The Aeneas Archetype The long literary history of mankind is full of archetypes and motifs that span not only individual works of a single culture, but across works of many different cultures. One such an archetype is the ‘epic hero’, such as Aeneas from the Roman myth the Aeneid by Virgil. The epic hero archetype is that of a protagonist who best embodies the character traits of an ideal person. The definition of an epic hero fits Aeneas because he shares many of the characteristics typically given to an epic hero: bravery, courage, leadership, and confidence. Unique to Aeneas, and not universal to all epic heroes, are his additional character traits that Virgil included so as to model Aeneas after the ideal Roman man or hero. While epic …show more content…
According to American Heritage Dictionary definition found in The Hero: Some Definitions, an excerpt from a reading established by Monmouth College, an epic hero is: “in mythology and legend, a man, often born of one mortal and one divine parent, who is endowed with great courage and strength, celebrated for his bold exploits, and favored by the gods” or “any man noted for feats of courage or nobility of purpose; especially, one who has risked or sacrificed his life”(The Hero: Some Definitions Monmouth College). These two definitions, while undoubtedly intertwined, are just two broad looks at what qualities an epic hero possesses. Aeneas fits both these definitions, as he is “the son of the goddess”(Virgil 365) Venus and the mortal man Anchises as well as the hero who leads the Trojans away from their destroyed city of Troy and to a new home. There are more qualities to an epic hero than being of noble birth and acts of great courage. Other qualities include being a great warrior, traveling great distances, national heroism, humility, and encounters with supernatural beings (Characteristics of Epic Heroes), qualities all applicable Aeneas. From being a renowned warrior even before his journey began to the journey itself, from founding the new city of Rome to being humble in the retelling of his journey, even to his divine heritage and feud against the goddess Juno and the many mythic creatures he battles, Aeneas fits this summation of an epic