Examples Of Imagery In The Aeneid

The Aeneid, written by Virgil, follows the adventures of the war hero, Aeneas, after the Trojan War. The book also follows the life of characters such as Dido and her pursuits as Queen of Carthage. The Trojan War was a violent and dramatic time, and Virgil captures the essence of the war in his writing. Throughout The Aeneid, the author uses literary devices to draw the reader in and help them connect with the characters and their situations.

Virgil uses imagery in The Aeneid to help the reader feel as if they are part of the action, and to help them better understand the characters. Achilles has just received a vision from Hector, a passed hero of the Trojan War, to leave Troy before it crumbles to build the city’s walls up in another place. Achilles rushes to his father’s house to collect his

Priam, Aeneas’ father, is scolding Panthus for his gruesome and disrespectful acts when Panthus decides he has had enough and, “With that, he drags the old man straight to the altar, quaking, slithering on through slicks of his son’s blood, and twisting Priam’s hair in his left hand, his right hand sweeping forth his sword-a flash of steel-he buries it hilt-deep in the king’s flank” (Virgil 93). In order to stress the destruction and brutality of the Trojan War, Virgil uses imagery to emphasize on the death of Priam. By using strong verbs and adjectives, Virgil creates an image in the reader’s head of Priam’s death that helps them better understand the “war hero” Panthus, and the havoc wreaked across Troy during the war. Another time that Virgil uses imagery is to describe Queen Dido. Dido has plans to go hunting with Aeneas. In the middle of the hunt however, a storm hits and everyone rushes for shelter. By the gods will, Dido and Aeneas go to the same cave. The next day they come out and Dido has reason to believe they are married. From that point on, Virgil describes Dido by saying that she no longer cares about