Aphrodite

The Odyssey by Homer is an intriguing and timeless piece of literature designed to connect with a wide range of audiences. Although at first glance it seems to be a male dominated epic, it’s filled with important women that play a vital role in how the story unfolds. The different kinds of female characters help us to understand where women fit in the progressive Greek culture of Homer. These representations of female power in The Odyssey can be shown by the women known as the wise strategists,…

Throughout history, there have been a manifold of variations on the mythical Siren. Traditionally told through Greek Mythology, they are mermaid-like creatures who sing beautiful songs that lure nearby sailors to their death by shipwreck. Two variations on this classic character are found in Homer’s Odyssey and Margaret Atwood’s “Siren Song”. In both of these pieces of literature, we find very different tone usage, contrasting points of view, and various techniques of conveying the Siren's to…

In Homer’s classic, The Iliad, there is a repetition of the warriors putting on their armor, preparing for war. Strangely enough, there is a scene in the epic that parallels this arming trope; however, it does not involve a soldier of any sort. Instead, the scene’s main character is Hera, who is dousing herself in perfume and accentuating her female charm in order to seduce her husband and brother, Zeus. At first glance, Hera making herself sexually desirable seems to have no connection to the…

In most religious beliefs, gods are most of the time primarily set and nobody can become gods but can be granted eternal life, immortality, etc. Roman followed that they were previous gods but believed it was possible to earn divinity through prestigious deeds that benefitted others. Between both of the stories, both Psyche and Augustus participated in selfless acts for the community which were valued highly by Romans in their pursuit towards deification. In most religious practices, people…

Known in Greek as Gaia and Terra in Roman, this goddess is the they Mother of the Earth. The Greeks usually spell her name like Gaea. The name Gaia means earth and grandmother but, we call her Mother earth. The Greeks believe Gaia is the creator of the earth. Gaia has no power she just represents the earth and fertility or producing. The Greeks say, Gaia came from Chaos or just appeared. Chaos was the first thing to exist. Unfortunately, she has no sisters but, she does have two brothers…

Demeter, the goddess of agriculture and harvest, was a major goddess. Although there were many other gods and goddesses of nature and life, Demeter was one of the ones with much more power and authority in Mount Olympus. Demeter shares some of the same qualities with other gods, but her uniqueness also makes her different from them. Demeter’s powers of agriculture and harvest were similar to Gaia’s power of the Earth, and Antheia’s powers of plants and flowers. Gaia, the goddess of all life on…

I, the great and powerful Hephaestus ( also know as Vulcan ), am the god of fire, forgery, and craftsmanship. Now I know what you're thinking, how does an immortal god like myself get a limp? Well, my mother Hera got jealous because my father, Zeus, was cheating on her which lead to the birth of Athena. What does this have to do with my limp you might ask? Angry at my father, Hera bore me herself, and without the benefits of intercourse, I became crippled. Apparently, I am also noted to be…

In the greek myth, Artemis and Orion, Artemis is like her brother, Apollo. Once she was born she wished to be nothing more than a huntress and be able to live on the mountains and forests of Arcadia. Her father, Zeus, granted her wish and gave her seven nymphs to help protect her, the Cylops had given her a bow and arrow which was made of pure silver. Her skills then became hers and she was fiercely competitive just like Apollo. Everyday she would hunt day and night. One day has Artemis was…

Artemis is the goddess of chastity, virginity, the hunt, the moon, and the environment. Artemis was the daughter of Leto and Zeus. She was also the twin sister of Apollo. She was born on an island called Ortygia after her mother, Leto found shelter there after hunted by Hera, the unlawful wife of Zeus. As soon as Artemis was born, she helped her mother (Leto) gave birth to her twin brother, Apollo. Because she did this, she became the goddess of childbirth and labour. Then, for her birthday she…

the museum was showcasing sculptures of various Greek gods and goddesses. I stopped at the one named "Aphrodite". According to the description, Aphrodite is the goddesses of beauty and love. Surprisingly, she had a "fat" figure compare to me, but all the guests in the museum approved of her beauty and shoved to take photos of the sculpture. A young man beside me even commented on how Aphrodite was much more beautiful than the female models on magazine covers, whose skinny bodies my friends and I…