Paper Example on Odysseus, Aeneas, and Antigone

Introduction

Aeneas is a character who represents a time and culture when war in the Greek setting was adored and used as a means of measuring strength and success. According to the Greeks, Aeneas means being praised. In the narration, Aeneas is a prince who escapes the burning city of Troy by a whisker. His escape does not imply that he is a coward, but he is forced by the gods to escape. He is a great warrior, and the gods instruct him to sail across the Mediterranean where he will find a colony that would one day give birth to the Roman Empire. The character plays a critical role in a time when the Greeks wage conquest wars against their enemies for territorial expansion and success.

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Similarly, Antigone is a character who lives in an era where scramble for power is real. People kill one another because of greed for power. Antigone is a heroine who fights to prevent her brothers from killing one another, but she does not achieve this goal because upon arriving home she finds both her brothers Eteocles and Polyneices are no more. She, however, strives to give Polyneices a decent send off where she manages but ends up in jail.

Antigone is a true definition of a heroine who fights for her family at the expense of her own life. The unfolding events are full of revenge and death at the end of the road for most of the characters. On the other hand, Odysseus is a character who is described as brave, handsome, intelligent and smart the account is about a hero who wants to return home after the war. Eurylochos says "You are a hard, man, Odysseus. Your force is greater, your limbs never wear out" You must be made all of the iron"(Homer p.280). He comes back to his wife, mother and family. He represents a culture and time when Heroes are supposed to go back home to their people after the war. Regardless of the time he spends with a goddess he still has a desire for his wife and wants to return home. He is a warrior who fights and wins battles for his people. Odysseus lives in a time when warriors were to return home singing songs of victory. In his time war was the most excellent way of determining the achievement of a nation.

The similarities in the heroes are that they all have a passion for achieving a specific goal. They do not only represent their people, but they have objectives that need to be met regardless of the surrounding situations. For instance, Aeneas is a great warrior who fights vigorously for his people, and all he wants is victory. Antigone is also a strong heroin who fights to protect her family from tearing apart after the death of her father who was a king. Besides, Odysseus has a goal of struggling to get back home to his people after the war where a goddess traps him. Another similarity is that they all tend to fight against all the odds to achieve their goals. They do not give up until what they desire come to pass.

Furthermore, they all encounter tough challenges as they attempt to fight for what they want to achieve for instance Aeneas faces the wrath of the Greeks and flees before he is caught. Antigone is opposed and challenged by Creon who wants to be in power after the death of her father, and she is finally locked up in jail. Odysseus on the other is held captive by the goddess of the sea who fights his return to his people. He is made a sex captive but still struggle to go back to his people.

On the contrary, there are differences in the heroes where Odysseus is fighting to return home while Antigone is fighting to protect her brothers from killing one another and Aeneas struggles to escape the wrath of the Greeks. It implies that although they are all heroes, but fighting different battles. Another difference is that they live in dissimilar times where events are different too, for instance, Aeneas is in a time when all forces against authority were highly opposed while Antigone lives in a time when there is extreme greed for power, and finally Odysseus lives in a time when heroes were expected to go back home regardless of the circumstances after war.

The mission of Antigone is to protect her brothers from killing one another after a prophecy was made, but she arrives too late when death has already taken place but she goes on to fight to bury Polyneices contrary to the customs Sentry says "Here is the one who did it! We caught her In the very act of burying him" (Sophocles L 305-330). On the other hand, the mission of Aeneas is to fight with the Greek heroes to one day establish the Roman Empire. Finally, Odysseus's purpose is to return home after the war, but he is held captive by the goddess of the sea. The differences indicate that heroes do not give up when they encounter challenges but instead fight until they achieve their goals. The differences also suggest that heroes have different stories to tell and their approaches to issues vary from one hero to another.

Work Cited

Homer. The Odyssey. Translated by EV Rieu. Harmondsworth, New York, 1945.