Introduction
The Aeneid is an epic poem that portrays the journey of the Aeneas from the city Trojan to Rome (Hardie, 1999). The city of Trojan was destroyed by the Greeks, and the Aeneas initiates a painful journey to the Trojan. The major reason why Aeneas travelled to Rome is based on a dream in which he was commanded by the god to build a city for his men in Rome. Aeneas’s relationship with Pallas in the entire poem has a central role. Aeneid’s association with Pallas played a critical role in his rage against the Turnur’s army that he confronted in Rome. Pallas, who was the son the King Evander, can be considered as the tragic hero of the poem as his death created the sheer rage for Aeneas to take revenge.
Discussion
When Aeneas initiated his journey to Rome, the dangerous weather of the way blown them to stay at the Carthage. After spending some time there, they finally reached Rome and the ruler of the kingdom welcomed them with immense hospitality. The King Latinus, wanted Aeneid to marry his daughter but her wife wanted her daughter to marry a local suitor named Turnus. After sometime, a hostile atmosphere developed between Aeneid and Turnus that ultimately resulted in a battle. To garner the support of other groups, Aeneid developed alliance with other rulers including the King Evader.
Pallas, who was the son of King Evader, developed a close relationship with Aeneas and he started to consider Pallas as his son. This relationship convinced Pallas to participate in Aeneas’s battle with Turnus. Pallas fought the battle with immense strength but he was finally killed by Turnus. The death of Pallas was the turning point of the poem, which finally resulted in the death of Turnus by Aeneas. A close analysis of the text reflects the notion that Aeneas was initially engaged in the war for his defense, but after the death of Pallas, everything changed. For Aeneas, this battle became a reason for him to take the revenge for the death of Pallas. After this incident, there was a massive transformation in the attitude to Aeneas and his thirst to take revenge from Turnus.
In war, it is said that no matter how strong the army may be, if they do not have a strong mission to achieve, they are bound to fail. For wining a war, the support of the compatriots and strong passion are significant. The history is filled with events in which a small armies with a strong passion were able to overshadow the passionless armies. Although, Pallas had a tiny role to play in this poem but his death added fuel to the entire efforts that brought him to the forefront. The character of Pallas can be titled as the tragic hero of this poem because his sad end added fresh passion to the army of Aeneas. The requirement of his men to get a new place served as the need and the revenge of Pallas added the fervor to the efforts.
Conclusion
In a nutshell, it can be concluded that association of Pallas with Aeneid and the heartrending death of the former makes him the tragic hero of this poem. His role added immense fervor to the war that finally resulted in the death of Turnus. Initially, the army had a need of a new land for survival but the tragic death of Pallas added fuel to their efforts.
References
Hardie, P. (1999). The Aeneid. London: Routledge.
