Was Hades An Evil God?
Raffi Scarpa Was Hades an Evil God?
The ancient Greeks believed that the three main gods, Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades, overthrew the previously ruling generation of Titans and divided the world between them. The gods agreed that zeus would get the skies, Poseidon would get the seas, and Hades would get the underworld. Since Hades is the god of underworld, it is often assumed that he is an evil god. Although he did do his fair share of bad deeds, he is no more evil than any of the other gods.
It is commonly believed today and in ancient times that Hades is an evil god. In the time of the Greeks no temples were built in Hades’ honor, and he was worshipped only by a small few (1,2). The vast majority of the Greeks didn’t even speak his name, …show more content…
In order to have balance in the world, whenever people are born others must die. Furthermore, Hades is the one who is granting people life after death, which is to the benifit of anyone who does not deserve to go to hell (5,1). Also, When Hades sends someone to hell he judges them in a fair manner(citation needed)
Another reason that Hades is regarded as evil is that the best known myth about him is about him committing an evil act. This myth was that Hades kidnapped Persephone, the fertility goddess, and married her against her father demeters will. Although this myth portrays Hades as evil, it can not be ignored that Zeus played a part in it to. When Hades requested permission from Zeus to marry Persephone, Zeus told him that Demeter would definitely not agree, but Zeus offered to help Hades kidnap Persephone (1,3).
There aren’t many other myths about Hades, but there are countless myths about the other gods’ wrongdoings. For instance, after prometheus gave man the gift of fire, zeus chained him to a rock and sent eagles to eat at him for the rest of eternity. Zeus also frequently cheated on his wife Hera by sexually assaulting Greek women. Hera would then take revenge by torturing the women whom zeus had assaulted (2,x). There are many more myths about the other gods’ evil acts, and in comparison to them Hades seems to be
The ancient Greeks believed that the three main gods, Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades, overthrew the previously ruling generation of Titans and divided the world between them. The gods agreed that zeus would get the skies, Poseidon would get the seas, and Hades would get the underworld. Since Hades is the god of underworld, it is often assumed that he is an evil god. Although he did do his fair share of bad deeds, he is no more evil than any of the other gods.
It is commonly believed today and in ancient times that Hades is an evil god. In the time of the Greeks no temples were built in Hades’ honor, and he was worshipped only by a small few (1,2). The vast majority of the Greeks didn’t even speak his name, …show more content…
In order to have balance in the world, whenever people are born others must die. Furthermore, Hades is the one who is granting people life after death, which is to the benifit of anyone who does not deserve to go to hell (5,1). Also, When Hades sends someone to hell he judges them in a fair manner(citation needed)
Another reason that Hades is regarded as evil is that the best known myth about him is about him committing an evil act. This myth was that Hades kidnapped Persephone, the fertility goddess, and married her against her father demeters will. Although this myth portrays Hades as evil, it can not be ignored that Zeus played a part in it to. When Hades requested permission from Zeus to marry Persephone, Zeus told him that Demeter would definitely not agree, but Zeus offered to help Hades kidnap Persephone (1,3).
There aren’t many other myths about Hades, but there are countless myths about the other gods’ wrongdoings. For instance, after prometheus gave man the gift of fire, zeus chained him to a rock and sent eagles to eat at him for the rest of eternity. Zeus also frequently cheated on his wife Hera by sexually assaulting Greek women. Hera would then take revenge by torturing the women whom zeus had assaulted (2,x). There are many more myths about the other gods’ evil acts, and in comparison to them Hades seems to be