APHRODITEMegan Field

WHO IS SHE? Aphrodite is the Greek goddess who has been

associated with love, beauty, and fertility

Homer said she was the daughter of Zeus and Dione, and Hesoid said she emerged from the foam of the sea and washed ashore in Cyprus

Her name comes from aphros, the Greek word for foam

One of her sons is Eros (also known as Cupid)

APHRODITE’S SIGNIFICANCE

Aphrodite was one of the 12 main gods the Greeks worshipped

Because she was said to control love and fertility, many people worshipped her to earn her favor

STORIES ABOUT APHRODITE

Like all the gods, Aphrodite was a main character in stories told by mortals

Although she was married to Hephaestus, she had many mortal and immortal lovers, and these love affairs were usually the basis for the stories told about her

JUDGMENT OF PARIS In most stories, Aphrodite is held

indirectly responsible for the Trojan war When Paris of Troy was asked to pick the

most beautiful of Aphrodite, Hera, and Athena, he chose Aphrodite, who had tempted him by promising him the fairest women in the world

Unfortunately, this woman was Helen, who was already married to the king of Sparta

TROJAN WAR Aphrodite of course was on the side of

the Trojans in the Trojan War She supported them not only because it

was her promise that had caused it, but also her son Aeneas had a major role in the Trojan army

In the years that followed the Trojan War, Aphrodite helped Aeneas to found the city which would become the Roman Empire

APHRODITE AND ADONIS A beautiful woman named Myrrha

scorned the goddess by saying that Aphrodite’s beauty was inferior to her own

Aphrodite was outraged To get back at Myrrha, she made her fall

inappropriately in love with her father, Cinyrus the king of Cyprus

Her father was of course repulsed by this, but Myrrha tricked him into sleeping with her, and had a son named Adonis

ADONIS Aphrodite took Adonis to the underworld

to be cared for by Persephone and Hades

He was beautiful, and Persephone did not want to give him back to Aphrodite

Zeus ruled that for half the year, Adonis should live in the underworld with Persephone and live with Aphrodite for the rest of year

This was one of the ways Greeks explained winter and spring

CONCLUSION

While Aphrodite was concerned a weak and fearful goddess, her meddling had just as much affect as the other gods’

Greek myths made it very clear that when it comes to love and beauty, you don’t want to get on Aphrodite’s bad side