Definitions

A myth is a tale of gods and goddess’, myths generally give an explanation to the world around us. Some believe mythical stories give religious support or support for certain beliefs.

A hero is the character in the story with unique characteristics that set him or her apart from others. The hero goes out into the world on a hero journey in hope of bettering society as a whole.

A hero journey is the series of events the hero goes through during the story. The hero has a call to adventure, an initiation, and many struggles; this is all involved in a cyclical pattern.

The main idea in any story is the universal relation, meaning the story relates to everything, it’s the big picture, the foundation of being.

The archetype is the original kind, the structure, or the original model.

A cyclical journey is such that the hero starts at the beginning and through all trial and error makes it back to where he or she started, changed and redefined.

Duality in any story is the quality of opposites existing in a whole.

Creation is the beginning of our world, whether it began with the egg, the void, or the watery abyss.

Cosmology is the study of the world, its beginning and its end; cosmology is universal.

The phrase life from death simply means when there is death, there is also life. Sacrifice of one’s self in a hero’s case.

A matriarchal society is a society that believes in a foundation of female power.

A patriarchal society is a society that believes in a foundation of male power.

When a hero lays down ones life for the betterment of the community this is called sacrifice. A hero could also sacrifice something in there life for this as well.

Demeter and Persephone

Alex Witwer
Interpretation Essay
Mythology 2
19 September 2008

Demeter and Persephone

Demeter on a physical level is known as the giver, the corn goddess and the symbol of Earth. On a social level, she is a leader who brought civilization and the gift of corn. On a broader view, she’s agriculture. She is the form of growth in the birth of people and plants. She’s a mother and a provider which are two very important things; not only on a social level but also on an individual scale. On an emotional level, she helps us grow into adults and mentors. She is emotional, caring and protective. She knows the loss of life through her plants, and her daughter Persephone.

Persephone is the symbolism of youth, virginity, beauty and innocence. She’s the inner being in all of us, of what we are bound to be. As we grow up we possess these qualities, but want to rid ourselves of them. Once they are gone, we want them back. When Persephone gives into the pomegranate seed, her mother is distraught, lonely and depressed, which is where we got winter and fall.

The pomegranate seed represents a type of poison that fills the minds of everyone. It represents our lusts, desires, the loss of innocence, and temptation: When Persephone gives into her lust for the pomegranate seeds, it bounds her to the underworld, giving her a consequence for her ill thoughts. In daily life today, we experience similarities. On a night of passion with a guy, the consequence could be pregnancy which bounds you for life to this man and child you bore with him. The pomegranate seed is a part of everyday life.

The story of Demeter and Persephone goes deeper than just a mythological idea. It touches the deepest levels of the mind, civilization, society, our laws and the world. It also explains our needs, wants, desires and seasons. It shows how easy it is to give into your desires and lusts, and the consequences that can come from acting on impulse. Its not only the story of how our weather came to be, but the story of a mother and daughter and the shame of losing your innocence.