Hades and Persephone
Hades and Persephone, the story of how the God of the Underworld found true love, and the story of the “reason for the seasons”, is just one of the many classic Greek myths that are still being told today. The myth tells the tale of the evil Hades and how he fell madly in love with a young virginal maiden named Persephone. However, Persephone did not love Hades, and as a result, Hades stole her into the Underworld. Persephone’s mother, Demeter (Goddess of agriculture and harvest) was enraged by the turn of events and tried to save her daughter. Hades, knowing that Persephone was about to be taken from him, tricked her into eating special pomegranate seeds-seeds that made the consumer unable to leave the Underworld. Because Persephone ate the seeds, she could not go back with her mother, but as Demeter was still restless for the return of her daughter, Zeus (God of the sky) intervened and developed a compromise. Six months out of the year, Persephone would stay in the Underworld with
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This myths centers around life and death, and of course, the infamous Underworld. Many of the Greek myths, have foretold instances of individuals dying and then resurrecting, or visiting the Underworld. Death is an inevitable part of life, so is the changing of the seasons,as the Greeks are well aware, and they used Persephone’s inevitable “death” for six months to represent the inability to change nature. Persephone was cursed to stay in the Underworld because of her consumption of pomegranate seeds. The pomegranate is a highly symbolic fruit, symbolic not only in Greek culture but in Jewish and Christian traditions. In Ancient Greece, the fruit was offered to Demeter, Persephone’s mother, as a sign of fertility. The pomegranate also represents resurrection, and in a way, Persephone resurrects from the Underworld every six
Throughout history, many ancient cultures created stories involving great heroes and gods to explain certain aspects of their daily lives. These stories would form an important part of the culture’s religion and are referred to today as mythology. One great hero from ancient Greek mythology is Perseus. According to both ancient standards and today’s standards, Perseus would be seen as a great hero. The many actions that Perseus is said to have done in his adventures prove his heroism.
In two amazing poems, both poets make allusions to the myth of Persephone. The myth of Persephone tells of her kidnap by Hades, the God of the Underworld. She is then fated to spend one-third of the year in the underworld as Hades’ bride because she consumed pomegranate seeds. This myth appears frequently as a metaphor not only in “The Pomegranate” and “The Bistro Styx,” but in many others as well. In both poems, the myth of Persephone is used to symbolize the mother-daughter relationships.
Hades fell in love with Demeter’s daughter, Persephone. Persephone loved to live about in the fields that her mother made. Hades wanted Persephone as his bride. Zeus, the father of Persephone, did not deny but warned that Demeter would be furious. He captured her and forced her to stay in the underworld. To capture her, he arose from the depth with a chariot of horses. He stole her from the flowery field and took her to a dungeon of darkness. Persephone gained the name “core”. This was symbolizing her loss of girlhood. Demeter went looking for her daughter. She could not find her, and she almost came to the extent of barring the whole earth of the vegetation. Zeus could not let this happen, so he sent for Persephone to be received. Persephone would not eat, but Hades would not let her leave until she ate at least one thing. Hades gave her a forbidden fruit. Any fruit that was to be eaten in the underworld, the eater of that fruit must stay in the underworld. Her eating the fruit meant she had to stay in the underworld forever. A compromise was made between Demeter and Hades. Four months of the year Persephone had to stay with Hades and be the queen of the underworld. During this time the Greeks entered a cold and barren time called winter. The other eight months, Persephone spent her year with Demeter. During this time crops and vegetation would be abundant (Peterson and Dunworth 143). These were the times of spring and summer. When it was time for Persephone to rule the underworld, she was in charge of watching the special prisoners. The prisoners were the defeated titans (Calame, 266).
Hades, the God of the Underworld and Death, also the God of the Riches. Most of Hades and his four siblings life was spent in the stomachs of Cronus his father. Cronus was the Titan God of time and the ages. He was afraid if he had not eaten his children he would be overthrown by one of his sons. If not for Zeus later on Forcing the Cronus to disgorge them Hades would not have had a life at all. Together Zeus and Hades Drove the Titan Gods from the heaven down to a pit and locked them away. Hades gaining control of the Underworld realized he was missing something. A wife, he demanded for his brother Zeus to give away one of his daughters to him. Zeus chose Persephone now the Goddess and queen of the Underworld. Although this did not happen so easily, Zeus knowing his daughter would not accept to marry such a man like Hades he quickly had his own daughter abducted just to please the God of the underworld, but her mother Demeter the Goddess of Agriculture, grain and bread was not happy about this and demanded her daughter back. When she was not given her daughter she put a great dearth upon the earth until she was handed back her child. Hades did send her back from the Underworld only because she had tasted the pomegranate seed and had to return to him a portion of each year. People thought of Hades to be a regal god who was dark haired and held an bird-tipped sceptre ("HADES : Greek King of the Underworld, God of the Dead ; mythology ; pictures : HADES, PLUTO”).
The ancient Greek interpretation of death, as expressed by Homer, portrays the Underworld as a horrible place, terrifying in its monotony and lack of meaning; and Death is something to be feared and avoided as long as possible.
‘Demeter’ is a poem about the story of Demeter. "Demeter was the goddess of harvest and Persephone was the goddess of springtime. Hades, the lord of the underworld, kidnapped Persephone. Hades fell in love with Persephone and asked Zeus to help him kidnap her so she could become his bride. The crops started to wilt and humans couldn't grow crops anymore. However Zeus told Hermes to bring back Persephone and to make sure she didn't eat any food from the Underworld. Hermes fetched Persephone. But before she left, Hades convinced her to eat 6 pomegranate seeds. Hermes made a compromise and said Persephone had to stay in the Underworld as Hades wife for six months. That's why there are seasons. In the fall and winter, Persephone goes down into the Underworld and Demeter mourns. In the summer and spring, she comes back and Demeter rejoices. " (1)
In the Hymn to Demeter, the rape of Persephone starts with her picking flowers and she comes across the hundred headed narcissus which "Gaia made grow as a trick for the blushing maiden" (HHDem. 8-9). This trick is set into motion by Zeus, but since Gaia plays the role of protecting the youngest generation, this is a foreshadowing that Persephone's ordeal will be for a good cause. Hades moves in to take Persephone when the grounds gapes open and she begins to cry aloud. Demeter hears her daughters screams but she is powerless against Hades, hence the separation of distance between them. The grief stricken Demeter goes through an experience which plays out the role of a symbolic death. this is because the relationship between the mother and daughter ends at a wedding.
The Rape of Persephone is a myth from ancient Greece that not only teaches a lesson about morals and gives an explanation for the seasons, but it also reinforces gender stereotypes that were applicable to the era and are also present in modern day society. The Rape of Persephone is explained as a Dying Vegetation Goddess Myth, meaning that it was used as an explanation for crops flourishing during some months, while they do not produce during others (Turner, 7). Persephone, the daughter of Demeter and Zeus, is innocently walking in a forest one day collecting flowers, when Hades, the God of the Underworld splits the Earth open and takes her down into Tartarus. Demeter is the Goddess of the Harvest, and when her daughter goes missing she neglects her duties while searching for her.
Persephone, Hades’ wife, is the goddess of spring and the Queen of the underworld. She resides in the underworld for only six months of the year due to Hades kidnapping her. She was told not to eat anything for then she would have to remain in the underworld. While in the underworld, Persephone consumed six pomegranate seeds. Her mother Demeter, goddess of agriculture, threw a fit. Demeter complained to her brother Zeus. To be fair, Zeus stated that Persephone would have to remain in the underworld one month per seed each year. So, Persephone now resides in the underworld six months out of every year.
... participants did not wear crowns or eat pomegranate seeds that had touched the ground because Persephone had been stolen while gathering flowers, and because she had eaten the pomegranate seeds in the underworld (Foley, 72/Taylor 1995).
Perseus is one of the many greek heroes whose stories are told in ancient Greek myths, but Perseus’s courageous actions have set him apart from the others. With his troubled childhood, his fearless attempt to slay Medusa and his bravery to save Andromeda, Perseus is truly the best example of a hero in all of greek mythology. The first paragraph will be focused around how his terrible past has helped Perseus become the amazing hero he is. The second paragraph will highlight how his fearlessness makes him superior to all of the other heroes. The third paragraph will be centered around how Perseus’s heroic act to save a damsel in distress signifies that he is a true hero.
To the early Greeks, death was dark and mysterious. Early myth about the underworld and life after death is very vague, and it is likely that the Greeks just did not understand death or the underworld. In Homer’s myths the underworld, Erebus, was the child of Chaos along with Night. The early Greeks, according to Hamilton, believed that
In Persephone’s underworld there is an infamous river by the name of Styx, which dead men must journey across its toxic waters in order to enter the land of the dead. “Water is connected to the ocean which is the source of livelihood, transportation, and death for the seafaring people like the Greek; and water is a mysterious force that brings up vegetation from the earth. Thus it is not coincidental that the ocean borders Hades and other subterranean lands of the dead; the ambiguity of water is a perfect component of the dual nature of the underworld—a source of danger as well as fertility and wealth,” (Taylor 397). Water is very symbolic of rebirth and is often associated with the sacrament of baptism. The ancient cultures viewed the life bringing and death-dealing waters as a form of mysterious rebirth into the underworld (Taylor 397-399). Persephone herself was reborn in the underworld as a queen. After crossing the river Styx, Persephone became one of mythologies most notable queens. She also symbolizes the same aspects of water through her dual nature as life giver in the springtime and death incarnate during her reign in the underworld. Her personification in the Styx explores the journey between life and death that all mortals
Two Sisters of Persephone, by Sylvia Plath, is a poem about Persephone, the Greek daughter of Zeus and Demeter, and how she feels about a deplorable deal with Hades, the god of the underworld. One side of Persephone is seen as miserable and irritable while the other side is seen as joyful and continually expresses her happiness. These emotions are a result of her agreement with Hades to become his wife and stay with him for half of a year. Plath is likely trying to inform readers about Persephone’s life in an expressive way. Plath is also attempting to make us feel sympathy for Persephone, believe that Persephone loathes this agreement, and understand Persephone’s story.
As she pulls, the work largely illustrates her single-minded focus and greed in acquiring her treasure, mirroring how Narcissus only gave attention to himself in the mirror and ignored the world around him. As the girl obsesses over the flower, the events quickly derail, as when she obtains the narcissus, Hades “sprung out of the earth… [and] claimed his due,” portraying the consequences of both Persephone’s limited view to only the flower and her avarice that led to her capture and downfall. Through emphasizing that Hades remained just in his actions and only took Persephone due to her decision, the work assigns the blame of the capture to Persephone, diverting from typical interpretations of the myth that depict Persephone as a kidnapped child who cannot prevent her situation. The poem further elaborates on this position as it laments that “she had strayed from the herd,” underscoring that Persephone’s foolishness led her to the Underworld, while her continued mistakes in eating the pomegranate seeds kept her