Heroes of All Time

       What would be more important for you between your job and your family? Will you consider first the ones you love who beg you to stay by their side or will you help the ones in need who cries for your aid? Being in that situation had never been easy. You may only have two options. First is to set aside your responsibility as a leader that may lead into a defeat but knowing that you have your family with you. The second one is to go on to the combat that may or may not lead you to success and fatality. That kind of situation often happens to conquerors. Two of them are Aeneas and Hector who are both great heroes of their times. Aeneas was in deep sorrow and was in rage that he wants to go in battle with the Greeks.  But his wife Creusa begs him that he must save their lives first before anyone else. She continued begging for herself and her son's safety. Her feelings of being a wife and a mother over power her that time. Aeneas seeing his wife acting that way considers her. He listened to Creusa and he prioritized his family first before anyone else and flee with them. 

       On the other hand Hector who was going to brawl with Achilles was asked by his wife Andromache to not go into combat anymore. Andromache begs him to stay by her side with his son because if he dies in the battle, no one will be left with her and Astyanax since her father and brothers were already killed by Achilles.  Hector considers the request of his wife but then he insists to go on combat because it is his responsibility. Although Hector thinks of his family, he still prioritized his fellow men, because he thinks that it is his destiny and the will of the Gods for him. There are a lot of things in common and in contrast between the stories of Aeneid and Iliad. First, they have the same scene where in the wife of the two heroes asked them to stay by their side and don't go into combat anymore.  Creusa prevents Aeneas from having revenge during the Trojan War and Andromache begs Hector to not go into battle with Achilles. Secondly, they differ because the other one refuses to listen to his wife while one considers his wife's request. Aeneas turned his back to the war and chose his family over his obligation while Hector prefers to go in combat than to stay with his family, he chose his responsibilities rather than his loved ones. 

       We cannot judge anyone of them. Both of them just did what they think is right. For a soldier, a leader and a hero, one must swear to do his obligation sincerely and make it as his top priority. But a family must also be one of the things that he needs to consider. Decision making is certainly a tough thing to do, you must always read between the lines, you must always consider the ones involve and you must always accept whatever your choice will end up into.