Aphrodite

By A.O.

The ancient Greeks worshiped Aphrodite in many ways that reflected the values of the civilization. Aphrodite was the goddess of love and beauty. She was born fully-grown from sea foam and was blown to the island of Cyprus, which was considered her true home. Dainty and delicate, she entranced everyone who saw her, including mortals. Zeus, the king of the gods, was worried that they would all fight over Aphrodite, so he quickly married her off to Hephaestus, the steady, hard working god of fire and smith-work. Aphrodite preferred Ares, god of war, because he was not ugly like Hephaestus. Even though she was beautiful, the Greeks considered her to be selfish, vain, and cowardly as well. Her symbols are the rose, swan, dove, and myrtle tree. This radiant goddess was very important in Greek mythology. Aphrodite represented lots of things that the ancient Greeks valued in women, such as beauty and grace. The Greeks valued Aphrodite because they thought that beauty was important. She was known to unite people in marriage, make people fall in love with each other, and punish those who did not thank her for any favor she had done in very brutal ways. She also was a protector of sailors, and they also worshiped her. Greeks thought that without her, there would be no joy or beauty on Earth.Aphrodite was a highly worshiped goddess in Greek culture.In many myths, Aphrodite was considered a dangerous as well as an angelic goddess. In the myth, The Apple of Discord, a golden apple was given to the “fairest of all goddesses”. Three goddesses (one of them Aphrodite) each offered bribes to have it. Aphrodite offered the most beautiful woman on Earth and won. This shows how much beauty is valued in ancient Greek culture. In many myths, Aphrodite is portrayed as what the people of Greece thought women should be and act like. Aphrodite was a very important goddess in ancient Greek mythology and culture because of her many characteristics.