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Hades and persephone greek mythology1/31/2024 That might seem like a highly specific job for an Olympian, but in a culture where people lived mostly on bread the goddess of grain was one of their most important deities.ĭemeter was more than just the giver of a good harvest, though. Ovid writes, “Persephone of old was given grace to change a woman’s form to fragrant mint.” Does this fit of jealousy suggest Persephone had developed feelings of affection for Hades? Or was Persephone simply jealous of Minthe’s youth and beauty? These are age-old questions to which we will never know the answers, but must draw our own conclusions.Demeter was the Greek goddess of agriculture, specifically of cereal grains. Persephone, now in her later years, was so incensed with jealousy that she turned Minthe into a mint plant. In Ovid’s famous text Metamorphosis, Hades has an affair with a young Nymph named Minthe. One version of Persephone’s story told by the Roman poet Ovid might suggest she had grown some feelings of affection for Hades in spite of everything. Persephone’s jealousy suggests she might have loved Hades Hades and Persephone with all their symbols on a terracotta pinax, Cleveland Museum of Art In another version of events, Persephone fell in love with the handsome Greek hunter Adonis while still married to Hades, although Adonis did not love her back. But in many stories Hades treated Persephone like the queen she was, doting on her day and night and allowing her to flourish. But did she grow to love Hades over the years? It seems hard to imagine she would fall in love with her kidnapper. Some say Persephone grew to love Hades Joseph Heintz The Younger, Pluto and Proserpina, 17th centuryĪs Queen of the Underworld alongside Hades, Persephone took her role seriously, carrying out her duties into old age. Greeks believed this led to the birth of the warm and cold seasons – when Persephone was underground, the plants and seeds would wither up and die, making autumn and winter, but when she returned, life would begin blooming again, leading to spring and summer. Eventually a deal was agreed – Persephone would spend six months of the year on earth with Demeter, and the other six months in the underworld with Hades. Or perhaps Persephone knew what she was doing all along, and secretly did want to stay by his side (some stories suggest she is not as innocent as might first appear). Perhaps Hades thought she would eventually grow to love him. He gifted her a pomegranate and she ate several of its seeds, not knowing that anyone who ate from the depths of hell would be forced to stay there forever. When faced with the wrath of the Gods, Hades tricked Persephone so she could never leave. Hades tried to trick Persephone into loving him Lord Frederick Leighton, The Return of Persephone, 1890-91, Met Museum, New York This strong reaction suggests that Persephone didn’t want to be there, and was not in love with her captor, although we don’t hear her account of the story. The God Hermes joined in the search and eventually found Persephone in the underworld with Hades, demanding she be set free. She searched day and night looking for her beloved daughter, neglecting the world’s plants and leaving them to wither and die. Persephone’s mother, Demeter, goddess of agriculture and harvest, was devastated when she realised her daughter was missing. Hermes and Demeter didn’t think that Persephone loved Hades Simeon Soloman, Mercury and Proserpina, 19th century, Christie’s We can therefore assume she did not love Hades at this stage, and probably even hated him for destroying her innocence and taking her away from her family. In Ancient Greek and Roman texts it is clear that Hades kidnapped Persephone against her will, and forcibly made her his wife. Hades then snatched Persephone from the earth and dragged her into the underworld with him. While visiting the upper world Hades spotted the young and beautiful Persephone picking flowers in a meadow and was immediately entranced by her. Hades was deeply lonely in his vast underworld castle, and longed for a life partner to keep him company. Persephone and Hades met under unlikely circumstances. Persephone didn’t love Hades when they first met Jean Francois de Troy, The Abduction of Proserpine, 18th century, Christie’s
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