Feminist Approaches to Myth

1. Feminist Approaches to Myth The Great Goddess and more…

2. Two basic aspects of a feminist approach • Restoration of recovery of “lost” or submerged evidence or traditions and subsequent revision (for example, the Great Goddess) • Interpretation of myth from the standpoint of gender roles, gender dynamics, evidence of misogyny and the subjugation of women—what can myths tell us about culturally sanctioned toward women and gender?

3. “Venuses”Archaeological Evidence Supporting a Lost Tradition ofGreat Goddess Worship

4. Marija Gimbutas • Archaeologist, 1921-1994, born in Lituania • Studied pre-Indo-European cultures of ancient Europe • Because of the many female figurines unearthed from the time-period of 30000 BCE to 3000 BCE, she hypothesized that a woman-centered, peace-loving, cooperative culture preceded the development of male-dominated, militaristic, patriarchal culture http://www.marijagimbutas.com/marija-gimbutas-videos.html

5. The Great Goddess • Worship of the great or creator goddess predates the workshop of the patriarchal gods • We find evidence of the GG in aspects of goddesses from later periods • Gave birth by parthenogenesis • She is the source of life, death and rebirth • She has a triple nature and is all encompassing of heaven, earth and underworld • She embodies three aspects of the female lifecycle: maiden, mother and old woman • Symbols related to her are: the snake, moon, vessel (jar, vase, pot, oven), bird, cow • Over time, her attributes are separated out into different deities—e.g., Hera, Artemis, Demeter, Aphrodite • Triple aspects are reinterpreted—refashioned—from a patriarchal perspective • Patriarchy also gives rise to a new archetype, the hero—singular, linear, dualities vs integration, cycles

6. Mistress of Animals,Serpents and Birds

7. Gimbutas’s Contributions • Identified a diverse and complex range of Neolithic female divinities, including bird goddess, mistress of animals, Queen of the Mountains, snake goddess, bear-mother, life-giver, earth mother, craft giver, goddess of death--and more--and designated these as multiple forms of the “Great Goddess” • Identified and deciphered the ideogram system of the European Neolithic, including many abstract and geometric signs, such as the spiral, comb, hour-glass, frog, owl, breast, vulva, uterus, snake, pig, boar • Clarified the differences between this “Old European” sign system and the later Bronze Age symbol systems that reflect the dominance of male gods and use images of the tools and weapons of war

8. The Rise of the Hero Ultimately, the triple aspects of the Great Goddess are reinterpreted from a patriarchal perspective, and the rise of patriarchy generates a new archetype: the hero • Singular • Linear • Death is final • Aim is to achieve immortality More on the hero when we study the Iliad and Odyssey

9. Consider Hesiod’s Goddesses from the Perspective of the Great Goddess Theory • Gaea is a parthenogenetic goddess, one of the components of the primordial universe and she includes all levels of the universe within her: upper lower, light dark, life and death—she mediates between these. • Gaea maintains her functions as source of life and death by conspiring with her children to castrate Ouranos. • In the next generation, however, Zeus battles with Typhoeus (world serpent, chthonic and representing the death wielding aspect of the GG, now separated out) and Gaea fades from view. • Gaea’s triple functions are most commonly syncretized with Demeter. Similarly GG’s attributes are separated out as virgin (Athena), wife (Hera), and lover (Aphrodite). Her chthonian attributes are manifested in goddesses such as Hecate and Artemis. • Gaea’schthonian attributes are manifested in goddesses such as Hecate and Artemis.  • Although a positive figure in Hesiod, embodying powers of all of the gods—sea and earth, victory in battle, fishing, farming, abundance, fertility, wealth, and plenty –because of her association with the Underworld, Hecate is eventually stripped of her positive associations and becomes instead identified with unlucky places, the night, crossroads and the moon—the death-giving functions of the GG.

10. Video clips to illustrate: MarijaGimbutas : Youtube, “Signs Out ofHistory,” parts 1-3 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ozaeuULrLjM

11. Homeric Hymn to Demeter • How does a feminist approach help illuminate the Homeric Hymn to Demeter—either by suggesting “lost traditions” or the diminished role of the Great Goddess, or by illuminating gender roles under patriarchy • What are some other interpretive approaches to HHD?

12. What do we know about women’s roles and status in Classical Athens from sources other than myth and literature? • Free-born women were citizens, but did not vote or participate in the public life of the democracy (men inhabited agora, law courts, gymnasium) • Women stayed out of public view, were expected to remain silent and avoid being discussed by men • Women’s clothing was intended to conceal—modesty was a female virtue • Woman’s role was primarily in the home: domestic crafts and child bearing and rearing • Women lived in separate quarters of the house, among other women • Women were treated as legal minors; under the guardian ship of an adult male (father, husband, brother) • Women actively participated in religious practice and ritual How does this knowledge of women correspond to the representation of women in myth and the literary works that are the sources of Greek myth?