Virgil's AeneidIn Virgil's famous text The Aeneid, he writes about the story of the arrival of Rome and the journey of its Trojan founder, Aeneas, from the rubble of his former home in Troy. Although this text fully supports the greatness of the Roman Empire, it also has a second, distinctly private voice that speaks of loss. We also note that in the Confessions of Saint Augustine, the author addresses God sometimes in a very personal way, sometimes very little. The private tones of these two texts contrast in that Augustine's is generally positive, while the corresponding voice in Virgil describes loss. Virgil begins The Aeneid with a general summary of the story he is about to tell, and as the great rise of Rome is foreshadowed, so are the sufferings of its founder. That the greatness of Rome is mentioned so early is not surprising, as the purpose of this text is to glorify Rome, its people, and their history. Virgil begins his text with: “I sing of war and a man at war. / From the coast of Troy in the early days / He came to Italy by destiny,… / [There] he was able to found a city and bring home / His gods in Latium, land of Latin race, / The lords Albans, and the high walls of Rome. (Virgile, 3 years old) These first lines seem very optimistic and boastful. Aeneas is destined by destiny to found Rome, and also to bring with him the favor of its gods. Read in this form, these lines are positive; however, Virgil also foresees Aeneas' misfortune. Several of the opening lines also contain prospects of Aeneas suffering losses. In the lines of the preceding paragraph, the first ellipsis reads: "...A fugitive...... middle of paper ......focus attention on important issues in the text without compromising style or the author's message. The main differences between the two are that it is more accurate to characterize Augustine's writing as having a single voice that addresses God in a private, direct tone when he has something important to say and in a general and relaxed tone the other times. In contrast, Virgil writes in a private voice to pity the great sums Aeneas suffered against his own will to found Rome while the public voice solicits propaganda for Rome. Nonetheless, both authors successfully use their styles to convey important ideas that we continue to see and hear about today. Works cited by Virgil. The Aeneid. Trans. Robert Fitzgerald. New York: Random House, 1990. St. Augustine. Confessions. Trans. Henry Chadwick. New York: Oxford University Press, 1992.