Journey to Tell Story, Essay Example

Many book characters have to travel in their story in order to learn a lesson. The lesson taught from these story is different when they are written by people in different place. When different people write, they write for different reasons. Being from a different place means that different things are important to them, so their writings tell about new experiences. The Odyssey is a Greek story that is about how Gods change the life of people living in Greece. When people are noticed by Gods, they are made to do either terrible or great things. When people stay away from Gods, they are able to live normal lives. Greek stories show that it is better to live away from Gods and not be noticed by them to live happy lives. The Aeneid is a Roman story that shows how Rome starts. This story shows that Rome grew in a way that put emphasis on acting by ethics. Even though the Greek and Romans are said to be similar, these different stories show that different thoughts can be had about similar events because of culture.

One of the major points of The Odyssey by the Greeks is that man does not have the right to choose what he will do. Instead, the Gods choose this for them. It is important for people to see this because this changes how they will act with one another. It is important for people to listen to the Gods, but it is even better to not be noticed by them, because the Gods will make the people that are noticed go on missions for them and give them a lot of work to do. The ones that are not noticed do not have to fight wars and will get to live peacefully. In one part of the book Zeus says, “Oh for shame, how the mortals put the blame on us gods, for they say evils come from us, but it is they, rather, who by their own recklessness win sorrow beyond what is given (1.32-34)”. When he says this, Zeus is blaming people for their own sorrow. He is calling people reckless because they are trying to go past what they Gods have created for them. Because of this, they are not able to be happy because they are not going to take their fate. The journey that the Odysseus goes through in the Odyssey is different than other journeys because he cannot control it. His journey and the journey of life are completely controlled by the Gods, which is something that the Greek culture likes to show to be true.

The way that people act in The Aeneid are completely different from how they act in The Odyssey, even though the Gods that are respected by people in both of these books are the same. Since The Aeneid is about people living in Rome, the culture values that they have is different. It looks like these people are less afraid of Gods and think that the way that they act has the ability to impact their lives. Because they think that they have choice, they are more worried about doing the right thing to help other people because they can control their fate. Zeus is called the leader of the Gods in the Greek culture, and this is the same person called Jupiter in the Roman culture. In the book, Jupiter says, “”[…] young Romulus Will take the leadership, build walls of Mars, And call by his own name his people Romans. For these I set no limits, world or time, But make the gift of empire without end.” (1.371-375). In this sentence, Jupiter is showing that he is giving free will to the starter of Rome. Because this individual has the right to do whatever he wants, it is his responsibility to make sure that Rome is built in a strong way. Jupiter is seen giving power to a man in a way that would not have been done in The Odyssey because the Greek leader of the Gods has a different opinion than his same version in the Roman culture.

In conclusion, different cultures show people going on journeys in different ways. Characters in both The Aeneid and The Odyssey are sent to go on a journey by the Gods, but in The Aeneid, people sent on a journey to make Rome by Jupiter have power to make decisions and are in control of their fate. But, when Zeus sends characters in The Odyssey on a journey, he is in control over everything that happens the whole time. This shows that even though these two cultures have the same Gods, they are very different. Greeks do not think that there is any choice so their journeys are directed by Gods. Romans do think there is choice so the purpose of the Gods is to help them along the way and get them to make the best choices while they travel. A lot can be understood about cultures from the way people write about them and their journey.