Ulysses as an Oblique Foil for Aeneas: Vergil's calculated repudiation of the Romans' Greek ancestry

Abstract Although Vergil could not avoid using Odysseus as an epic model for Aeneas, he deliberately distances the pious and trusting Roman hero from his clever (and sometimes duplicitous) Greek predecessor. He does this not only by directly presenting Odysseus in a negative light (through subtle comparisons to Odysseus' actions and character in the Homeric text) and dismissing the importance of Circe (the mother of the Italian race according to ancient tradition) but also by portraying Aeneas as more focused on the prosperity and well-being of his people. This approach serves to establish the unique qualities of Aeneas' heroism and distinguishes the proto-Romans from the Greeks as a people, which counters the ancient tradition that links the Italians to the Greeks in ancestry.