Artemis

Paper Summary:

This paper examines the Greek goddess Artemis, the twin sister of Apollo, who was associated with the wilderness, with the passage to adulthood and with childbirth. The author of this paper examines Artemis' strengths and the tension between those strengths and those of her twin Apollo. The paper also studies Artemis' role in various community and individual ceremonies, including right of passage ceremonies, primarily for women, but also for men.

From the Paper:

"Artemis is a huntress who delights in killing wild animals. She should be seen, however, not as a model for human hunters, but rather as the embodiment of the predatory aspect of nature. She protects the very animals on which she herself preys with as much jealousy as she guards her own virginity. Indeed, it is in myths of Artemis that the first association between wilderness and virginity is found. The deadly sacredness of the wilderness and the goddess's virginity intermingle in the well-known story of Acteon, a hunter who crossed the threshold of Artemis's "sacred grove" while she was bathing. He was changed into a stag for his transgression and was torn apart by his own hounds. Even where there is no sexual tension, Artemis frequently appears as the protectress of wild beasts. An Athenian ritual in which girls between five and ten years of age disguise themselves as bears and serve Artemis at her temple of Brauron supposedly originated when some Athenian children cruelly tortured a wild bear. As punishment, Artemis demanded that the girls of Athens serve her. "

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