Vergil’s Aeneid is a complex work that covers the origins of the Roman people from the fall of Troy to Aeneas’s landing in Italy. It drew inspiration from many works including Homer’s Iliad, Odyssey, and contemporary Roman politics. Vergil’s writing took place during Augustus’s ascension to First Citizen with the devastation of the civil wars still in living memory. Therefore, The Aeneid was heavily influenced by the political events that Vergil experiemced, including the personal patronage of Augustus, the chaos and death of the late Republic, and the relative peace ushered in by Augustus and the Principate. Ultimately the Aeneid painted a positive picture of Augustus and Rome through the allegory of Aeneas’s founding of Rome; however, it…show more content… While not always perfect Aeneas is portrayed as a very good leader. One way that his good leadership qualities are emphasized is by putting him in situations that contrasts Jason in the Argonautica with Jason serving as an example of poor leadership and Aeneas’ better performance highlights his good leadership. The beginning of the book finds the remaining Trojans after they escaped the sacking of their city and were beset by a storm. After the storm the Trojans instinctively “fall silent” and were “keen for [Aeneas] to speak.” This level of reverence shows the high esteem that others have for Aeneas and recalls the situation from the Argonautica where the crew of the Argo “looked round at bold Heracles” to lead them instead of Jason; thus showing that Aeneas is a natural leader in the same vein as Hercules. Aeneas then gives a rousing speech, promising that they will find “a peaceful homeland” and that their “fortunes will change.” Though the speech is very good Vergil tells us that he “shammed hope on his face, and buried grief deep in his heart,” showing that he could separate his personal emotions from the task at hand. This was again in contrast with Jason who throughout the Argonautica would openly lament his situation instead of leading his
