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Aphrodite and the Erotic Impulse
Aphrodite, Eos, Dione, etc.
22
Classics
Undergraduate 1
03/09/2012

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Term
Aphrodite
Definition
Raw, physical passion; not a Greek god in her origin, near-Eastern origins; Cypris from island Cyprus, Cytherea from island Cythera; daughter of Zeus and Dione (feminine for of Zeus) by Homer; most beautiful of the goddesses married to the ugliest of the gods (Hephaestus); mistress of Ares to integrate this goddess into Indo-European pantheon; associated with geese and sparrows, elephants; Venus DeMilo: from island of Milos; Troy destroyed by love
Term
Eos
Definition
Dawn, rides chariot carrying dawn, had an affair with Ares, seen as the rival of Aphrodite
Term
Dione
Definition
feminine counterpart to Dios/Zeus; original Indo-European consort of Zeus; mother of Aphrodite according to some accounts
Term
Anchises
Definition
Zeus wanted to punish Aphrodite for forcing so many gods to fall in love with mortals to their embarrassment, so he made her fall in love with this Trojan Prince; Aphrodite pretended to be a human princess and he willingly slept with her, later she revealed her true identity and he was afraid; he was drinking and gossiped about his affair with Aphrodite and so was struck by Zeus and was crippled (Hephaestus parallel); Aphrodite has son Aeneas (Trojan hero)
Term
Cinyras
Definition
son of Paphos, became next king of Cyprus, wife was jealous of attention this man gave goddess Aphrodite; she boasted her daughters were more beautiful than Aphrodite; made three of her daughters fall in love with foreigners and daughter Myrrha/Smyrna fell in love with her father (this man)
Term
Myrrha
Definition
Also known as Smyrna, fourth and youngest daughter of Cinyras, Aphrodite made her fall in love with her father; Cinyras pursued daughter with sword, she prayed to the gods and was turned into a myrrh tree (valuable perfume from sap in ancient times); gave birth to infant boy ADONIS
Term
Adonis
Definition
son of Myrrha/smyrna; given to Persephone for safekeeping, she decided to keep him; Zeus appointed muse CALLIOPE to judge: 4 months with Persephone, 4 months with Aphrodite, 4 months with who he preferred; Aphrodite become sexually involved with him; he is killed by a wild boar and turns into anemone flower; a god of vegetation (spends at least 4 months of the year with Persephone, follows same vegetative cycle as Persephone herself, so dominated by women that he is destroyed when he tries to change being a vegetative god); FESTIVAL: early spring, women planted seeds and grow on roof, didn’t water plants during summer, leading the plants to wither and die (spring up and die just as fast)
Term
Atalanta
Definition
Artemis-esque huntress, participated in the Calydonian Boar Hunt; Aphrodite gave Milanion/Hippomenes golden apples to win the race for this woman's hand
Term
Eros
Definition
Cupid/Amor, desire, love, sexual passion, Classical Greek art Cupid is a youth with wings and crowns; Hellenistic period into Roman period: younger and younger to become the present-day representation of the infant Cupid
Term
Hephaestus
Definition
Husband of Aphrodite: God of fire and metalworking (Beauty and the Beast Motif)
Term
Ares
Definition
lover of Aphrodite
Term
Inanna
Definition
Early Aphrodite; Sumerian
Term
Ishtar
Definition
Early Aphrodite; Assyrian/Babylonian
Term
Astarte
Definition
Early Aphrodite; later, Bronze age
Term
Cypris
Definition
Aphrodite from island Cyprus
Term
Cytherea
Definition
Aphrodite from island Cythera
Term
Tithonus
Definition
Lover of Eos, eas given eternal life but Eos forgot to ask for eternal youth, in later stories turned into a cicada, begging for death
Term
Milanion
Definition
Also known as HIppomenes; participated in Calydonian Boar Hunt; prayed to Aphrodite for help with Atalanta, was given golden apples, forgot to thank Aphrodite after he won the hand of Atalanta and both were turned into lions
Term
Hippomenes
Definition
Also known as Milanion; participated in Calydonian Boar Hunt; prayed to Aphrodite for help with Atalanta, was given golden apples, forgot to thank Aphrodite after he won the hand of Atalanta and both were turned into lions
Term
Aeneas
Definition
Son of Aphrodite by Trojan Prince Anchises, this man becomes a Trojan hero
Term
Pygmalion
Definition
: first king of Cyprus; thought all living women were unworthy of him; created an ivory statue in the image of what he considered the perfect woman, even slept with the statue; performed sacrifices to Aphrodite so she turned the statue into a woman
Term
Lemnos
Definition
Cult center of Hephaestus
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