Persephone and Demeter
The myth of Demeter and Persephone is a story of beauty, precious innocence, loss, and a reason for change. A mother’s grievance and sorrow for her perfect creation, snatched, and exposed. A virgin’s innocence stolen, from the man of mystery and fear. There are three different levels of interpretation in analyzing myths. The natural explanation of the story explains the obvious, the surface layer of the story, and the simple details of the myth. The social level explains how society reacts to the natural level. And last the psychological level of interpretation explains the inner most details of the story, the hidden messages and meanings of the story and how it can relate to the reader personally.
In the myth of Demeter and Persephone the surface details are simple. Demeter is the Corn Goddess, she provides for the people of the Earth. Persephone is the Goddess of Spring. She represents new life and change, babies and birth. She symbolizes newness and freshness in the seasons. These are the first details the reader is made aware of, but there is a massive amount of depth and layers in the next level of interpretation.
On the social level, Demeter is referred to by society as the “Good Mother”. She represents Agriculture, planting, and growing. Civilization would not have been possible without her help and her gift of corn. She symbolizes versatility. She is a leader, a queen. Persephone symbolizes many things on a social level; one being happiness. She is always so happy and, she contains innocence and carries her youth as a privilege, savoring and enjoying every minute of it, knowing it only lasts so long. Persephone is beautiful, and lively, perfection lingers closely around her. She defines purity and virginity. When she is stolen away by the feared god of the underworld, Hades, all of these traits change. She is forced into marriage, her purity and innocence taken from her unwillingly. Her liveliness and spirit are crushed.
The last layer, the psychological aspect, holds so many deep details. Demeter is nurturing and caring to Persephone and her people she watches over. She is protective and provides a sense of safety and security. Demeter is a mother to Persephone; her daughter is part of her. She loves Persephone dearly and when she is taken, Demeter experiences the pain, the emotional loss, and the loneliness around her without Persephone by her side. This is the same grief that human’s have when they have lost a loved one from their lives, so even though she is a goddess, Demeter relates. Persephone is such a complex individual; the details can be analyzed so deeply. She holds such a compassion and love for the beauty around her. She is a daughter, a friend, and someone that defined perfection. Persephone is also malleable like an impression, she takes in everything around her, and with every new thing she learns, like anyone, she changes and grows. She contains so much curiosity and adventure inside of her, which is where she comes to be very vulnerable and naïve to the imperfections and dangers around her. When she is taken unwillingly by Hades, she realizes the darker side of things that she had never been exposed to. Her innocence and purity is stolen from her and she feels a sense of loss, guilt and shame. But as she learns of the darker side, she still holds her curiosity, which leads her to the seed and the return to Hades for four months of the year, where she leaves earth and everything dies. Her mother mourns until her daughters safe return.
There are three layers of myth analysis, natural, social, and psychological. Within these layers we are able to see and pick out the deep unknown details that in some way relate to us as readers personally. The myth of Demeter and Persephone is a story of beauty, precious innocence, loss, and a reason for change. A mother’s grievance and sorrow for her perfect creation, snatched, and exposed. A virgin’s innocence stolen, from the man of mystery and fear. In Some way we can all relate to this meaningful myth.
