Which scholar argues that Aeneas' contradictions make him human but complex?

Which scholar argues that Aeneas' contradictions make him human but complex?

• A. Richard Jenkyns - Aeneas' actions
• B. Simon Swain - Book 6
• C. Bob Cowan - Homeric influence
• D. Ian Du Quesnay - Homeric influence

Answer: (A)

Aeneas is drawn as a figure whose actions reveal competing pulls—duty to the gods and to his mission, versus personal feeling and mercy—so Virgil presents him as layered rather than flawless. Richard Jenkyns argues that these contradictions are what make him human and complex: he embodies piety and perseverance, yet his choices can seem harsh or morally ambivalent when tested by Dido’s tragedy, the burdens of leadership, and the inevitability of fate. This portrayal invites readers to see virtue not as an unvarying, spotless trait but as something conditioned by circumstance, doubt, and conflict. The other scholars focus on different angles—Book 6 as a structural or thematic element, or the broader question of Homeric influence—without centering the specific idea that Aeneas’ internal tensions are the source of his nuanced humanity.

Aeneas is drawn as a figure whose actions reveal competing pulls—duty to the gods and to his mission, versus personal feeling and mercy—so Virgil presents him as layered rather than flawless. Richard Jenkyns argues that these contradictions are what make him human and complex: he embodies piety and perseverance, yet his choices can seem harsh or morally ambivalent when tested by Dido’s tragedy, the burdens of leadership, and the inevitability of fate. This portrayal invites readers to see virtue not as an unvarying, spotless trait but as something conditioned by circumstance, doubt, and conflict. The other scholars focus on different angles—Book 6 as a structural or thematic element, or the broader question of Homeric influence—without centering the specific idea that Aeneas’ internal tensions are the source of his nuanced humanity.