Masterpieces of World Literature
Professor Kratz
Character Analysis
Final Draft: Due Tuesday, June 18. Minimum 500 words.
Triply lucky, all you men
To whom death came before your father’s eyes
Below the wall at Troy! Bravest Danaan,
Diomedes, why could I not go down
When you had wounded me, and lose my life
On Ilium’s battlefield? (1:134-39)
Aeneas first appears to us, whining to the gods about having survived the fall of Troy. He
goes on to “marry” Dido, abandon her, and then (in the underworld) to excuse himself for
his sin, saying: “I left your land against my will” (6:620)—or, to paraphrase, “it’s not my
fault, babe.” This is our hero, the founder of Rome.
In an informal essay (that is to say, without a thesis), I want you to analyze Aeneas’
character. What do we know about Aeneas? What does he do/say? How does he dress or
comport himself? And what can we conclude about his priorities and personality from
these choices? Is he flat or round? Static or dynamic? Heroic or villainous (Protagonist or
antagonist)?
As always, use quotes and specific examples as the basis for your work. And, while I
don’t require a thesis statement or a completely unified project, I still expect you to make
claims/conclusions based on your observations.