The Goddess

Paper Summary:

This paper examines the role of goddesses in Greek and Roman mythology. The author discusses how they were worshiped in polytheistic cultures, how goddesses were portrayed as virgins, mothers, wives, always in relation to male counterparts. The paper looks at such goddesses as Hera, Demeter, Gaia, Aphrodite, Artemis, Athena, and more.

From the Paper:

"Long ago, the image of the goddess appeared. Stone was carved and bone modeled after a reflection of a maternal figure. Her curvaceous body and falling breasts seem to be humanity's first tangible image of life. From the beginning, the Great Mother was associated with nurturing and life giving. This notion, of Mother Earth as the bearer of all that is living, and the provider of sustenance of life, dates back to a time when we as humans, regarded ourselves as children of nature, and nature as divine, Baring & Cashford, The Myth of the Goddess. London : Penguin Books, 1991. pg. 5. Myths corroborate that women and goddesses were responsible for the discovery of food cultivation and ultimately the preservation of life. While the primacy of the goddess and the idea of the goddess as the creator are not seen in all civilizations, many do show evidence towards this sort of belief."

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