The Aeneid

In my classes I have had the joy of teaching some of the greatest works of literature from Western Civilization. One of my favorites is the epic poem, The Aeneid, in which Aeneas escapes the burning city of Troy in order to found a new Troy, which became the mighty power of Rome. The peom is extremely engaging on several levels, but I believe it is most important to understand the purpose of Virgil in writing the poem, especially in our culture today. The main purpose of writing the Aeneid was to validate the current leadership of the Roman empire and to envoke partriotism in the Roman citizen. These are two concepts that desprately need to be instilled in our young people today.

The undercurrent of the poem which drew out the other purpose of the book was to display the virtuous character of Aeneas as he put all other distractions aside in the name of destiniy and duty. There are really two parts to the poem in which we see Aeneas transform from a man of distraction and worldly concerns to a man of purpose, intensity, and courage. Throughout the first five books we see Aeneas distracted by the circumstances of his situation at sea, the downfall of his great city Troy, the distraction of meeting a woman Dido, the joy of playing games and competition, but all of these things kept him from the main purpose of his destiny. In Book six we see Aeneas enter the underworld to visit is father and there is able to see the future of the Roman empire. From then on he is driven to fulfill the destiny he had before him without the distraction of circumstances, girls, and games.

As he enters the shores of Italy, the gods intervene and provide for him the advantage to overcome the Latin adversaries led by Turnus. He is given a great sheild and armor that is stronger than any other metal known to man. In this act it is clear that the gods wanted the empire of Rome to be set in motion. In the end there is nothing that can prevent Aeneas from realizing his goal of founding the great city of Rome.

There are many messages that can be gleaned from this ancient story to apply to the lives of young people today. First, how about putting off those distraction of circumstances, girls and games in the name of calling and purpose? Our culture is certianly saturated with the entertainment and escape from reality, rather than being devoted to duty and to country. Second, having the sense that there is a divine purpose for the country in which we live, or even that there is a God with a plan at all in mind. This is important for young people today to have confidence that the sovereign Creator had a plan from the beginning of time that was greater than simply their experience of salvation. Third, and most importantly, that we can learn pietas from Aeneas. He was devoted to a task because he had a clear vision of something larger than himself. That is what we need to cast before our young people today. There is a larger purpose to life than the latest movie, coolest clothes, or romanitic interest. This book opens them to this larger world of purpose.