Sappho and her view on Aphrodite

Ethan Clarke

- Give two ways in which this Aphrodite differs from her portrayal in the Iliad. (2 marks)
In the Iliad, Aphrodite seems more manly in the fact that she is more forceful in her
approach to Helen. “Come hither; Paris calleth thee to go home.” Also, when Helen tries to
turn Aphrodite down with the offer of sex with Paris, Aphrodite lashes back with, “Provoke
me not, rash woman, lest I wax wroth and desert thee and hate thee.” This is a clear
opposite to how Sappho describes her as she describes her as a more caring and thoughtful
character who tries to sort out people’s problems in a nice and calm way. “You, blessed
woman.”

- How successfully does Sappho portray the power of the Goddess? Answer with reference
to the passage. (10 marks)
In Sappho’s Loeb 1, “Aphrodite, goddess of the embroidered throne,” Sappho describes
Aphrodite’s power in how she helps Sappho with dealing with the loss of one of here many
lovers.
In the first two lines of the poem, Sappho uses three epithets to describe Aphrodite,
“embroidered throne, Daughter of Zeus, weaver of wiles.” Here, Sappho goes straight to
telling the reader, three of Aphrodite’s attributes, one of which was being the weaver of
wiles, which means that Aphrodite was quite cunning.
Also, Sappho creates an image of Aphrodite soothing love which is the complete opposite
to Eros, the god of desire. “Do not overpower my heart with anguish, with affliction.” This
could have shown off Aphrodite’s power for being able to control Sappho’s desires. Another
way in which Sappho portrays Aphrodite’s power is the way she describes her ascent to
Earth to talk to Sappho. “Yoking your chariot: Swift, beautiful sparrows.” This creates a
powerful image of Aphrodite coming down to earth in her godly chariot but with the grace
of sparrows just to talk to Sappho.
Sappho also shows the reader that Aphrodite is not just powerful, but thoughtful as well.
as she was “leaving your fathers chambers” to go and talk to Sappho. This creates a sense
that Aphrodite was a loving goddess whose powers helped people who needed help.
In conclusion, Sappho was successful in her portrayal of the goddess Aphrodite as she used
the evidence that she knew herself about Aphrodite and how she had shown her power to
Sappho. However, this does not correspond to Homers depiction of Aphrodite in the Iliad, as
he showed her as a rash woman who used her powers against people and for her own good.