Seasons rough draft.docx

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Nicole shidtn

Ms. Aopqlsnfufo

English 1649 AC 3rd hour

October 18, 2019

The Seasons Explained by Gods

The Ancient Greeks had funny, yet weird, ways of explaining the world around them. The ways could just be through gods or have some mortals. Some of the stories were about people, animals, and the weather. Some were full of happiness and sunshine; others were full of despair and sadness. One story that always pulls on the strings to your heart is the one of the seasons. Though it seems it could be full of happies and sunshine, it is full of sorrow and despair. Through the origin story, the Ancient Greeks explained the seasons through Hades’ love for Persephone, Demeter’s determination to get her daughter back, and the mistake Persephone made.

           When the king of the underworld saw Persephone, his cold dead heart melted. Yet he knew the spring maiden’s mother, Demeter, would never let him. In the underworld he devised a ghastly plan to have the spring maiden as his wife, his queen. His plan was simple and worked. He noticed Persephone picking flowers with her friends, so he planted one. The beautiful flower caught the young girl’s eye and she ran towards it. She picked the flower, but it was a trap. She fell into the underworld, her screams being loud and full of fear, but she didn’t

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hit the bottom. She instead landed in Hades’ arms. She tried to fight against the man who caught her, but he is much taller and stronger. He won the small battle the two were having with ease. Yet he knew it wouldn’t be this easy, especially since Demeter heard the screams.

Demeter, the goddess of harvest, was determined to get her daughter back and she’d do anything to get her back. For the first four months she walked around the world, asking anyone and everyone if they had seen her daughter. She didn’t care if she asked mortals for gods, she just wanted her daughter home. While the spring maiden was kidnapped, away for the mortal’s sight, Demeter didn’t do her jobs as a god. Leaving the mortals to starve. She wanted them to feel the pain that she was. She then asked Apollo, who told her about the deal between Hades and Zeus. Demeter knew she wouldn’t be able to get Persephone back with that deal. Demeter then traveled the world as an old lady, still searching for her daughter. Then she ran into four little girls. She told them a story that she was kidnapped by pirates and ran away. The girls felt sorry for her, so they asked their mother if she could become their young brother’s nanny which the mom said yes to. As the days went on, Demeter felt the boy fill the hole in her heart that Hades ripped out. She wanted him to live with her forever as her child, so she started to try and make the child immortal. The key word being try. She wasn’t successful as the child’s mother found out. She then ran away. Demeter stayed in her temple; crying is sorrow.  As Zeus noticed that his wife, Demeter, wouldn’t do her job without her daughter back. So, he sent Hermes to reason with her, offering her any power she wanted, anything she wanted. But all she said is that she wanted her daughter back. Hermes told Zeus and Zeus sent Hermes to return Persephone to the surface, but Hades had a different plan.