Sappho’s fragments in, If Not, Winter, are composed of her reflections on the ardent emotions of love and desire. Sappho continues to ask and search for love, but she becomes consumed with desire. Sappho’s inability to control these emotions causes her to be caught in a battle between love and desire. Throughout the text Sappho uses “eros” to express her lust for an individual; this causes a conflict with in the word eros because it is defined as fluid term in which desire and love are synonymous with one other. This implies that love and desire are essentially interchangeable, however, Sappho does not treat them as such. This distinction becomes solidified by analyzing Sappho’s use of the gods in her poetry in which she correlates love with
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Fragment 1 expresses the emotional attachment she has acquired by being in love. In this poem, Sappho is praying to Aphrodite because she believes the goddess can mend her heart. Sappho says, “I have suffered and why/ (now again) I am calling out” (15-16). Sappho admits that she is suffering without her beloved. Suffering due to an absence of someone is an emotion that is only felt after growing an internal connection to that individual. Also, Sappho “calling out” demonstrates Sappho’s vulnerable state because, she is begging Aphrodite to reignite a love she had with a person who has already left her. She trusts that the goddess has the ability to inflict all-consuming emotions within the individual she is longing after. Sappho feels that she has suffered enough in the absence of her beloved and at this point, she has nowhere to turn except to the …show more content…
Sappho is so desperate to acquire this reciprocation of love that she does not care if the love is gained under false pretenses. She believes that Aphrodite has the power to force the women she loves, to love her once more. In lines 20-23 Sappho imagines that her love for this person will one day be mutual and this will cause her happiness to be restored. This aspect of the poem is perfectly balanced. This balance is created by forming opposite statements between the first and second clause of the sentence for example, flees and pursue, refuses gifts and gives gifts, and does not love and will love. These contradicting clauses establish symmetry; the first half of the sentence expresses Sappho’s doubts about her lover’s situation while the latter half is composed of Sappho’s wishes for her relationship. This logic continues from lines 20-23. This structure further expresses that Sappho believes that love should be reciprocated. Both partners need to love each other and contribute the same amount to the relationship the same way the contradicting aspect of the fragments contributes to line as a whole to make the stanza balanced. Sappho believes that love should be reciprocated and when she realizes that the women she loves do not share the same feelings towards her, Sappho’s mind becomes “spangled,” and “crazy”.( Fragment 1 ). This frustration is what forces Sappho to feel overpowered by her emotions and as a result, she
Fragment 1 expresses the emotional attachment she has acquired by being in love. In this poem, Sappho is praying to Aphrodite because she believes the goddess can mend her heart. Sappho says, “I have suffered and why/ (now again) I am calling out” (15-16). Sappho admits that she is suffering without her beloved. Suffering due to an absence of someone is an emotion that is only felt after growing an internal connection to that individual. Also, Sappho “calling out” demonstrates Sappho’s vulnerable state because, she is begging Aphrodite to reignite a love she had with a person who has already left her. She trusts that the goddess has the ability to inflict all-consuming emotions within the individual she is longing after. Sappho feels that she has suffered enough in the absence of her beloved and at this point, she has nowhere to turn except to the …show more content…
Sappho is so desperate to acquire this reciprocation of love that she does not care if the love is gained under false pretenses. She believes that Aphrodite has the power to force the women she loves, to love her once more. In lines 20-23 Sappho imagines that her love for this person will one day be mutual and this will cause her happiness to be restored. This aspect of the poem is perfectly balanced. This balance is created by forming opposite statements between the first and second clause of the sentence for example, flees and pursue, refuses gifts and gives gifts, and does not love and will love. These contradicting clauses establish symmetry; the first half of the sentence expresses Sappho’s doubts about her lover’s situation while the latter half is composed of Sappho’s wishes for her relationship. This logic continues from lines 20-23. This structure further expresses that Sappho believes that love should be reciprocated. Both partners need to love each other and contribute the same amount to the relationship the same way the contradicting aspect of the fragments contributes to line as a whole to make the stanza balanced. Sappho believes that love should be reciprocated and when she realizes that the women she loves do not share the same feelings towards her, Sappho’s mind becomes “spangled,” and “crazy”.( Fragment 1 ). This frustration is what forces Sappho to feel overpowered by her emotions and as a result, she