How Does Sappho Describe The Greek Perception Of Love?

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Sappho, born to an aristocratic family on the island of Lesbos around 640 BCE, is the earliest known female author to date. Though most of her work has been lost, her few remaining poems are very telling of the ancient society in which she lived (lecture slides). Much of the famous stories before Sappho had the sole focus of war and heroism, which clearly characterizes the importance of such ideals in Ancient Greece. Sappho’s lyric poetry, however, presents one of the first accounts to describe the Greek perception of love.
One perspective shown through Sappho, is the evanescent nature of love. Her only fully recovered poem, known as “Prayer to Afroditi”, was written for a cult of young women formed by Sappho, and meant as a performance for the goddess Aphrodite (encyclopedia.com). Due to this, the anonymous speaker can be assumed female. She vocalizes for Aphrodite, saying the goddess would ask, “Whom shall I persuade again to take you into her love?” This suggests that within Greek society, love and passion are acceptably fleeting. The speaker recognizes that her “crazy heart” is frequently falling in love and she’s asked for many favors, …show more content…

In the “Prayer to Afroditi”, begging “fill my heart with fire”, it would appear that love and lust are considered interchangeable. This concept can also be seen in her other poem, “Return, Gongyla”. Sappho writes that “again desire floats around you the beautiful. When you saw her dress it excited you. I’m happy. The Kypros-born once blamed me for praying this word: I want.” Here, lust fueled by the desire for a beautiful woman overtakes the author. She felt incriminated for praying for love, but recognized that love fulfilled her wanting. This gratification, interpreted as love during the time, wouldn’t qualify now. Love in Ancient Greece was the feeling you got when you wanted someone, rather than the committal bond we see

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