Download Artemis Research Paper

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Raiza Ruiz-Kline
Hart
English 9 Honors Pd. 3
14 November 2011
Artemis
Of all the goddesses of ancient Greek culture, Artemis was perhaps one of the most
widely revered. She was known as being the goddess of hunting, virginity, wild animals, the
hunt, the moon, forests and hills, and was the protector of childbirth. The Romans identified her
as Diana. Her symbols are bows, arrows, stags and dogs.
Artemis was the daughter of Zeus, leader of the gods, and his sixth wife of seven, Leto.
She is described as being tall and beautiful, with golden-colored curly hair. In Egyptian
mythology, Artemis was the daughter of Dionysus and Isis, with Leto serving as her nurse. Zeus
and Leto had another child named Apollo, the twin brother of Artemis. Collectively the twins are
referred to as the Letoides. According to legend, the mother of the twins, Leto, wandered
extensively searching for a place to give birth because Hera, Zeus’ wife, was resentful of Leto’s
pregnancy and had forbade terra firma (land) to allow her to give birth there. Finally, the island
of Delos allowed Leto to give birth there. Artemis’ birth is regarded as being fairly simple, but
Apollo’s labor took 9 days and nights because Hera was preventing Eileithyia, the goddess of
childbirth, distracted so that she could not aid Leto in childbirth. Hera was bitter towards Leto
because Zeus had been romantically involved with Leto before marrying Hera during Leto’s
pregnancy. Having been born first, Artemis was forced to act as midwife for the birth of her
brother. Hera’s bitterness towards the twins lasted long after their childhood, and Hera beat
Artemis in battle.
Artemis was known for remaining a resolute virgin. Her followers were held to lives of
chastity. Should their virginity be breached, by choice or forcibly, they were punished. When
Callisto, Artemis’ attendant, was raped by Zeus, Artemis killed her. Artemis was also
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conservative. When Actaeon saw her bathing, she turned him into a stag and then set his pack
of hunting dogs on him. Though Artemis was uninfluenced by Aphrodite, the goddess of love,
she did fall in love with Orion, the first person to whom the twins taught the art of hunting.
However, in many stories, out of either jealousy or protectiveness, Apollo either killed the hunter
himself or tricked his sister into killing him. One legend says that Orion, being a great swimmer,
once swam so far out to sea that his head looked like a rock. A jealous Apollo dared Artemis to
shoot the rock, and since she had brilliant skill with the bow and arrow, she shot Orion in the
head, killing him. The heartbroken Artemis sent Orion and his hunting dog to live among the
stars as constellations, as Orion and Sirius respectively. Other legends say that during a discthrowing competition, Orion was hit in the head by a disc thrown by Apollo. She had a band of
attendant nymphs who hunted with her. Artemis, as well as her brother, is most known for
inventing the art of hunting. They were known for being excellent archers. Cyclops made
Artemis’ arrows. In addition to their use as hunting tools, the arrows of Artemis and Apollo could
fly unseen through the air to inflict death or illness upon their unfortunate target.
Throughout their lives, Apollo and Artemis remained very protective of Leto and were
not afraid to inflict vengeance on her behalf. As a result, many legends surrounding Artemis
involve her mother. When the giant Tityus tried to rape Leto, Apollo and Artemis killed him.
When Niobe bragged that she was superior to Leto because she had borne fourteen children
and Leto had only borne two, Apollo and Artemis killed all of Niobe’s children, Apollo killing the
boys and Artemis killing the girls.
Even though Homer treated Artemis as somewhat of a joke in his writing, Artemis was
still an immensely powerful goddess. She was heavily worshipped in Arcadia, Crete, Asia Minor
and Magna Graecia, and was also revered by the Amazons. Her power was widespread, and
she remains revered and respected to this day.
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Bibliography
"Artemis." World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras. ABC-CLIO, 2011. Web. 7 Nov. 2011.
Atsma, Aaron J. "Artemis." Theoi Greek Mythology. Theoi Project, 2011. Web. 07 Nov.
2011. <http://www.theoi.com/>.
Cotterell, Arthur. "Artemis." The Encyclopedia of Mythology: Classical, Celtic, Norse. New York:
Smithmark, 1996. Print.
March, Jennifer R. "Artemis." Cassell's Dictionary of Classical Mythology. London: Cassell,
2001. Print.