As the earth remained peaceful in past decades, the human civilization continues to progress, creating technological advances, pursuing humanitarian rights, and continuously fighting for the world’s equality and peace. Little did they know that they are creating an underlying cause of the earth’s imbalances.
One morning, the goddess Artemis is gracefully dancing in the enchanted forest of the earth. To which many decades had passed since she visited the mortal world and did not get the glimpsed of the earth’s land above Olympus, her love for forest and hunting still remains within. She draws her golden bow in the high peaks of mountain, with arching hands and eyes full of hunger for a kill, a released of her arrow is converted into confusion. She did not hear the roaring voice of beast. With wondering mind, she aims multiple arrows above the sky, directing towards the peak of the mountains yet the roars she expects could not be found. Her anger and frustration rise, and she search for the beast she is eager to kill. Finding out the remains of its bones are covered with oil spills that Artemis sight to horizon not far from the river that the beasts are drinking upon, a dark black liquid with random plastics a float. Driven with anger, Artemis witness that the trees are logged to which the deer feeds on, and she let out a huge cry for the loss of abundancy of the forest. The twin brother of Artemis, Apollo heard his sister’s weep above the heaven. Apollo then comforted her sister as they continue to discover factories releasing a deep dark smoke, humans throwing plastic wastes in the oceans and rivers causing the death of Artemis wildly beasts and deer. As Apollo saw an eagle through their wondering in the forest, he knew he has to send their father a message. Apollo asked a favor to the gatherer of clouds to command Helios to use his light, to avenge the sorrows of her sister’s pastime and protected place. Apollo used Helios sunlight to shine upon the earth in an intense manner until the ice melts on the Arctic place, causing the humans to suffer death from and the rise of the ocean, eliminating their population and letting the children weep and the women to not bear a child from their toxicity they released. Sending message to mortals to take part of change and bring back the earth’s abundancy or they will all be vanished.
In this topic of climate change in the aetiological myth, it gives focus on the Greek goddess Artemis, the daughter of Zeus and Leto, she is the goddess of wilderness and appeared manly in her activities in hunting (Britannica, 2020). The mythology has a theme of punishment and redemption, in response to actions of the humans as Olympian gods is not happy by the destruction they made, which always happens in the Greek mythology, as many of the characters are being punished by the dissatisfaction of the gods and goddesses of Olympians, often asking for higher gods order to create the punishment. In this case, it was Zeus that Apollo asked for punishment through the use of Helios, which is the mythological character of light from Odyssey, which Helios told about Aphrodite and Ares’ affair to Hephaistos depicted on the statement: “Helios (the sun-god) had seen them in their dalliance and hastened away to tell Hephaistos; to him the news was bitter as gall, and he made his way towards his smithy, brooding revenge” (Homer, Odyssey. 267). Although, Helios is a messenger and always tells the truth in mythologies, in this story he is utilized on the basis of the basic reason of climate change. Due to scientifical fact that the sun’s radiation is trapping the heat inside the ozone layer, causing ice melts in the Arctic and sea level rise in the ocean, caused by the heat of sun absorbed by the earth that does not goes back to the space. Further, the sorrow and range of Artemis is the cause of the climatic change, inspired to Homer’s book 21 Iliad, she is entitled to kill and hunt to her desire in accordance with Zeus’ words stated:
“Artemis of the wilderness (agrotera), lady of wild beasts (potnia theron) . . . Zeus has made you [Artemis] a lion among women, and given you leave to kill any at your pleasure . . . you hunt down the ravening beasts in the mountains and deer of the wilds” (Homer, Iliad 21. 470-483)
The lines also portray the symbols of Artemis such as the beast and deer, appearing in the story as she is often associated accompanied by those two. Also, the story resembles to the hymn of homer to the goddess depicted in the lines
“Over the shadowy hills and windy peaks she [Artemis] draws her golden bow . . . The tops of the high mountains tremble and the tangled wood echoes awesomely with the outcry of beasts” (H. Hymn 27).
Moreover, the appearance of Apollo in this mythology signifies a theme of family support especially as Artemis and Apollo are twins, which is often portrayed as bounded in any societal scenarios, and also implicitly in classical as analysis of the ancient literature state: “Artemis as the sister of Apollo, is a kind of female Apollo” (Atsma 2017). Thus, they are very similar since they are twins and have almost the same symbol of bow and arrow. The family support signifies great importance in the Greek and Roman mythology, which often times the gods and goddess of their genealogies always look after themselves, similar to how Zeus defeated its own father Kronos to save his brothers and sister whom he [Kronos] ingested (Hesiod, Theogeny. 453). However, although in Theogeny Zeus appears to be in a part of heroic claim for his siblings which are the Olympian gods. In this aetiology, I intended Apollo to be in complete altruistic to Artemis in helping his twin for having sorrowful feelings. Further, it is also related that Artemis help Letho her mother to the born of Apollo which intending in this aetiology to return this favor, with the same reason Artemis became a protector of child and birth. Drawing upon climate change in relation Artemis’ protections, women and children are the ones’ vulnerable as the toxicity of the waste from the ocean is absorbed by the female body that may affect pregnancy (New Scientist 2019). Thus, for this reason, the anger of Artemis can symbolize to the effect of women’s fertility because of the offense that humans made to the nature contrasting to her epithets of “child protector”. On the other hand, Zeus as the gods of gods is described with an epithet of “cloud gatherer” as appeared to many of Homer’s poem which he also appears to be the most powerful in this mythology since Apollo had to ask for his command to avenge her sister, thus, very similar to the classical mythology as him appearing the supreme of Olympian gods (Atsma 2017). Overall, in the theme of redemption of humans in this aetiology signifies importance to the classical ancient myth, which it always shows that in such offerings the gods will always forgive and take back the suffering that some experiences. This is shown on Homer’s Iliad in book 1, when Achilles draws the idea of salvation by offerings, in order to avoid the war and plague that will kill his people which are the mortals Greeks, stated on this quote:
“if war and plague alike are fated to defeat us Greeks, I think we shall be driven to head for home: if, that is, we can indeed escape death. But why not consult some priest, some prophet, some interpreter of dreams, since dreams too come from Zeus, one who can tell why Phoebus Apollo shows such anger to us, because of some broken vow perhaps, or some missed sacrifice; in hopes the god might accept succulent lambs or unmarked goats, and choose to avert our ruin.” (Homer, Iliad 1. 53-100).
Thus, this took a huge inspiration on the aetiological theme of this story as many classical mythologies offers anything they have or could have in many challenges in order to satisfy the gods that punishes them and bring the mortals anything they desire.
Reference
Hesiod, Theogony 453
Homer Iliad 1. 53-100
Homer, Hymn 27
Homer, Iliad 21. 470-483
Homer, Odyssey 8. 267
Atsma, Aaron. “Artemis”.https://www.theoi.com/Olympios/AresMyths.html#Gigantes, (accessed March 9, 2021)
Atsma, Aaron. “Zeus”. https://www.theoi.com/Olympios/Zeus.html#Hymns (accessed March 9, 2021)
Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Artemis". Encyclopedia Britannica, 20 May 2020, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Artemis-Greek-goddess (Accessed 9 March 2021)
New Scientist, “Exposure to Air Pollution Seems to Negatively Affect Women’s Fertility” 25 June 2019, https://www.newscientist.com/article/2207560-exposure-to-air-pollution-seems-to-negatively-affect-womens-fertility/ (accessed March 9, 2021)
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