Persephone and Demeter

Who would have thought a simple pomegranate seed would doom eternity with dreaded winter?! In mythology, interpretation can be described on three levels; natural, social, and psychological. The natural level is the most superficial where one takes the reading for what is at first glance with no further breaking down of the reading.. The social level embodies the natural level but takes interpretation one step further. The social level shows how society feels given the natural. Where the psychological takes it further yet, it asks the “what if” as if there weren’t the natural and again how society would react. In synopses, the social shows how society reacts with the natural and psychological is how society would react if the natural were taken away.

Demeter, the goddess of corn and symbol of earth, one day just couldn’t find her daughter, Persephone. Low and behold, she found that Hades himself took her in his chariot, drawn of blackest steeds, to the Underworld. Persephone being the symbol of rebirth and flowers and spring, made the earth cold and nothing would blossom or produce. Demeter was infuriated with this and headed straight down to the underworld to show her immense anger towards Hades. Little did little Miss Demeter know, but Persephone had eaten a pomegranate seed which sealed her fate in the underworld for six months out of thee year.

From a social standpoint, Persephone’s six months in the underworld had drastic effects. For those months she was gone, the world turned cold and nothing would grow, creating the dynamic of summer and winter. On the contrary, when she was on earth she made those six months even more beautiful than ever. Flowers were blooming, the weather was great, and harvests were so good that a steady food source was created for society. Summer now represents happiness and growth and creates a key contrast in seasons. The key being that the beauty and representation of summer is highlighted with its 180° counter-part, winter. Society showed a reaction and eventually an adaptation to creation of winter but were blessed with a summer far better than ever before.

Psychologically, society learns important lessons and morals from the story of Persephone. We see the pomegranate seed as a symbol of desire and duality and as a parallel between what is going on in the story. Persephone, naïve in her innocence, eat the seed not knowing the long-term effects shows how desires can overrule reason then and much so in present times. The dynamic of summer and winter is much the same as the beauty and youth of Persephone to the immense loss and grief shared by her mother. The opposite seasons represent the emotions felt by Persephone and her mother and even Hades. With that, Hades greatly enjoyed having someone with him in the underworld, where as Demeter was sad and deeply depressed. This, also a good representation of the growth and change anyone goes through and experience you get from that. Also Hades is given a nurturing side for wanting love through someone else as opposed to his common interpretation of being cruel and evil. With this dynamic it really defines the duality of the myth.

Whether you are a beautiful little girl or the God of the Underworld, you can change popular beliefs. Here we see good come out of a seemingly terrible situation. Lessons are learned from all facets of society, from the Gods to the people (society).