English Literature Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 2

English Literature - Essay Example Sensing the immediate death, Turnus begged Aeneas either to spare him or give his body to his people. Aenneas considered for a moment to spare him, but decided to kill Turnus in order to avenge Pallas's death. The importance of Turnus in Aeneid is that he is at the same level of strength, power, influence, and ambitions like that of the hero of this epic. Through him, Virgil embodied the character of a perfect villain who is capable of upsetting the hero and give him a tough time. The character of Hrothgr is represented in the epic poem of "Beowulf". This epic is related to the Anglo-Saxon times and the main characters in this epic are Hrothgar and Beowulf. This epic narrates the heroic deeds of Beowulf when he sets forth to kill Grendel and his mother. As an aging king, Hrothgar is worried about the devastations brought by Grendel and his mother and practically beseeches Beowulf to kill the monster. Though he has lost his youth courage and might, the salient characteristics he possesses are his wisdom, high standard of Christian codes and his keen desire to save his subjects. Though, in the beginning, we feel that the king is the prey of vanity when we find him building the huge hall, Herot. However, in the later stage, we realise that the king is after all a human being and his sincerity to serve his subjects and his wisdom and justice are more important to consider than the only flaw of vanity in his character. This is the main reason that t the people of Danish land love and respect him above everything. Another positive factor in his personality is that he does not hesitate to acknowledge the strength and bravery of Beowulf without any feeling of jealousy. Thus, when Beowulf succeeds in killing Grendel, he rewards Beowulf with every worldly reward conceivable. Thus, the character of Hrothgar in the epic poem "Beowulf" is a symbol of wisdom, sanity, and sincerity. He regards the welfare of his subjects very highly and when he finds them in danger, he calls for Beowulf to kill the monster. c. Briseis The character significance of Briseis lies in the fact that she proves to be the sole reason for Achilles to desert the Greek cause when they needed his support in the war against Trojans. It is the love of Briseis that forces Achilles not to take part in the war. Thus, the absence of Achilles from the battlefield brings ruinous effects for the Greeks and ultimately they are at the verge of total defeat. Thus, we see in the epic "Iliad" that even a minor character like Briseis can significantly impact the whole setting of the stage and thousands of people would be killed. The significance of Briseis in this poem thus can be viewed from the refusal of Achilles to take part in the war against Trojans and the consequent devastation of Greeks. The love of Achilles for Briseis is one of the most significant event that changed the course of war between Trojans and Greeks. d. Dido The character of Dido is brought to the reader in Book IV of "Iliad" by Virgil. Dido is the ruler of Carthage and a widow of Sychaeus. She has a resolution not to marry again, but when Aeneas arrives