Roman gods of love and lust PDF

Preview

Summary

Roman Gods of Love and Lust lecture notes...

Description

Sex, bodies and identity Roman gods of love and lust Love- amare (Latin); agape (Greek) Lust – venus, libidine or eupiditas (Latin); eros (Greek)   

Forces of nature (that can command even the gods) Distinct from fertility Consider also in contrast to (the virtue of) chastity

Aphrodite/ Venus: Two orignins: 1. Created in sea from the blood of Uranus spilled when castrated by Cronus (Aphrodite Urania) 2. The daughter of Zeus and Dione (Aphrodite Pendemos) Goddess of:  Beauty  Love  (sometimes) marriage

Eros/ Cupid: Uncertain origin: 1. may be pre-Olympian 2. son of Aphrodite by Ares Attendant of Aphrodite/ Venus Ideal of masculine beauty God of:  Desire and lust  Notably male same-sex relations in classical Greek period

Peitho/ Suadela Numerous reputed origins: 1. Daughter of Aphrodite by Dionyus 2. Daughter of the titans Tethys and Oceanus 3. Wife of Hermes

Attendant of Venus Goddess of  persuasion and seduction

The Erotes A group of winged deities that were attendants of Aphrodite Eros is the most well know but also  Anteros- requited love  Hedylogos- sweet-talk and flattery  Hermaphroditus- Hermaphrodites and effeminate men  Himeros- desire and unrequited love  Hymenaeus/Hymen- wedding/marriage

Hermes/ Mercury Son of Zeus by Maia God of:  Travel and messages  Charm/trickery/ thef  Invention  Fortune It is the latter (good fortune) and its associated with fertility that makes this deity

Dionysus/ Bacchus Son of Zeus by Semele (daughter of Cadmus) God of:  Wine (and all related to it)  Theatre  Fertitlity  Ecstasy and madness (ritually induced)  Resurrection Generally agreed to be a late addition to the Greek pantheon, whose image changes from mature bearded man to androgynous youth across the centuries

Pan

Son of Hermes or Apollo by a nymph God of:  Nature  Shepherds  Music Ofen participates in Bacchic rituals, and portrayed as unfettered lust

Priapus Son of Aphrodite:  Sire may be Hermes, Pan, Dionysus, Adonis or Zeus God of  Fortune  Fertility  Domestic security Particularly associated with the home In late Antiquity, associated with pornography, fornication, and sexual comedy

Chastity Chastity- conscientious choice of virginity, and therefore devotion to purity and innocence  Corroborates virtue of the dutiful girl/woman Deities of Chastity- accept appeals of the chaste, and offer protection (and revenge); resist/defy lust and love (and thus Aphrodite)  Hestia-goddess of the hearth and sacred fire  Athena/ Minerva- goddess of war, wisdom, and weaving  Artemis/ Diana- goddess of the hunt and moon...