Virgil uses devices such as similes and foreshadowing to make The Aeneid more lucid. These devices allow the reader to have a better understanding of Aeneas' character and the people he comes into contact with. The devices give weight to Aeneas' steadfast character, as he deals with obstacles to the overall theme of realizing his destiny. Virgil uses a simile to give more clarity to Aeneas' character in this excerpt. He compares the sisters' pleas to the way "the northern winds of the Alps / from here and there fight among themselves / to uproot a [oak] that is growing old." This demonstrates the fierce conviction that the sisters repeatedly demonstrate towards Aeneas. To illustrate his firmness, Virgil compares Aeneas to a flourishing oak tree, renowned for its courage and strength. Aeneas struggles between his desire and the will of the gods in his exchanges with Dido. Normally, Aeneas would have felt compassion for Dido "to calm and comfort her in all her pain, / to speak to her and turn her mind from sorrow" according to his words, but the gods interfered with their multiple encounters. The word "cry" in relation to the wind and the tree in line nineteen of the excerpt could refer to the tears the sisters shed when they try to convince him to stay. However, when comparing the way “the trunk shakes / rains the foliage high on the earth,” Aeneas does not shed a tear. Instead, he stands resolutely in his chosen path before Dido. If the simile of the oak tree provides a comparison of Aeneas' personality during Dido's persistent entreaties, it also provides a moment of foreshadowing of his future exploits. Ever since his father died, Aeneas wanted to see him, and the gods wanted him too. Getting to the bottom... middle of paper... of her lingering hatred towards him. Aeneas reminds the gods of his mortality when he stays with Dido, and so they urge him to leave her before he thinks about building his kingdom with her. Virgil's use of a simile gives weight to Aeneas' fierce conviction to fulfill his destiny by comparing him to an oak tree, while he must consolidate his own desires with the will of the gods. The moments of foreshadowing also promote the overarching theme of his destiny to establish the mighty city of Rome after the fall of Troy to the Greeks in the Trojan War, as the reader experiences some of the future adventures of 'Aeneas. Although many challenges take up much of his time to reach his destiny, because of Juno's hatred of him, the other gods end up helping him reach his destiny. Works cited by Virgil. The Aeneid. Trans. Robert Fitzgerald. New York: vintage books, 1983.