ipl-logo

Homeric Hymn To Demeter Research Paper

459 Words2 Pages

The Homeric Hymn to Demeter can be used to explain the origins of arranged marriages. In Ancient Greece, in was common for women to be married off without concern for how the mother of the bride personally felt about the marriage. The Homeric Hymn to Demeter shows how Persephone is taken away from Demeter as what can be perceived an arranged marriage. This is later complicated by how Demeter becomes reunited with Persephone.
In the Homeric Hymn to Demeter, Persephone, Demeter’s daughter, gets forcibly taken by Hades to the underworld as his wife with the approval of Zeus, her father. Persephone was not aware prior to being taken that Zeus and Hades had agreed that she would be his wife. Demeter also had no idea this had happened until …show more content…

No one seemed to care about how Demeter felt about the situation until she withheld fertility to the earth resulting in the the mortals becoming unable to give sacrifice to the immortals. This bothered Zeus, so he commanded Hermes to bring Persephone to Demeter. When Demeter was finally reunited with Persephone, she found out that Persephone had eaten food from the underworld which meant that Persephone was only able to spend 8 months on Olympus and 4 months in the underworld. Traditionally women would not have been able to do this, but Demeter was a powerful god and able to use her power to achieve her goal. Even so, Demeter being able to get Persephone back even for only 8 months out of the year was very uncharacteristic of how arranged marriage worked in Greece as women were rarely given power in that situation.
The notion that the Homeric Hymn to Demeter may be the origin of arranged marriage gets complicated when Demeter finally gains power in the situation by making the mortals unable to sacrifice to the gods resulting in Persephone’s return. Because Demeter had the power to get Persephone back from the underworld, the hymn become less characteristic of how a traditional arranged marriage would have

Show More
Related
1172 Words | 5 Pages

Since marriage was crucial in ancient Athens, it is an assumption that divorce was frown on. Yet, this assumption was not the case. In the sections read in Women’s Life in Greece and Rome the topic of divorce was not explicitly broached. The research presented reinforces and expands upon material covered in class and the book Women’s Life in Greece and Rome. For example, Pomeroy discusses the topic of dowry.

Read More
562 Words | 3 Pages

Have you ever read about the adventures of Gluskabe or how seasons came to be? If you have, they are very similar to each other. Demeter & Persephone are the goddesses of crops and seasons. Persephone is married to Hades, the god of the underworld, while Demeter is Persephone’s mother. Gluskabe is a very clever and sneaky person.

Read More
825 Words | 4 Pages

Meanwhile, Penelope is in Ithaka busy dealing with the suitors who vie for her hand in marriage, tending to her loom, and directing her serving maids at work. In Homer’s epic poem, women, and goddesses are treated differently than men and gods when it comes to their freedom, expectations, and image. One common occurrence in this epic poem is unequal freedom for women,

Read More
1499 Words | 6 Pages

The Homeric Hymns portray Aphrodite, Athena, Artemis and Hestia as strong females who uphold their own beliefs; challenging the “typical” gender stereotypes of the time period. Women in antiquity were expected to follow and uphold certain societal rules, most of these rules emphasized the gender stereotypes that women were perceived as being. The use of the goddesses powers challenge these societal rules and ideas about women. Aphrodite, Athena, Artemis, and Hestia are portrayed in the Homeric Hymns in contrast to ancient stereotypical roles of women being confined to the household; as a result this contrast emphasizes that women can showcase strength, intelligence, and power within society. A women’s life in antiquity was constricted by

Read More
841 Words | 4 Pages

Arranged marriages are not a new concept, having been around since the ancient times, nor are they extinct in today’s world. The general idea behind it is guaranteeing the parents’ choice of a spouse for their children and they take into account multiple variables when choosing a potential mate for their children. “The Family” by Alessandra Strozzi reveals the behind the scenes of a proposed arranged marriage in the Italian Renaissance. While today, it seems silly to Western civilizations to have arranged marriages, doing so in that period was common. Whether it was for convenience, power or just simply keeping up the prestige of the family, we know of these types of marriages occurred through these documents.

Read More
537 Words | 3 Pages

In the Homeric Hymn to Demeter, the role of arranged marriages are delved into with the story of Zeus willing his daughter, Persephone, to marry his brother Hades. This myth brings up a variety of issues revolving around the societal views of women in ancient Greece. Zeus’s ownership of his daughter, Persephone, definitely reflects upon the role women held when it came to their own marriage decision, or lack thereof. The Homeric Hymn to Demeter can be read as a charter myth since the details of the myth directly reflect upon the ancient Greek practice of arranged marriages. While the Homeric Hymn to Demeter was published, arranged marriages were very prevalent in society.

Read More
978 Words | 4 Pages

The union of both sexes is a notable metaphor in both “Symposium” and “Lysistrata”; however, the nature of the love between the sexes draws a distinction between both works. In Symposium, Aristophanes described how both sexes were so powerful when united; and when they were separated, human beings still strived to be united once more by any means. On the other hand, in Lysistrata the characters were already married and united; however, women found their true strength when they started a psychological war on their men. Even though both works drew the readers’ attention to the need for love, Symposium emphasizes the union of sexes in a way that the characters in Lysistrata will never reach; where love is not only about sex and physical attraction, but it’s also about a healthy relationship occupied with affection and caring.

Read More
995 Words | 4 Pages

Keely Anderson Essay Topic #1- Comparing & Contrasting Popes RELI 220.01 Wednesday Spring 2016 Dr. Karin Heller Word Count = 974 A Pope for a Better World Pope John Paul II and Pope Francis, while similar in many areas, such as the way they integrated into the community, carried out their roles as the pope differently, especially in regards to how they viewed and treated people, what they thought the church should encourage and teach, and particularly in how they felt about women in the church. Because of his compassionate, understanding, adaptive ways, I prefer Pope Francis for today 's world. One of the similarities between these Popes is the way they belonged to their community. Though they both dealt with situations where they felt

Read More
824 Words | 4 Pages

In this play, he has created a marriage that promotes respect towards women. Traditionally, women are not treated as equals in their society, but Sophocles believes otherwise and expresses his opinion through his plays. Sophocles presents that the marriage between Oedipus and Jocasta is respectable and equal. When Oedipus was going through a difficult time, Jocasta became aware of this and wanted nothing else but to help Oedipus find what he was looking for. Oedipus, who is in search of the truth regarding his birth, is questioning Jocasta, looking for answers.

Read More
829 Words | 4 Pages

The Greek gods and goddesses are the ultimate representation how Greek culture. Since the gods and goddesses did not mention Odysseus’ lack of sexual fidelity, this shows that the values for men in Greek culture were not infringed upon. Sexual fidelity and how it is dealt with by the story’s most important characters in The Odyssey show the morals of Greek

Read More
586 Words | 3 Pages

Finally, if the hymn is understood as an allegory for the seasons it serves the purpose of providing an explanation for why spring is a time of celebration. When Demeter is joined each year by Persephone, plants and crops awaken from their dormancy and both mortals and immortals are satisfied, the former for receiving sustenance and the latter for receiving sacrifices. The “gloom” of winter is cast aside and the world begins to come back to life in preparation for the return of the goddess to her mother and her ascension from the realm of the dead to that of the living (HH

Read More
1516 Words | 7 Pages

In ancient Greece, marriage was usually as a transaction

Read More
1684 Words | 7 Pages

Odyssey sends a powerful message detailing the power a married man or women can have. Homer writes, "There is nothing nobler or more admirable than when two people who see eye to eye keep house as man and wife, confounding their enemies and delighting their friends." (Murray, Homer, Odyssey 6.175-185). In Amours, Ovid describes love as a forum for his poems, displaying the importance of affection. In Book I of the Elegy, Ovid is writing about touches on warmth, “Love come late will not fill your song” (Kline, Ovid, Amores 1.7:1-26).

Read More
1017 Words | 5 Pages

If a woman ever slept with another man, she would be divorced, her children would be taken away, and she would be left with no money or estate. However, if a man were to sleep with another lady, no harm would come to his reputation or his possessions. These ideas and societal norms from Homer’s era all align with the themes of women in The

Read More
1293 Words | 6 Pages

There are a significant amount of relationships that express this theme. This essay will focus on the relationships surrounding sexual fidelity and sexual infidelity that dominate the work of Homer. There will also be some evidence of minor relationships in the Epic poem in that reiterate how often sexual fidelity and

Read More

More about Homeric Hymn To Demeter Research Paper

Related Topics

Open Document