Essay On Homeric Hymn To Demeter

In the Homeric Hymns, the ode to Demeter portrays her life and character amidst the rape of her daughter, Persephone, by Hades. Daughter of Cronus and sister of Zeus, Demeter sits among the Olympian Gods. Although Demeter is one of the most prominent goddesses in Greek mythology, her epic is not central to solely her character, but how she is illustrated and morphed by the text. By analyzing how Demeter is rendered by the hymn, she is broadcasted in ways that underscores her isolation and ostracized character, in evident of her differences between the gods and how she is described by the text. The Hymn to Demeter conveys examples of the reclusiveness of Demeter away from the other Olympian gods. Gaia, the Titan who is similar to Demeter in which they overlook the Earth and life - therefore, ostensibly
Despite being one of the major deities of Greek mythology, she is depicted in this epic as a character who is continuously isolated from groups and fails to form tangible relationships besides with her daughter. Catalyzed by rage and misery over the rape of Persephone, she goes to lengths in order for her to be appraised by the other Gods, yet her voice is still not completely heard in the end, as Zeus’ reconciliation can be seen as insufficient and still pertaining to Hades. It is very interesting to see that while other myths talk off triumph and redemption, Demeter’s hymn begins and ends with loss and loneliness, differentiating her from not only how the gods view her, but how the author does as well. Although Demeter is rejected by many in the myth, readers can sympathize with her loss and unfair treatment from those around her, acknowledging that, despite all, she is still one of the Twelve Olympians -- immortalizing her and her hymn as one of the most significant in Greek