of a nation. Consequently writers and philosophers like Sophocles, Aristotle, Plato, Homer and Vergil inform the readers about the process of evolution of human beings and the cultural history of every age as well. The Greek Age in history of literature can be perceived as the defining age for the paradigms of human behavior, history and thought process. During this age the protagonist was looked upon as a superior being and epitomized perfection as it is observed in the case of Homer’s Achilles. Then again mythology or Greek religion played an important part in these pieces of literature. Writers like Sophocles focused their attention on writing about the conflict between man and the Gods i.e. man on the basis of his intelligence and intellect considers himself superhuman and tries to compete with God as was the case with Oedipus. However the end result of such a desire is that in the end man realizes himself to be just a puppet in the hands of the Gods and fate. These interesting aspects of human behavior i.e. man’s desire for perfection and to become equal to God gives an insight of the thought process of human beings during the Greek period and the trend that was followed meaning that every individual strived to attain perfection. The era of Aristotle and Plato is a period where human beings started drifting away from religion and mythology and started struggling to find answers about nature in nature. In this period man started questioning his existence and consequently led to a search for identity. It was in this time that Aristotle introduced the concept of Science of Logic which deals with the fact that since man is bestowed with superior intelligence he should use his power of imagination and rationality to expand his knowledge about himself and his surroundings. Hence it is observed that in each period human beings progressed towards a better and a more promising future. Moreover literature played an integral part in order to make it possible for human beings to find their Self and evolve as better individuals. As Cicero also states, “Most happy is he who is entirely self-reliant, and who centers all his requirements in himself alone” (15) i.e. it is a part of human nature to explore, discover and then assert which is a good thing because otherwise man would be stuck in time with no progress. Main Objective Every piece of literature comprises of a central point and the writer through his writing leaves a mark on the memory of the readers if he/she is successful at fully conveying his personal point of view to the readers. Consequently a similar purpose is also observed behind all the readings and analysis that have been done in this course i.e. it was the objective of the professor to struggle and make erudite scholars out of the student so that they will be able to hone their skills of analyzing, criticizing and interpreting the works of writers and philosophers. The course enlightens the students about the multi-dimensional human existence and the varied psychological mechanics of the human brain. It teaches the students the lesson that every human being is bestowed with intelligence but it solely depends on the individual as to the manner in which he/she uses this power of intelligence. Then again power of human imagination knows no bounds and human beings should pay special attention to their surroundings because at times even the smallest of incidents or observation holds the power to unravel a whole new plethora of ideas. Another important realization that this course helps in making is that reading about and gaining knowledge about the works of other writers and philosophers is not enough in fact students should polish their skill of criticizing and interpreting a text because a writer leaves a lot of room for the readers to draw their own conclusions. Moreover the journey to discovery and knowledge curtails human beings to become excessively observant by nature and they should always use logical reasoning to make new discoveries. This practice will immensely help them in achieving a strong personality of an erudite individual with the knowledge about both his existence and purpose in this world and the knowledge about s variety of natural phenomena and life in general. Read More