Edith Hamilton's Mythology: Two Gods

In chapter 2 of Edith Hamilton’s Mythology two Gods were introduced: Demeter and Dionysus. Although those two Gods were different, they also had numerous similarities. For example, both are correlated with rebirth and revival. Demeter and her daughter Persephone are in a constant cycle of death due to plants dying off in the winter and regrowing in the summer. Every winter Persephone would be taken by Hades but “she [rose] from the dead every spring” (Hamilton 61). Dionysus was also coordinated with the plant cycle, him being the God of the Vine. In the winter “he was torn to pieces” (73), because of the madness he brought upon people who worshipped him. However, “He was always brought back to life” (74), when spring came. Both Demeter and Dionysus died when the cold came, and
Agriculture is provided to the mortals by Demeter, similar to Dionysus. As the God of the Vine, Dionysus is in charge of the grape harvest. He brought the knowledge of wine to the mortals and “taught men the culture of the vine” (63). He showed mortals how to grow the grape vine and he ripens the grapes for them to produce wine. In contrast to the similarities between Demeter and Dionysus, there are also dissimilarities between them. For instance, Demeter is more sympathetic to others while Dionysus is more self afflicted. Although it is true that both Gods feel sorrow, they feel sorrow for different reasons. Demeters despondency is caused by “her daughter [dying] each year” (61). Her sorrow is caused by the loss of her daughter every year, making Demeter alone in the frozen desert of winter. On the other hand, Dionysus was cruel to others because of those who denounce him. When Pentheus criticized Dionysus ordered his worshipers to tear him “limb to limb” (69). His anger and sorrow he feels is more directed towards himself than someone he loves. Equally as different, Dionysus and Demeter have contrastive influences towards